Turkish phrasebook
A Turkish phrasebook arranged by situation, not alphabetically: introductions, cafés, directions. Each has both sides' lines, so you understand not only what to say but what you will be told back.
Conversations by situation
- 💬Meeting peopleA chat with a neighbor
- 💬At the caféOrdering at a café in Istanbul
- 💬How to get thereLooking for the train station
- 💬Bargaining at the marketHaggling at the vegetable market
- 💬We need a repairmanCalling the landlord
- 💬At the pharmacyTalking to the pharmacist
- 💬Weather and plansTwo people making weekend plans
- 💬What do you do for work?Talking about work at a birthday party
- 💬In the check-in lineThe check-in desk at the airport
- 💬A boat tourBargaining with a boatman in a small harbor
- 💬At the shoe storeA shoe store, buying sneakers
- 💬You seem downFriends talking about their mood
- 💬What shall we cook for dinner?Two people cooking dinner in the kitchen
- 💬The internet is downCalling internet provider support
- 💬At the museum ticket officeThe museum ticket desk
- 💬Morning runFriends arranging a jog in the park
- 💬There's a wedding on SaturdayTwo people discussing a wedding invitation
- 💬How old is your grandchild?Neighbors talking about children and age
- 💬Which department did you get into?Two people meet after the admission results are announced
- 💬An hour at the bankA customer at a bank branch asks about a loan
- 💬My fever won't go downA doctor's appointment at the clinic
- 💬At the job interviewA job interview at a company
- 💬We saw the apartmentA couple discussing the apartment after a viewing
- 💬Return it with a full tankThe car rental desk at the airport: paperwork and terms
- 💬Who has the remote?An evening at home: two people can't agree on what to watch
- 💬Documents are missingA government office window: submitting registration documents
- 💬Do I have to go?Two people weighing a job offer in another city
- 💬Cheap but farTwo people choosing between two apartments and arguing over arguments
- 💬What is he like?Two people discussing a new colleague
- 💬It's not worth sulkingA friend urging reconciliation with her sister
- 💬Tell me the recipeA son calls his mother and writes down a recipe
- 💬Do you have your receipt?A customer returning a sweater at a store
- 💬I took it in for serviceA customer bringing a phone to a service center
- 💬How will the weather be?Two people checking the forecast before a trip out of town
- 💬Is it far from here?A visitor asks a passerby for directions
- 💬What's your level?A conversation at the language course desk
- 💬Where are you from?Getting acquainted: asking about life and plans
- 💬I couldn't hear youA phone call with bad reception and clarifications
- 💬A job interviewAn interview at a small company
- 💬Where is my order?A call to the online store's support service
- 💬Help in the neighborhoodNeighbors collecting money for medical treatment
- 💬At the exhibitionTwo people walking through an exhibition at a museum
- 💬Signing up at the gymGym registration at the front desk
- 💬The new deviceSetting up a new printer at home
- 💬At the doctor'sThe clinic: back pain, the doctor orders an X-ray
- 💬Invitation to the engagementAn engagement invitation in the family
- 💬The building meetingA dispute among residents at the building meeting
- 💬Before decidingA friend advising whether to accept a job offer
- 💬Placing the furnitureTwo people arranging things in a new room
- 💬Giving directionsA passerby explains the way to someone lost
- 💬Measuring the recipeTwo people measuring ingredients in the kitchen by a recipe
- 💬How is the work going?Two colleagues discussing how the work is progressing
- 💬The measurement resultsTwo people reviewing measurement results at work
- 💬Old photographsTwo people going through old photos and reminiscing
- 💬The neighborhood meetingNeighbors discussing trash and greening of the block
- 💬Order deliveryA batch of goods is received at the warehouse
- 💬It happened to meTwo people over tea, one telling a story from his life
- 💬About the neighborTwo people discussing the character of a mutual acquaintance
Phrases that always rescue you
These are learned first not for politeness. They bring back a conversation that has already gone wrong — which makes them more useful than any list of nouns.
Frequently asked
Which Turkish phrases to learn first?
“Hello”, “thank you”, “sorry”, “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”. The first three open a conversation; the last two save it.
Is a phrasebook enough without grammar?
For a short trip — yes. For living in the country — no: memorized phrases do not assemble into new ones, and the other person does not follow your script.