On a spoken test, a word you can read is not the same as a word you can say back in half a second under pressure — which is why every entry below carries script, transliteration and a tap-to-hear natural voice together, rather than script alone. You don't fail the NAATI CCL for not knowing enough words; you fail for freezing on the fewthat carry a segment's meaning, then losing the thread that follows. These hundred are the ones most likely to be exactly those words.
- Vocabulary decides marks at the margin — the term you fumble is the segment you lose.
- Every word here has transliteration beside the script, so reading speed is never the bottleneck — only production is.
- Learn words inside their domain (health, banking, legal…), not as a flat list — context is how you recall them fast.
- Say every word out loud: recognition is easy, fluent production under pressure is what the test actually measures.
- Pair this list with a practice dialogue so the words surface automatically inside full sentences.
Reading it is not the same as passing with it
Go domain by domain. For each word: tap to hear it, say it back twice, and mark the ones that don't come instantly. Those marked words are your real study list — everything else you already have. Come back daily until the marked set is empty. The transliteration under each entry is there so you can start the moment you see the word, rather than pausing to sound out the script first.
Health & medical
The most common CCL domain. These are the clinical terms candidates most often fumble:
For the full clinical set — body parts, dosage language, common conditions — see our medical vocabulary guide.
Banking & finance
Money scenarios are full of loanwords that sit awkwardly between English and Tamil. Use the natural community term, not a literary invention:
Legal & housing
Legal and tenancy terms must stay precise — a vague rendering of a court order or a tenancy changes the meaning entirely:
More voiced terms worth locking in
Ten more with audio, spanning health, banking, legal and immigration. Same drill: tap, then say it back before checking yourself against the model.
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| referral (to a specialist) | பரிந்துரை | parindhurai |
| treatment | சிகிச்சை | sigichai |
| side effect | பக்க விளைவு | pakka vilaivu |
| repayment | திருப்பிச் செலுத்துதல் | thiruppi seluthudhal |
| statement (bank) | வங்கிக் கணக்கு அறிக்கை | vangi kanakku arikkai |
| witness | சாட்சி | saatchi |
| guardian | பாதுகாவலர் | paadhukaavalar |
| visa application | விசா விண்ணப்பம் | visa vinnappam |
| report card | ரிப்போர்ட் கார்டு | report kaardu |
| benefit / payment | உதவித்தொகை | udhavithogai |
Immigration and documents
Document names come up in almost every immigration scenario, and they're easy marks once they're automatic — these have no recorded audio yet, so read the transliteration aloud yourself and check it against a term you already know:
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| visa | விசா | visa |
| permanent residency | நிரந்தர குடியிருப்பு | nirandhara kudiyiruppu |
| citizenship | குடியுரிமை | kudiyurimai |
| sponsor | ஸ்பான்சர் | sponsar |
| passport | பாஸ்போர்ட் | paasport |
| birth certificate | பிறப்புச் சான்றிதழ் | piraappu saandridhazh |
| marriage certificate | திருமணச் சான்றிதழ் | thirumana saandridhazh |
| application form | விண்ணப்பப் படிவம் | vinnappa padivam |
Housing and tenancy
Renting vocabulary is heavily English-loaned in real Australian Tamil speech, and that's exactly what you should say — the community term, not an invented one:
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| rent | வாடகை | vaadagai |
| bond | பாண்ட் | bond |
| landlord | வீட்டுரிமையாளர் | veettu urimaiyaalar |
| lease | குத்தகை ஒப்பந்தம் | kuthagai oppandham |
| repairs | பழுது பார்த்தல் | pazhudhu paarthal |
| inspection | ஆய்வு | aaivu |
| notice (to vacate) | வெளியேறுதல் அறிவிப்பு | veliyerudhal arivippu |
Centrelink and social services
