Kerala has forty-four rivers and three thousand millimetres of rain a year, and it still runs short of water. First the water bodies: പുഴ and നദി, the backwater കായൽ, ponds, mangroves and the household well. Then why the shortage happens: short, steep rivers that empty fast, rain concentrated in two monsoons, and paddy fields that once held water now built over. That gives you the vocabulary of floods in July and a dry well in April, from കിണർ വറ്റി to rainwater harvesting. It ends with the practical side, including the boiled water you will be offered everywhere. Words and phrases in this class: പുഴ (puzha) – river (everyday word) നദി (nadi) – river (formal word) കായൽ (kaayal) – backwater lagoon കുളം (kulam) – pond, tank കിണർ (kinar) – well അണക്കെട്ട് (anakkettu) – dam വെള്ളച്ചാട്ടം (vellachaattam) – waterfall കണ്ടൽക്കാട് (kandalkkaadu) – mangrove വയൽ (vayal) – paddy field കിണർ വറ്റി (kinar vatti) – the well has dried up വെള്ളക്ഷാമം (vellakshaamam) – water scarcity മഴവെള്ള സംഭരണം (mazhavella sambharanam) – rainwater harvesting തിളപ്പിച്ച വെള്ളം (thilappicha vellam) – boiled water In this class: • Rivers, backwaters, wells and ponds: the water words • Why a state with so much rain runs dry in April • Paddy fields as reservoirs, and the vocabulary of scarcity • Drinking water at home: boiled water and how to ask for it Quizzes below. Dr. Reshmi R Nair — SpeakMalayalam.