Telugu is the primary language of the people who hail from the Andhra Pradesh region of India. This language is quite intimidating to learn because it has many different pronunciations, vowels, and consonants. However, if you are willing to set study goals, dedicate time each day to study, and find good learning resources, you can learn to speak and/or write in Telugu.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Learning Common Words in Telugu
Step 1. Learn common nouns in Telugu
By mastering essential everyday vocabulary such as “food” and “water”, you will begin to become familiar with Telugu speaking or writing material. Use a Telugu exercise book or a website that lists common nouns, such as:
- He (male) - (atadu)
- She (female) - (aame)
- Boy - (abbay)
- Daughter - (ammay)
- House - (illu)
- Water - /నీళ్ళు (niru / nillu)
- Food - /కూడు/అన్నం (piercing / kuudu / annam)
Step 2. Add some Telugu verbs into your vocabulary
Studying commonly used verbs will help you identify the actions that occur in Telugu sentences. Combine this with a vocabulary of known nouns to quickly grasp the basics of Telugu. As an example:
- Go - (vellu)
- Talking - (maatlaadu)
- Tofu - (telusu)
- Giving/Responding - (ivvu)
- Take - (tiisuko)
- Eat - (tinadaaniki)
- Drink - (paniyam)
Step 3. Keep adding colloquial words to communicate with Telugu
For example, here are some words to use when asking:
- Where - (ekkada)
- Why - (enduku)
- What - (iicore)
- How - (ela)
- When - (eppudu)
- Which one - (idi)
Step 4. Practice speaking common phrases in Telugu
Apart from memorizing individual words in Telugu, you should also practice pronouncing common phrases. Start with common phrases to ask basic questions and make small talk in Telugu. As an example:
- Hello - (namaskaaram)
- How are you? - ? (miru ela unnaru?)
- My name… - … (naa peru…)
- Goodbye - (vellostanu)
- I don't understand - (naaku ardham kaledu)
- Do you speak English? - (నువ్వు) (ఆంగ్ల) (వా)? (miru [nuvvu] aanglam [aangla bhasha] matladagalara [va]?)
- Thank you - (danyavaadamulu)
Method 2 of 3: Studying Basic Telugu Writing and Structure
Step 1. Practice writing vowels and consonants in Telugu
The letters in Telugu (వర్ణమాల [varnamaala]) are made up of syllables and all consonants have accompanying vowels. Vowels are written independently at the beginning of a syllable. Start learning how to write in Telugu by focusing on each letter individually.
- The individual vowels (అచ్చులు - acculu) are: ఎ ఒ ఓ అం, in order, here's how to pronounce them: a, aa, i, ii (longer), u, uu (longer), ru, ruu (longer), e (like “catfish”), e, ai, o, O (like “ow”), au, am, and ah.
- The consonants (హల్లులు - hallulu) in Telugu are:,,,, -ka, kha, ga, gha, na;,,,, - cha, cha, ja, jha, nya; - Ta, Tha, Da, Dha, Na; - tha, thha, da, dhha, na; భ - pa, pha, ba, bha, ma;,,,,, - yes, ra, la, va, shya, sha; ళ, - sa, ha La, ksha, ar
Step 2. Learn to write consonant conjunctions and vowel diacritics
Consonant consonants are special symbols used when combining certain consonants. There are 34 consonant conjunctions in Telugu. In addition, there are 14 vowel diacritics – these symbols appear above, below, or after a consonant to change the accompanying vowel.
You can see a list of these symbols at
Step 3. Take time to write in Telugu every day
If you are used to writing in Latin letters, writing telugu letters will seem very difficult. However, with daily practice you will get used to the arrangement of the letters faster than you think. The most important thing is to dedicate yourself to continuing to learn while keeping your main goal in mind.
Take a Telugu language book and copy the writing you see in it. Every now and then, test your skills by translating text from Latin to Telugu
Step 4. Identify the sentence parts of the basic structure of the Telugu Language
To master the basic structure of Telugu (వ్యాకరణ - vyaakarana), you may need the help of a Telugu teacher or take a Telugu writing class. However, you can start to learn to recognize the parts in sentences (భాషాభాగాలు - bhaasyaabagalu) of this language. These sections are:
- – Noun (naamavaacakam)
- – Pronoun (sarvanaamam)
- - Verb (kriiya)
- – Adjective (visyesanam)
- – Additional verb (aviyayam)
Step 5. Learn the rules of language structure for making prepositions, negative sentences, and questions
Once you are comfortable enough writing in Telugu and recognize the parts of sentences (nouns, verbs, etc.), try to learn more challenging language structures. For example, practice recognizing and writing prepositions, negative sentences, and questions in Telugu.
