Tamil Nadu

American

[nah-doo] / ˈnɑ du /

noun

a large state in S India: formerly a presidency; boundaries readjusted on a linguistic basis 1956. 50,216 sq. mi. (130,058 sq. km). Chennai.

Tamil Nadu British

/ ˈtæmɪl nɑːˈduː /

noun

Former name (until 1968): Madras. a state of SE India, on the Coromandel Coast: reorganized in 1956 and 1960 and made smaller; consists of a coastal plain backed by hills, including the Nilgiri Hills in the west Capital: Chennai (formerly called Madras). Pop: 62 110 839 (2001). Area: 130 058 sq km (50 216 sq miles)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Voters in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal ousted ruling parties due to economic frustrations over a lack of jobs.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

It won only one out of 234 seats in Tamil Nadu and three out of 140 in next-door Kerala, both of which have significant numbers of Christians and Muslims.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026

Political strategist Prashant Kishor puts it more simply: "He's the new hope for Tamil Nadu."

From BBC • May 5, 2026

And in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, veteran politician MK Stalin was trailing, challenged by a political debutante -- film star C. Joseph Vijay.

From Barron's • May 4, 2026

The plains of Tamil Nadu were beastly hot.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023