Class 10 — the question machine, in Malayalam script. This is the class that makes you self-sufficient: once you can ask questions, you can learn the language from the people around you rather than from a course. There are two kinds of question, and Malayalam handles both more simply than English does. KIND ONE — YES OR NO. You add one sound to the end. Nothing else moves. No word order change, no auxiliary verb, no do-support. ആണോ? (aano?) is it? · ഉണ്ടോ? (undo?) is there / do you have? · വേണോ? (veno?) do you want? · വരുമോ? (varumo?) will you come? · കഴിച്ചോ? (kazhicho?) did you eat? · പോയോ? (poyo?) did you go? · അറിയാമോ? (ariyaamo?) do you know? · പറ്റുമോ? (pattumo?) is it possible? In use: നിങ്ങൾ മലയാളി ആണോ? · ചായ ഉണ്ടോ? · നാളെ വരുമോ? · നിങ്ങൾക്ക് മലയാളം അറിയാമോ? That last one you will be asked constantly. Have the answer ready: അൽപ്പം അറിയാം (alppam ariyaam) — I know a little. KIND TWO — THE QUESTION WORDS, the whole set: എന്ത് (enthu) what · ആര് (aaru) who · എവിടെ (evide) where · എപ്പോൾ (eppol) when · എങ്ങനെ (engane) how · എത്ര (ethra) how much, how many · ഏത് (ethu) which · ആരുടെ (aarude) whose · എന്തുകൊണ്ട് (enthukondu) why. Notice that almost every one begins with the same sound. That is not coincidence — they are a family built on a shared root, exactly as English question words nearly all begin with wh. When one stands as a whole question by itself, it takes the ആണ് from Class 2: എന്താണ്? what is it · ആരാണ്? who is it · എവിടെയാണ്? where is it · എത്രയാണ്? how much is it. In real speech these all shorten. Learn the full forms; expect the short ones. And the structural point, which is a good one: in Malayalam the question word STAYS WHERE THE ANSWER WOULD GO. English hauls it to the front. Malayalam leaves it in place. Quizzes below. Dr. Reshmi R Nair — SpeakMalayalam.