- Examples of prepositions are: He comes with his little dog - చిన్న - (Tanna cinna kukka vaccina); I eat without using a knife - - (Nenu katti lekuṇḍa tinaḍaniki)
- Examples of negative sentences (compare these two sentences): I understand what you are saying - మీరు - (Neenu miru artam); I don't understand what you're saying - - (Neenu miru ardam kaadu)
- Example of a question: What is your name? - ? - (Mi peeru emiti?); How much it costs? - ? - (ii will you vote?)
Method 3 of 3: Learning Telugu through Hard Work Every Day
Step 1. Set a specific goal to learn Telugu
Start by asking yourself why you are learning Telugu – is it to get to know your ancestors' cultural heritage, prepare for a trip, impress someone, or just to broaden your knowledge? Once you know your ultimate goal, make a plan to achieve it.
For example, let's say you are traveling to the Andhra Pradesh region for 3 months so you want to learn basic conversational Telugu. If so, focus on learning basic vocabulary and conversational phrases
Step 2. Memorize 30 basic Telugu vocabularies every day
This way, in 90 days you will learn 2700 common Telugu words. Just like any other language, knowing the basic vocabulary will get you familiar with 80% of the words used in written and spoken Telugu.
This 90 day plan may not be ideal for all situations, depending on your specific goals in learning Telugu. However, it is a good way to learn the basics of a language in a relatively short amount of time
Step 3. Spend 30 to 60 minutes every day learning 30 words in Telugu
It is very important to make a plan and stick to it. To create a vocabulary list, take words from a textbook or Telugu website. You can also make a list of common Indonesian vocabulary, and then use an online translation tool like Google Translate.
Even though they sound old-fashioned, flash cards are a powerful tool for memorizing foreign language vocabulary
Step 4. Use a tutor or use a Telugu learning program
You may be able to self-taught through a 30 word per day program. However, there are many people who find it helpful to study with a tutor or join a language learning program.
- There are many Telugu learning programs available online. Look through several options and choose the one that best fits your primary goal of learning the language.
- Hiring a Telugu tutor is a more expensive option. Also, you may have a hard time finding a Telugu tutor in Indonesia. However, some people can learn faster through one-on-one interaction.
Step 5. Incorporate Telugu into your home and daily activities
Incorporate the language into daily activities as your vocabulary begins to develop. For example, label things at home as they are in Telugu, play Telugu music while you are making dinner, or practice reading Telugu children's books.
In the end, you can test yourself by changing the language setting on your phone to Telugu
Step 6. Practice Telugu more often after 60 days
If you study 30 words per day, you will memorize about 1,800 words in 2 months. At this point, you can "dive into" the conversation in Telugu and understand at least some of the words spoken by speakers of the language.
- If a friend of yours speaks Telugu, ask him to lead a conversation and try to respond or even talk to him.
- Alternatively, watch online videos in Telugu and turn off subtitles when you are ready to test your skills.
Step 7. Listen and see how native speakers speak Telugu
When observing other people who speak Telugu, you need to focus not only on the words used, but also on the tone of voice, facial expressions and hand gestures, body language, and so on. Observing and listening carefully is very helpful to streamline your way of speaking in Telugu on a daily basis.
Step 8. Forget your mistakes and keep learning Telugu
People often think that children learn new languages faster because their brains are different. However, the real reason for this is because they are not afraid to try new things, make mistakes, and start over. So, wake up your childhood again while learning Telugu!
If you stutter or ask weird questions, laugh at the mistake and try again. Most Telugu speakers, like speakers of other languages in the world, will be delighted when foreign speakers try to use their mother tongue. Instead of being insulted for being wrong, they will be happy to help you
Tips
- Watch Telugu films to understand the various slang in the language. There are many Telugu language movies on Youtube.
- Read books in Telugu to learn how to write them. There are lots of Telugu language books for sale cheaply.
- Read poetry and books written by people from previous generations to understand Telugu 'గ్రాంధిక' (graandika), which is a more formal version of ordinary Telugu.
- Learn (guNintaalu) which is made by adding vowel sounds to consonants, then learn how to write it. For example, + =, + =. If you don't add a vowel to a consonant, there's no proper pronunciation for that letter, like mm, nn, without any vowels.
