📝 Introduction If nouns are the body of a language, verbs are its heartbeat. In Telugu, verbs are called kriya padalu (క్రియా పదాలు), and they carry the action, movement, and energy of every sentence you will ever speak. Whether you want to say “I am eating,” “She is going,” or “We will come,” you need verbs to make it happen. The good news for learners is that Telugu verb structure is highly logical and regular: once you understand how a verb’s root combines with tense endings, you can generate hundreds of correct forms

This quick-reference page brings together the 20 most useful Telugu verbs — the ones you will hear and use every single day in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Each entry includes the Telugu script, transliteration, English meaning, the verb root (called the dhātu), and a natural example sentence with audio. We have deliberately chosen high-frequency verbs like tinu (eat), veḷḷu (go), rā (come), cēyu (do), and cuṭṭu (see), because mastering these unlocks enormous conversational power

Telugu verbs also carry respect levels baked into their endings — the same verb changes form depending on whether you address a friend, an elder, or a group. Bookmark this page as your verb cheat sheet, listen to the audio daily, and try conjugating one new verb each day. Within a week, you will be constructing your own Telugu sentences with confidence. Let’s get these verbs flowing!

⚡ The 20 Most Common Telugu Verbs

English Telugu Script Root (Dhātu) Translit Audio

1 Go వెళ్ళు veḷḷ- veḷḷu 2 Come రా rā- rā 3 Eat తిను tinu- tinu 4 Drink తాగు tāgu- tāgu 5 Do చేయు cēyu- cēyu 6 See చూడు cuḍu- cuḍu 7 Say/Speak చెప్పు cheppu- cheppu 8 Listen విను vinu- vinu 9 Write రాయు rāyu- rāyu 10 Read చదువు caduvu- caduvu 11 Sit కూర్చు kūrchu- kūrchu 12 Stand నిలుచు niluchu- niluchu 13 Sleep పడుకో paḍukō- paḍukō 14 Work పని చేయు pani cēyu- pani cēyu 15 Know తెలుసు telusu- telusu 16 Give ఇవ్వు ivvu- ivvu 17 Take తీసుకో tīsukō- tīsukō 18 Run పరుగు parugu- parugu 19 Buy కొను konu- konu 20 Like/Love ఇష్టపడు iṣṭapaḍu- iṣṭapaḍu 💬 Verbs in Action – Example Sentences Telugu English Audio నేను భోజనం తింటున్నాను I am eating food అతను ఇంటికి వెళ్తాడు He will go home నీళ్లు తాగు Drink water పుస్తకం చదువు Read the book 🗣️ Pronunciation Tips Telugu verbs end in a vowel, which gives them a smooth, flowing quality. The retroflex ḷ in veḷḷu (go) is pronounced by curling the tongue tip back — it has no English equivalent; practise by saying “lu” with the tongue pressed to the upper palate. The doubled consonants in cheppu (say) and caduvu (read) must be held longer than single ones. The retroflex ḍ in paḍukō (sleep) and iṣṭapaḍu (like) is made with the tongue curled back, distinctly different from a regular “d.”