Grammar and Language Usage (Ilakkanam): Orthography, Punarchi, Parts of Speech, Transformation
What Ilakkanam tests
The grammar section tests accurate Tamil usage: orthography, punarchi (sandhi/joining), parts of speech, and sentence transformation. Accuracy in vowel signs, pulli and consonant choice matters as much as the rule name.
Core rules
- Orthography: distinguish ழ/ள/ர/ற, use pulli correctly, and recognise aytham (ஃ).
- Punarchi: when words join, changes may involve glide consonants, vowel loss or doubling. Example: நிலா + ஒளி → நிலவொளி.
- Parts of speech: peyar (noun), vinai (verb), idai (particle), uri (adjective/adverb), echam (suffix).
- Sentence transformation: affirmative/negative, interrogative, active/passive, direct/indirect.
Worked example
Active: கண்ணன் புத்தகத்தைப் படித்தான். Passive: புத்தகம் கண்ணனால் படிக்கப்பட்டது. Reasoning: the object becomes subject, the subject takes “-ஆல்”, and the verb takes a passive suffix. Check agreement and tense after transforming.
Traps
- Writing a sandhi form that sounds right but breaks the written rule.
- Confusing peyar and vinai when a word acts as a noun in context.
- Changing tense during transformation.
- Forgetting the agent marker “-ஆல்” in passive.
- Mixing idai and uri in short phrases.