TNPSC General Tamil, or பொது தமிழ், is what aspirants call Part A of the Group 4 paper; the notification's name for it is the Tamil Eligibility-cum-Scoring Test. It has 100 questions for 150 marks, half the paper, and if you score under 60 in it, the rest of your answer sheet is not marked.
Part A is set only in Tamil and every candidate writes it, including those who studied in English medium. This guide covers the seven units in the 2026 notification (No. 11/2026), the question types with examples, the books to use, and a 30-day plan. A Tamil version of this guide is also available.
Why TNPSC General Tamil decides your rank
Half the marks. Part A is worth 150; Part B (General Studies, 75 questions) and Part C (Aptitude and Mental Ability, 25 questions) share the other 150. Every question is worth the same 1.5 marks.
60 is the gate. Parts B and C are evaluated only if you score at least 60 of 150 (40%) in Part A. A strong General Studies score is wasted without it.
It counts towards rank. Part A is not just a qualifier: its marks are added to Parts B and C, so every extra mark here moves you up the list.
It doesn't change with the news. It rests on the school textbooks and language skill, so steady practice raises your score reliably.
What Part A asks: the seven units
Unit | What it asks | Questions |
|---|---|---|
I. இலக்கணம் (grammar) | எழுத்து: splitting and joining words, சந்திப்பிழை, ல–ள–ழ, ன–ண and ர–ற differences, இனவெழுத்து, singular and plural. சொல்: வேர்ச்சொல், வினைமுற்று, வினையெச்சம், பெயரெச்சம், borrowed words, spelling errors | 25 |
II. சொல்லகராதி (vocabulary) | Antonyms, one-letter words, synonyms, the odd word out, alphabetical order, fill in the blank, short forms of place names, spoken versus written Tamil | 15 |
III. எழுதும் திறன் (writing skill) | Building sentences, active and passive voice, திணை–பால்–கால agreement, names for young animals, sound words, punctuation | 15 |
IV. கலைச் சொற்கள் (technical terms) | Tamil equivalents for terms in science, medicine, law, technology, media and other fields | 10 |
V. வாசித்தல் (reading comprehension) | Questions on a given passage (news, editorial, government notice, article), similes, idioms, proverbs | 15 |
VI. எளிய மொழிபெயர்ப்பு (simple translation) | Tamil words for English and other borrowed words; titles of documents, letters and petitions | 5 |
VII. இலக்கியம், தமிழறிஞர்கள், தமிழ்த்தொண்டு (literature and Tamil scholars) | Thirukkural (20 chapters), ethical works, scholars and their service to Tamil | 15 |
Source: TNPSC Notification No. 11/2026, Annexure III. TNPSC calls the per-unit counts indicative. For Parts B and C, see the TNPSC Group 4 syllabus page.
The split matters: 85 of the 100 questions test language skill (grammar, vocabulary, writing, terms, reading, translation). Memorising authors and works covers only Unit VII's 15 questions. Most of your Part A marks come from practice, not memory.
Unit VII: the 20 Thirukkural chapters and the scholars
The notification names 20 அதிகாரங்கள்: ஒழுக்கமுடைமை, பொறையுடைமை, ஊக்கமுடைமை, விருந்தோம்பல், அறன் வலியுறுத்தல், ஈகை, பெரியாரைத் துணைக்கோடல், வினை செயல்வகை, அவையஞ்சாமை, கண்ணோட்டம், அன்புடைமை, கல்வி, நடுநிலைமை, கூடா ஒழுக்கம், கல்லாமை, செங்கோன்மை, பண்புடைமை, நட்பாராய்தல், புறங்கூறாமை, அருளுடைமை.
Ethical works (அறநூல்கள்): நாலடியார், நான்மணிக்கடிகை, பழமொழி நானூறு, முதுமொழிக்காஞ்சி, திரிகடுகம், இன்னாநாற்பது, சிறுபஞ்சமூலம், ஏலாதி and ஔவையார் பாடல்கள், plus the antiquity of Tamil and the Dravidian languages.
