Telugu

American  

[tel-uh-goo] / ˈtɛl əˌgu /

noun

• Telugus,
  plural
• Telugu
  plural

1. a Dravidian language spoken mainly in Andhra Pradesh state, SE India.

2. a member of the people speaking this language.

---

adjective

1. of Telugu or the Telugu.

Telugu British  

/ ˈtɛləˌɡuː /

noun

1. a language of SE India, belonging to the Dravidian family of languages: the state language of Andhra Pradesh

2. a member of the people who speak this language

---

adjective

1. of or relating to this people or their language

Usage

What does Telugu mean? Telugu is a Dravidian language spoken mainly in the state of Andhra Pradesh in southeastern India. Telugu also refers to the speakers of this language. India is a large country located in southern Asia, and Andhra Pradesh is one of its 25 states. The Dravidian family of languages includes many of the languages spoken in Southern India and the country of Sri Lanka, including Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam. According to the 2011 Census of India, there were over 81 million speakers of Telugu. At that time, it was the fourth most popular language in India, with 6. 7 percent of the population speaking it. Telugu is the official language of the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Spoken Telugu has several different regional dialects, which depend on a person’s geographic area, class, and caste. Written Telugu is more uniform and, like other Dravidian languages, is based on the Brahmi script rather than ancient Sanskrit. Telugu is written from left to right, and its alphabet currently consists of 60 symbols, including 16 vowels and 41 consonants.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Telugu
  plural
• Telugus
  plural

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Telugu Telugus

At his Bengaluru show, Sheeran surprised fans by singing two hit local songs in the Telugu language with singer Shilpa Rao on stage.

From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2025

Hindi, Tamil and Telugu speakers grew in number, and Indian-American communities shifted from New York and Michigan to larger clusters in California and New Jersey.

From BBC ● Jan. 8, 2025

Police in India have arrested popular Telugu actor Allu Arjun in connection with a crush at the premiere of his latest film earlier this month.

From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2024

Though some of the members of the B.J.P.’s coalition this year share Mr. Modi’s hard-line vision, both the Telugu Desam Party and Janata Dal-United are moderate, secular parties that have a diverse support base.

From New York Times ● Jun. 5, 2024

Thus from Telugu koṭṭē and vāḍu, “he,” is formed koṭṭē-vāḍu, “one who usually strikes.”

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 7 "Drama" to "Dublin" by Various

Our own most successful work has been among the Burmans and Karens, where we have seventy thousand members, and among the Telugus, where we have as many more.

From A Tour of the Missions Observations and Conclusions by Augustus Hopkins Strong

The Boyis are Telugus, and are employed as bearers of palanqueens and other domestic service in Southern India.

From A Forgotten Empire (Vijayanagar): a contribution to the history of India by Robert Sewell

On a journey around the world two years ago, a Christian leader saw one church record in the Baptist mission among the Telugus in which there were the names of 19,000 Christian converts.

From The Call of the World or, Every Man's Supreme Opportunity by W. E. Doughty

Their success in building up Baptist churches in Burma and among the Telugus, keeps our missionaries faithful to the New Testament model of church polity.

From A Tour of the Missions Observations and Conclusions by Augustus Hopkins Strong

About the year 1475 there was a terrible famine in the Dakhan and the country of the Telugus, which lasted for two years.

From A Forgotten Empire (Vijayanagar): a contribution to the history of India by Robert Sewell

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---