List of English words of Dravidian origin

• Aiyo, a word used to express distress, regret and fear, perhaps from Tamil aiyō,^[1] Kannada ayyo, Malayalam aiyyo(അയ്യോ) or Telugu ayyo, but perhaps from (not Dravidian) Sinhalese ayiyō.^[2]
• Betel, a leaf of a vine belonging to the family Piperaceae; from Portuguese betel, which probably comes from Tamil vettrilai (வெற்றிலை) or Malayalam vettila (വെറ്റില).^[3]
• Candy, crystallized sugar or confection made from sugar; via Persian qand, which is probably from a Dravidian language, ultimately stemming from the Sanskrit root word 'Khanda' meaning 'pieces of something'.^[4]
• Coir, cord/rope, fibre from husk of coconut; from Malayalam kayar (കയർ)^[5] or Tamil kayiru (கயிறு).^[6] The origin of this word cannot be conclusively attributed to Malayalam or Tamil.
• Congee, porridge, water with rice; uncertain origin, possibly from Tamil kanji (கஞ்சி),^[7] Telugu or Kannada gañji, or Malayalam kaññi (കഞ്ഞി).^{[citation needed]} Alternatively, possibly from Gujarati,^[8] which is not a Dravidian language.
• Coolie, a labourer or slave, a South Asian person; possibly from Tamil cooli (கூலி)^[9] or Malayalam kooli (കൂലി) "labour", or possibly from Koḷī "Gujarati people" in Gujarati.^[10]
• Cot, a bedstead or a portable bed; via Hindi from Sanskrit,^[11] which in turn may have come from a Dravidian source such as Tamil kattil (கட்டில்)/patukkai (படுக்கை),^[12] Malayalam kattil(കട്ടിൽ), or Kannada Kaata (ಕಾಟ).
• Cowry, the shells of certain sea snails, or the snails themselves; via Hindi and Urdu from Sanskrit kaparda (कपर्द),^[13] which may be related to Tamil kotu (கோது) "shell".^[14]
• Curry, a variety of dishes flavored with a spicy sauce; cognates exist in several Dravidian languages,^[15] including Tamil (கறி), Malayalam (കറി), Telugu (కూర) and others.
• Dosa, a pancake made from rice flour and ground pulses, typically served with a spiced vegetable filling. Possibly from Kannada or Tulu dōse (ದೋಸೆ),^[16] from Malalayam dōśa,^[17] or from other Dravidian sources.
• Ginger, a fragrant spice; exact route from Dravidian is uncertain, but possibly from Tamil inchi (இஞ்சி) or Malayalam inchi (ഇഞ്ചി)^[18]
• Godown, synonym to warehouse; English from Malay, which in turn may have borrowed it from Telugu giḍangi or Tamil kiṭanku.^[19]
• Gunny, an inexpensive bag; from Sanskrit via Hindi and Marathi,^[20] probably ultimately from a Dravidian language.^[21]
• Hot toddy, beverage made of alcoholic liquor with hot water, sugar, and spices; from Hindi tari "palm sap", probably from a Dravidian language^[22]
• Idli, a south Indian steamed cake of rice, usually served with sambhar. From Malayalam and Kannada iḍḍali.^[23]
• Jaggery, coarse brown sugar made from palm and sugarcane; via Portuguese jágara^[24] probably from Malayalam chakkara/sharkkara (ചക്കര/ശർക്കര)^[25] or Kannada sakkare, having its origins in Sanskrit.^[26]
• Mango, A tropical fruit; origin probably from Tamil maangaay (மாங்காய்) or Malayalam maanga (മാങ്ങ)^{[27][28][29][30]}
• Mongoose, a small carnivorous mammal from southern Eurasia or Africa, known for killing snakes; probably ultimately from a Dravidian language, with spelling influenced by the English word goose^[31]
• Mung, a type of bean; ultimately from Sanskrit mudga (मुद्ग), which is the name of the bean and the plant, perhaps via Tamil mūngu (முங்கு) "soak",^[32] or Malayalam mudra (മുദ്ര). Alternately, perhaps from mũg (मूँग), the name of the bean in Hindi,^[33] which is not a Dravidian language.
• Orange, a citrus fruit, or a color named for the fruit; cognates exist in several Dravidian languages,^[34] Tamil naaram (நாரம்) or Telugu naarinja (నారింజ) and others.
• Pagoda, a religious building; etymology uncertain but perhaps influenced by Tamil pagavadi (பகாவடி) "house belonging to a deity".^[35]
• Pariah, a social outcast; partially from Tamil paṟaiyar (பறையர்) and partially from Malayalam paṟayan(പറയൻ), "drummer".^[36]
• Peacock, a type of bird; from Old English pawa, the earlier etymology is uncertain, but one possible source is Tamil tokei (தோகை) "peacock feather", via Latin or Greek^[37]
• Sambal, a spicy condiment; from Malay, which may have borrowed the word from a Dravidian language^[38] such as Tamil (சம்பல்) or Telugu (సంబల్).
• Teak, a tropical hardwood tree; called thekku (തേക്ക്) in Malayalam,^[39] tekku (தேக்கு) in Tamil, Telugu teku, and Kannada tegu;^[40] via Portuguese teca.^[41]

Gregory James, a professor with the language center of Hong Kong university believes that more than 100 words in the Oxford English Dictionary have Tamil origin, and there could be even more.^[42]

• Indian English
• List of English words of Indian origin