Scholars: உ.வே.சாமிநாத ஐயர், தெ.பொ.மீனாட்சி சுந்தரம், சி.இலக்குவனார், தேவநேய பாவாணர், பாவலரேறு பெருஞ்சித்திரனார், ஜி.யு.போப் and வீரமாமுனிவர்.
Tamil personalities (தமிழ்ச் சான்றோர்): பாவேந்தர், டி.கே.சிதம்பரநாதர், குன்றக்குடி அடிகளார், கண்ணதாசன், காயிதே மில்லத், தாரா பாரதி, வேலுநாச்சியார், பட்டுக்கோட்டை கல்யாணசுந்தரம், முடியரசன், தமிழ் ஒளி, உருத்திரங்கண்ணனார், கி.வா.ஜகந்நாதர், நாமக்கல் கவிஞர்.
The notification says Unit VII is based on school textbooks up to SSLC standard, so start with what the Class 6–10 Tamil books say about each of them.
Question types, with examples
Most of these examples come straight from the syllabus in TNPSC's notification.
Type | Question | Answer |
|---|---|---|
Error correction | "ஒரு ஊரில்" – correct form | ஓர் ஊரில் |
திணை agreement | "மாடுகள் நனைந்தது" – correct it | மாடுகள் நனைந்தன |
Spoken to written | நேத்து மழ பேஞ்சுது | நேற்று மழை பெய்தது |
Short place name (மரூஉ) | மயிலாப்பூர் | மயிலை |
One-letter word | Meaning of "ஈ" | கொடு |
Many words, one meaning | கமலம், கஞ்சம், முளரி, பங்கயம் | தாமரை |
Antonym | இன்பம் | துன்பம் |
Root word | Root of "படித்தான்" | படி |
Young ones | பசு, ஆடு | கன்று, குட்டி |
Technical term | Allergy | ஒவ்வாமை |
Match the work to the author (பொருத்துக) is the usual Unit VII format: four works, four authors.
Work | Author |
|---|---|
திருக்குறள் | திருவள்ளுவர் |
தேம்பாவணி | வீரமாமுனிவர் |
பாண்டியன் பரிசு | பாரதிதாசன் (பாவேந்தர்) |
என் சரித்திரம் | உ.வே.சாமிநாத ஐயர் |
Quick rules that save marks
The "TNPSC shortcuts in Tamil" worth learning are really a handful of rules:
ஒரு or ஓர்: use ஓர் before a word starting with a vowel (ஓர் ஊர், ஓர் இரவு) and ஒரு before a consonant-vowel (ஒரு நாள்).
Which ண, ந or ன: remember the pairs ங்க, ஞ்ச, ண்ட, ந்த, ம்ப, ன்ற. ண் comes before ட (கண்டு), ந் before த (பந்து), ன் before ற (கன்று).
When the consonant doubles: after the case endings ஐ and கு, a following க, ச, த or ப doubles: பாடத்தைப் படித்தான், பள்ளிக்குச் சென்றான்.
Agreement: அவன் வந்தான், அவள் வந்தாள், அவர்கள் வந்தனர்; அது வந்தது, பறவைகள் பறந்தன. "அம்மா வந்தது" is wrong; "அம்மா வந்தாள்" is right.
Tense: with நேற்று, the verb is past tense: நேற்று வந்தேன்.
Sound-alike pairs: வலி (pain), வளி (wind), வழி (way); அரம் (file), அறம் (virtue); மனம் (mind), மணம் (fragrance). Keep a list of such pairs.
Place-name short forms: புதுச்சேரி – புதுவை, மன்னார்குடி – மன்னை, மயிலாப்பூர் – மயிலை, கோயம்புத்தூர் – கோவை, திருநெல்வேலி – நெல்லை, தஞ்சாவூர் – தஞ்சை, கும்பகோணம் – குடந்தை.
Which book to use for General Tamil
There is no need to hunt for a special "pothu Tamil book". The core is the Samacheer Kalvi Tamil textbooks for Classes 6 to 10; where to get them free is in our TNPSC Group 4 books guide.
