Raqmet and oqasy zhoq: thank you and the answer to it
Raqmet is thank you. The word is Arabic, the same "rahma" as in mercy; both spellings — raqmet and rakhmet — are alive in writing and speech. For example: “— Рақмет! — Оқасы жоқ.” — — Thank you! — Not at all.. A rule from the Kazakh course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Raqmet is thank you. The word is Arabic, the same "rahma" as in mercy; both spellings — raqmet and rakhmet — are alive in writing and speech.
Nobody answers with a word for "please". English splits "please" into two jobs, and Kazakh splits it further: the place of the reply to thanks is taken by Oqasy zhoq — literally "there is no fault". One formula covers two occasions, because it answers both raqmet and the apology keshiriñiz, where English would say "no harm done". Strictly speaking it was born as the answer to an apology, and in some places thanks get arzymaidy ("it is not worth it") or eshteñe etpeidy ("it is nothing") — you will hear all three.
The second job of "please" — inside a request — belongs to Ötinemin, literally "I ask": a form of the verb ötinu, not a particle. But most often a request needs no separate word at all: the politeness sits in the ending of the verb, -ñyz/-ñiz. Qaitalañyz — "repeat" — is polite already, and the tail -şi softens it further: Mağan beriñizşi.
Table
| The phrase | Word for word | The job |
|---|---|---|
| Raqmet | "mercy" | thank you |
| Oqasy zhoq | "no fault" | the answer to thanks and to an apology alike |
| Ötinemin | "I ask" | "please" inside a request |
| Qaitalañyz | "repeat" | -ñyz already carries "please" |
| Beriñizşi | "hand it over, do" | -şi softens the request |
By example
- — Рақмет! — Оқасы жоқ.— Thank you! — Not at all.
- — Кешіріңіз. — Оқасы жоқ.— I am sorry. — No harm done.
- Маған су беріңізші.Give me some water, please.
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
What to answer to raqmet?
Raqmet is thank you. The word is Arabic, the same "rahma" as in mercy; both spellings — raqmet and rakhmet — are alive in writing and speech.
How to say thank you in Kazakh?
Nobody answers with a word for "please". English splits "please" into two jobs, and Kazakh splits it further: the place of the reply to thanks is taken by Oqasy zhoq — literally "there is no fault". One formula covers two occasions, because it answers both raqmet and the apology keshiriñiz, where…
How to say please in Kazakh?
The second job of "please" — inside a request — belongs to Ötinemin, literally "I ask": a form of the verb ötinu, not a particle. But most often a request needs no separate word at all: the politeness sits in the ending of the verb, -ñyz/-ñiz. Qaitalañyz — "repeat" — is polite already, and the tail…
Ötinemin vs oqasy zhoq?
The second job of "please" — inside a request — belongs to Ötinemin, literally "I ask": a form of the verb ötinu, not a particle. But most often a request needs no separate word at all: the politeness sits in the ending of the verb, -ñyz/-ñiz. Qaitalañyz — "repeat" — is polite already, and the tail…
What does it look like in an example sentence Kazakh?
“— Рақмет! — Оқасы жоқ.” — — Thank you! — Not at all.. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.