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Devanagari consonants are organised into groups based on where in the mouth the sound is produced. This lesson covers the first three groups (15 consonants): the velars (कवर्ग), palatals (चवर्ग), and retroflexes (टवर्ग).
These sounds are produced at the back of the mouth, where the tongue touches the soft palate (velum).
| Character | Romanisation | IPA | Aspirated? | Example Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| क | ka | /kə/ | No | कमल (kamal) | lotus |
| ख | kha | /kʰə/ | Yes | खरगोश (khargosh) | rabbit |
| ग | ga | /ɡə/ | No | गाय (gaay) | cow |
| घ | gha | /ɡʱə/ | Yes | घर (ghar) | house |
| ङ | ṅa | /ŋə/ | Nasal | रंग (rang) | colour |
Tip: Each group of five consonants follows the same pattern: unaspirated voiceless → aspirated voiceless → unaspirated voiced → aspirated voiced → nasal. This pattern repeats for all five groups and is the key to the entire consonant system.
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