Read each book fully, in order: prose, poetry and grammar. Note every author, work and title of honour as you meet it.
Then do the grammar in one pass: read the grammar sections of the Class 6–10 books back to back for Units I and III, and practise questions straight after.
Keep a word list for Units IV and VI: English terms and their Tamil equivalents from the textbooks and newspapers (search engine – தேடுபொறி, gene – மரபணு, migration – வலசை, computer – கணினி, keyboard – விசைப்பலகை).
Read one Tamil editorial a day for Unit V, and write its main point in one line.
Class 11–12 Tamil is optional; Unit VII stops at SSLC standard.
If you studied in English medium
You still have to clear 60 in Tamil, and you can. Start a month or two earlier than you would for General Studies.
Begin at Class 6, not Class 10. The early books build vocabulary and grammar step by step.
Read aloud. Twenty minutes of reading Tamil aloud each day trains your ear for ல–ள–ழ and ர–ற alongside the rules.
Use your English for Units IV and VI. Technical terms and translation are 15 questions where knowing the English word is half the work.
Practise Unit V on real passages. Most of Unit V's 15 questions come from a given passage; reading speed in Tamil is the skill to build.
Test early. Take a timed Part A practice in the first week to see where you stand, and repeat it weekly.
A 30-day General Tamil plan
For about two hours of General Tamil a day:
Days | Unit | What to do |
|---|---|---|
1–6 | I. Grammar (25) | எழுத்து, then சொல்; grammar sections of Classes 6–10; 20 practice questions a day |
7–9 | II. Vocabulary (15) | Antonyms, one-letter words, place-name forms, spoken-form lists |
10–12 | III. Writing skill (15) | Agreement rules, verb types, punctuation |
13–14 | IV and VI. Terms and translation (15) | Build and learn your word list |
15–17 | V. Reading (15) | An editorial a day, proverbs, idioms, similes |
18–23 | VII. Literature and scholars (15) | The 20 Thirukkural chapters, ethical works, scholars and personalities |
24–27 | All units | Timed 100-question Part A practice; check every mistake in the textbook |
28–30 | Revision | Only the questions you got wrong, then one full-length mock test |
For the whole paper, see our Group 4 study plan.
Practising General Tamil on Thervu
Thervu's Group 4 question bank has a separate General Tamil section. Every test is marked the moment you submit, with your score, the correct answers and the topics that cost you marks, and wrong answers come back in your revision queue until you get them right. Free accounts get daily mock tests.
On the Pro plan you can pick a single topic to test. The General Tamil topics include Grammar, Thirukkural, Vocabulary & Usage, Proverbs & Idioms, Prose & Comprehension and Famous Tamil Personalities. They don't map one-to-one onto the seven official units, so pick the one closest to the unit you are studying.
For the exam pattern, eligibility and selection, see the TNPSC Group 4 exam guide.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are in TNPSC General Tamil for Group 4?
100 questions for 150 marks, which is half the 300-mark paper. Every question carries 1.5 marks, and Part A is set only in Tamil.
What is the minimum mark in General Tamil?
60 out of 150 (40%). Below that, your Part B (General Studies) and Part C (Aptitude) answers are not evaluated. Marks from all three parts are added for your rank.
Which is the best book for TNPSC General Tamil?
The Tamil Nadu state board (Samacheer Kalvi) Tamil textbooks for Classes 6 to 10. The notification itself says the literature unit is based on school textbooks up to SSLC standard.
Can English-medium candidates write General English instead of General Tamil?
No. Part A is in Tamil for everyone, whatever your medium of study. The only exemption is for differently abled candidates who studied only English as a subject; they may write General English (SSLC standard) and need at least 60 in it.
How many Thirukkural chapters are in the Group 4 Part A syllabus?
Twenty. The 2026 notification names them, including ஒழுக்கமுடைமை, விருந்தோம்பல், கல்வி and அருளுடைமை. The full list is in this guide.
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