-യ്ക്ക്
Malayalam
Etymology
Inherited from Proto-Dravidian *-nkk. Doublet of -ഇക്ക് (-ikkŭ) and cognate with Tamil -கு (-ku).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /-jkkɨ/
Suffix
-യ്ക്ക് • (-ykkŭ)
- A dative case suffix used with nouns ending in the vowels അ (a), ഇ (i), എ (e), or ഒ (o).
It indicates direction, purpose, or the recipient of an action.
Usage notes
The selection of this suffix depends on the ending vowel of the stem:
| Ending vowel | Stem | Suffix | Result | Gloss |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| /a/ (അ) | തല tala [t̪ɐlɐ] |
-യ്ക്ക് -ykkŭ [-kkyɨ̆] |
തലയ്ക്ക് talaykkŭ [t̪ɐlɐkkjɨ̆] |
to/for the head |
| /i/ (ഇ) | കാപ്പി kāppi [kaːppi] |
കാപ്പിയ്ക്ക് kāppiykkŭ [kaːppikkjɨ̆] |
for the coffee | |
| /e/ (എ) | പെലെ pele [pelle] |
പെലെയ്ക്ക് peleykkŭ [pelekkjɨ̆] |
to Pelé | |
| /o/ (ഓ) | ലിജോ lijō [lid͡ʒoː] |
ലിജോയ്ക്ക് lijōykkŭ [lid͡ʒoːkkjɨ̆] |
to Lijo |
- Note: In Malayalam, words ending in the sound /o/ are orthographically represented as the long vowel /ō/.
Synonyms
- -ഇന് (-inŭ) — used after nouns ending in consonants (excluding 'n' and 'm')
- -വിന് (-vinŭ) — used after nouns ending in the vowel 'u'
- -ത്തിന് (-ttinŭ) — used after nouns ending in the consonant 'm'
- -് — used after nouns ending in the consonant 'n'