Question Words in Malayalam

These are the core Malayalam question words - what, who, where, when, why, how - along with a few ready-made example questions. Most Malayalam question words begin with "e-" (enthu, evide, eppol, ethra), which makes them easy to spot in speech. In yes/no questions Malayalam simply adds the ending "-o" to the verb (ariyaam - ariyaamo?), so no extra question word is needed.

MalayalamPronunciationEnglish
എന്ത്enthuWhat
ആര്aaruWho
എവിടെevideWhere
എപ്പോൾeppolWhen
എന്തുകൊണ്ട്enthukonduWhy
എങ്ങനെenganeHow
ഏത്ethuWhich
എത്രethraHow much / how many
ആരുടെaarudeWhose
എന്ത് പറ്റി?enthu patti?What happened? / What's wrong?
ഇത് എന്താണ്?ithu enthaanu?What is this? (example with "enthu")
നിങ്ങൾ എവിടെ പോകുന്നു?ningal evide pokunnu?Where are you going? (example with "evide")
ബസ് എപ്പോൾ വരും?bus eppol varum?When will the bus come? (example with "eppol")

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