Payments, entitlements and the words around them. These carry the facts a grader is actually counting:
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| unemployment benefit | வேலையில்லா உதவித்தொகை | velaiyillaa udhavithogai |
| pension | ஓய்வூதியம் | oivoodhiyam |
| income | வருமானம் | varumaanam |
| appointment time | அப்பாயின்மென்ட் நேரம் | appaayinment neram |
| childcare | குழந்தை பராமரிப்பு | kuzhandhai paraamarippu |
| disability support | மாற்றுத்திறனாளி உதவி | maatruthiranaali udhavi |
| form | படிவம் | padivam |
More banking, money and tax
Money segments are dense with numbers, and a fumbled term is where the number gets lost. These are the words the number hangs off:
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| account | கணக்கு | kanakku |
| loan | கடன் | kadan |
| savings | சேமிப்பு | saemippu |
| balance (remaining amount) | மீதி தொகை | meedhi thogai |
| instalment | தவணை | thavanai |
| fee | கட்டணம் | kattanam |
| fine / penalty | அபராதம் | abaraadham |
| tax | வரி | vari |
| tax return | டாக்ஸ் ரிட்டர்ன் | taaks ritarn |
| salary | சம்பளம் | sambalam |
| debt | கடன்பாடு | kadanpaadu |
| overdraft | ஓவர் டிராஃப்ட் | ovar draaft |
| signature | கையொப்பம் | kaiyoppam |
School and education
School dialogues are usually a parent and a teacher or an administrator. The classroom words are easy; the admin words are the ones that slip:
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| school | பள்ளி | palli |
| teacher | ஆசிரியர் | aasiriyar |
| principal | முதல்வர் | mudhalvar |
| homework | வீட்டுப்பாடம் | veettu paadam |
| attendance | வருகைப் பதிவு | varugai pathivu |
| exam | தேர்வு | thervu |
| school fees | பள்ளிக் கட்டணம் | palli kattanam |
| parent-teacher meeting | பெற்றோர்-ஆசிரியர் சந்திப்பு | petror-aasiriyar sandhippu |
More legal and police terms
Precision matters more here than anywhere else — a vague rendering changes what a person is agreeing to:
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| lawyer | வழக்கறிஞர் | vazhakkarignar |
| court | நீதிமன்றம் | neethimandram |
| judge | நீதிபதி | neethipathi |
| police complaint | போலீஸ் புகார் | polees pugaar |
| statement (to police) | வாக்குமூலம் | vaakkumoolam |
| bail | ஜாமீன் | jaameen |
| agreement / contract | ஒப்பந்தம் | oppandham |
| evidence | ஆதாரம் | aadhaaram |
| interpreter | மொழிபெயர்ப்பாளர் | mozhipeyarppaalar |
| rights | உரிமைகள் | urimaigal |
| the accused | குற்றம் சாட்டப்பட்டவர் | kutram saattapattavar |
The rest of the health set
Health is the domain the CCL draws on most, so it gets the largest share of the hundred. Say each one out loud; mark the ones that don't arrive instantly.
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| fever | காய்ச்சல் | kaaichal |
| cough | இருமல் | irumal |
| pain | வலி | vali |
| swelling | வீக்கம் | veekkam |
| injection | ஊசி | oosi |
| blood test | இரத்தப் பரிசோதனை | iratha parisodhanai |
| blood pressure | இரத்த அழுத்தம் | iratha azhutham |
| dose | அளவு | alavu |
| tablet | மாத்திரை | maathirai |
| pregnancy | கர்ப்பம் | karpam |
| vaccination | தடுப்பூசி | thadupoosi |
| operation / surgery | அறுவை சிகிச்சை | aruvai sigichai |
| specialist | நிபுணர் மருத்துவர் | nipunar maruthuvar |
| ambulance | ஆம்புலன்ஸ் | aambulans |
| difficulty breathing | மூச்சு விட சிரமம் | moochu vida siramam |
| dizziness | தலைச்சுற்றல் | thalaichuttral |
| wound | காயம் | kaayam |
| patient | நோயாளி | noyaali |
| discharge (from hospital) | மருத்துவமனை விடுதலை | maruthuvamanai vidudhalai |
| medical certificate | மருத்துவச் சான்றிதழ் | maruthuva saandridhazh |
Everyday words that carry weight
Small, domain-neutral, and constantly load-bearing — they modify the fact the segment is built around:
| English | Tamil | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| urgent | அவசரம் | avasaram |
| permission | அனுமதி | anumathi |
| information | தகவல் | thagaval |
| help | உதவி | udhavi |
That's the hundred: twenty-two carrying audio above, and seventy-eight more spread across every domain the CCL draws on — read the transliteration aloud, then confirm it against a word you know.