By the end
What you'll build
- Greet, thank and apologise politely, and choose the respectful நீங்க (nīṅga) form so you are never accidentally rude to a stranger or elder
- Get an auto, bus, metro, train or cab, bargain a fair fare, and ask for directions when you are lost
- Buy vegetables, groceries and clothes at a kadai, ask the price, bargain, and pay by cash or UPI
- Order food and tea at a mess, hotel or canteen, control the spice, and settle the bill
- Talk to a PG owner or landlord about rent, water, power and repairs, and deal with the watchman and household help
- Recharge a phone, use a bank or ATM, and handle salon, laundry and courier interactions
- Describe common symptoms at a pharmacy or clinic and call for help in an emergency
- Introduce yourself, make small talk with colleagues and neighbours, and survive a basic phone call
- Recognise the difference between spoken and written Tamil endings, and pick the spoken form that a Chennai local expects to hear
- Understand slow, everyday Tamil speech well enough to respond, and ask people to slow down or repeat when needed
The shape of it
How this course works
Short lessons
42 lessons across 7 modules, each small enough to finish in one sitting.
Practice as you go
Every lesson ends with a small space for what you noticed — the doing is the learning.
A certificate at the end
Finish the course and earn a certificate anyone can verify with a link.
Ready when you are.
Make an account and this course opens up — your progress is saved from the very first lesson.