Punjabi/Gurmukhi/Dentals

In the last four lessons we have learnt the rows containing the Velars, Palatals and Retroflexes besides the first row contains vowel carriers and ਸ and ਹ. In this lesson we will learn the letters of the fifth row of Gurmukhi consisting of the Dentals. The Dentals are so called because of the fact that they are articulated withe tongue touching the upper teeth.

Fifth row of Gurmukhi

The letters of the fifth row of Gurmukhi are ਤ ਥ ਦ ਧ ਨ These are called ਤ - tutta, ਥ - thuththa, ਦ - dudda, ਧ - dhudda and ਨ - nunna. They are pronounced ਤ - /t/, ਥ - /th/, ਦ - /d/, ਧ - /dh/ and ਨ - /n/. Each of these letters is explained below.

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Tutta : ਤ sound is not found in English. It is produced the same way as /t/ except that instead of the tongue touching the roof of the mouth it touches the teeth. The world famous monument of love Taj is spelt in Gurmukhi as

ਤਾ + ਜ = ਤਾਜ = Taj

And Tibet will be written in Gurmukhi as under

ਤਿੱ + ਬ + ਤ = ਤਿੱਬਤ = Tibet

Note : If you have not noticed the difference between ਤ /t/ and ਟ /t/ from the above example, here is a practical guide. ਟ /t/ is a retroflex sound. This means it is articulated by the tongue curling and touching the roof of the mouth. But ਤ /t/ is a dental sound meaning thereby that it is produced the same way as /t/ but by placing the tongue against the upper teeth, as is done to produce th sound in then, instead of the tongue curling and touching the roof of the mouth. Now repeat the /t/ sound five/six times and continue to do so by placing the tongue against the upper teeth. Try doing so repeatedly and success will come sooner than later.

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Thuththa : ਥ is same as /th/ in thank. Let us see some examples of its use in English words

ਥੈਂ + ਕ = ਥੈਂਕ = thank

ਥੀ + ਸਿ + ਸ = ਥੀਸਿਸ = thesis

ਥਿੱ + ਕ = ਥਿੱਕ = thick

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Dudda : ਦ is equivalent to /th/ as in the. Here are some examples of its use in English words

ਦਿੱ + ਸ = ਦਿੱਸ = this

ਦੈ + ਟ = ਦੈਟ = that

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Dhuddaa : ਧ has no equivalent in English. ਧ sound is produced by speaking ਤ combined with a high tone.

ਬੁੱ + ਧਾ = ਬੁੱਧਾ /Budhaa/ = Buddha

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Nuna : ਨ is equivalent to /n/. Let us see some examples of use of ਨ in English words written in Gurmukhi

ਨੈੱ + ਟ = ਨੈੱਟ = net

ਨਿ + ਬ = ਨਿਬ = nib

ਨੋ + ਟ = ਨੋਟ = note

Exercises

1. Read these English words written in Gurmukhi

1. ਤਾਜ
2. ਸੋਵੀਅਤ
3. ਥੈਂਕ
4. ਦੈਂਸ
5. ਨਾਇਨ

Solutions

1. Taj
2. Soviet
3. Thank
4. Thence
5. Nine

2. Write these words in Gurmukhi and English side by side.

1. ਥਿੱਕ
2. ਕਜ਼ਾਖਸਤਾਨ
3. ਨਥਿਙ
4. ਥੀਸਿਸ
5. ਬੁੱਧਾ

Solutions

1. ਥਿੱਕ - Thick
2. ਕਜ਼ਾਖਸਤਾਨ - Kazakhstan
3. ਨਥਿਙ - Nothing
4. ਥੀਸਿਸ - Thesis
5. ਬੁੱਧਾ - Buddha

3. Write these English words in Gurmukhi

1. Tibet
2. Noon
3. Thatch
4. Sooth
5. Than
6. Then
7. Notice
8. Nuisance
9. Thin
10. Night

Solutions

1. ਤਿੱ + ਬ + ਤ = ਤਿੱਬਤ
2. ਨੂ + ਨ = ਨੂਨ
3. ਥੈ + ਚ = ਥੈਚ
4. ਸੂ + ਨ = ਸੂਨ
5. ਦੈ + ਨ = ਦੈਨ
6. ਦੈੱ + ਨ = ਦੈੱਨ
7. ਨੋ + ਟਿ + ਸ = ਨੋਟਿਸ
8. ਨ + ਊ + ਸੰ + ਸ = ਨਊਸੰਸ
9. ਥਿ + ਨ = ਥਿਨ
10. ਨਾ + ਇ + ਟ = ਨਾਇਟ

Summary

In this lesson we have learnt the five letters of the second row of Gurmukhi script. These letter are ਤ tuta, ਥ thutha, ਦ duda, ਧ dhuda and ਨ nunna. In the next lesson we will introduce the next five letters of Gurmukhi.