How to use this chart
Point to a letter, say its sound, then the Malayalam twin, then the word: "s... like സ്... sun". Let your child say it after you. Two or three letters a day is plenty. Go in the teaching order (s, a, t, p, i, n first) rather than A to Z when you are teaching new sounds; use the A to Z order for revision.
Vowels (a, e, i, o, u) are shown in red and consonants in blue, the same colours Kutty Phonics uses.
| Letter | Sounds like | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aa | ആ |  ant | ഉറുമ്പ് |
| Bb | ബ് |  ball | പന്ത് |
| Cc | ക് |  cat | പൂച്ച |
| Dd | ഡ് |  dog | നായ |
| Ee | എ |  egg | മുട്ട |
| Ff | ഫ് |  fish | മീൻ |
| Gg | ഗ് |  goat | ആട് |
| Hh | ഹ് |  hen | കോഴി |
| Ii | ഇ |  insect | പ്രാണി |
| Jj | ജ് |  jellyfish | ജെല്ലിഫിഷ് |
| Kk | ക് |  kite | പട്ടം |
| Ll | ല് |  lion | സിംഹം |
| Mm | മ് |  mango | മാങ്ങ |
| Nn | ന് |  nest | കിളിക്കൂട് |
| Oo | ഒ |  octopus | നീരാളി |
| Pp | പ് |  pig | പന്നി |
| ക്വ |  queen | രാജ്ഞി | |
| Rr | ർ |  rabbit | മുയൽ |
| Ss | സ് |  sun | സൂര്യൻ |
| Tt | ട് |  tiger | കടുവ |
| Uu | അ |  umbrella | കുട |
| Vv | വ് |  van | വാൻ |
| Ww | വ |  watch | വാച്ച് |
| Xx | ക്സ് |  box | പെട്ടി |
| Yy | യ് |  yo-yo | യോയോ |
| Zz | സ്സ് |  zebra | സീബ്ര |
Five letters that need extra care
- a is short, as in ant and cat. Malayalam has no exact match. Kerala classrooms usually say it like ആ but shorter; the English sound is a little flatter, with the mouth open wide.
- c and k make the same sound, /k/, as in cat and kite. Teach them as "the curly k" and "the kicking k".
- q almost always comes with u, and qu says /kw/ (ക്വ), as in queen.
- x says two sounds together, /ks/ (ക്സ്), as in box and six. It rarely starts a word.
- v and w are different sounds in English, though Malayalam വ covers both. For v the top teeth touch the lower lip; for w only the lips round.
Say the sounds short
When you say a consonant sound, keep it short and clean: /t/, not "tuh". This makes blending much easier later (/c/ /a/ /t/ blends into cat; "cuh-a-tuh" does not). The Malayalam chandrakkala form shows the pure sound well: ട്, not ട. More in Say s, not suh.
Beyond A to Z
The 26 letters give the first 26 sounds or so, but English has about 44. The rest are written with two or more letters, like sh in ship, ee in tree and igh in light. Learn them next with our guides to digraphs and vowel teams, or see all 48 sounds that Kutty Phonics teaches.
Print tip
Use your browser's Print button: the chart prints on its own, without the site's menus. A4, portrait, works well. Colour printing keeps the red and blue vowel and consonant code.
