The city and its places in Turkish
83 words Turkish words on the topic “the city and its places”: şehir — city, sokak — street, banka — bank, eczane — pharmacy. 83 words can be played from recordings.
83 words on the topic
- şehircityA Persian word. With endings the second syllable's vowel drops: şehir becomes şehre, şehrin. burun ("nose") and ağız ("mouth") behave the same way.
- sokakstreetA small street. The avenue is cadde, printed larger on signs.
- bankabankDo not confuse with banko — that is a counter, a desk in an office. Both words are Italian, but in Turkish they split into two.
- eczanepharmacyc sounds like "j" in "jam": ej-za-NE
- sıraline (queue)both ı dotless: suh-RA
- trafik ışığıtraffic lighttrafik ışığı — dotless ı, silent ğ: tra-FEEK uh-shuh-UH
- bisikletbicycleFrench bicyclette. "To ride a bike" is bisiklete binmek — the same binmek as the bus and the plane
- otobüs durağıbus stop signdurmak is "to stand", durak the place of stopping. With the linker the k goes to ğ again: durak → durağı
- ulaşım kartıtransit cardulaşım kartı — ş is "sh", both ı dotless: u-la-SHUM kar-TUH
- güzergâhroutegüzergâh — round lips for ü, long â: guu-zer-GAA
- yaya geçidicrosswalkyaya is "on foot, a pedestrian"; geçmek "cross", geçit "crossing". With the linker the t voices to d: geçit → geçidi
- trafik sıkışıklığıtraffic jamtrafik sıkışıklığı — four dotless ı in a row: suh-kuh-shuh-luh-UH
- otoparkparking lototo plus park, compounded in Turkish from two loans. The street sign "P" is labeled exactly so
- benzin istasyonugas stationistasyon with the linker -u: the last vowel is o, so lip harmony gives u, not ı. Diesel is motorin
- parkparkEnglish park. The same word says 'to park': park etmek
- kütüphanelibrarykütüphane — two lip-rounded ü: kuu-tuup-ha-NE
- müzemuseumFrench musée. The tail is front-vowel: müzeye gidiyorum — I am going to the museum
- tiyatrotheaterItalian teatro. The vowels i-a-o together — no harmony here and cannot be: the word is foreign
- sinemacinemaFrench cinéma — the building and cinema as an art. The film itself is film
- kilisechurchGreek ekklesia. Istanbul has many, and on the map they are labeled exactly so
- stadyumstadiumstarting a word with two consonants is un-Turkish, so the older generation says 'istadyum', with a vowel up front
- kavşakintersectionkavşak — kav-SHAK
- kaldırımsidewalkkaldırım — kal-duh-RUHM
- caddeavenuecadde — jad-DE
- ara sokakside street"a between-street": ara the gap. The best breakfast places hide in them
- sahil yoluseaside promenade"the shore road": sahil the coast, yol the way. Evening walkers own it after seven
- köprübridgeköprü — kup-RUU
- tüneltunneltünel — tuu-NEL
- sokak lambasıstreetlightsokak lambası — so-KAK lam-ba-SUH
- bankbenchFrench banc: the bench. Pensioners hold parliament on them daily
- çöp kutusutrash binçöp kutusu — chup koo-too-SOO
- otobüs şoförübus driverotobüs şoförü — o-to-BUUS sho-fu-RUU
- son duraklast stop"the last stop": son the end + durak. Everyone gets off; so should you
- hat numarasıroute numberhat numarası — hat noo-ma-ra-SUH
- yoğun saatrush houryoğun saat — yoo-OON sa-AT
- otobüs saatleribus scheduleotobüs saatleri — o-to-BUUS sa-at-le-RI
- yol parası ödemekto pay the fareyol parası ödemek — yol pa-ra-SUH u-de-MEK
- yer tutmakto save a seat"to hold a place": tutmak the holding. Friends do it, strangers pretend not to see it
- taksi çağırmakto call a taxitaksi çağırmak — tak-SI chaa-uhr-MAK
- sonraki durakta inmekto get off at the next stopinmek "to get off" — off buses and out of cars alike, dative of the stop. Announced by the driver, hopefully
- semtcity districtArabic "side, direction": the district. Locals argue which semt is best like tribes
- şehir merkezicity centerşehir merkezi — she-HIR mer-ke-ZI
- kenar mahalleoutskirts"edge-neighborhood": kenar "edge" + mahalle. Rent drops as the bus ride grows
- inşaatbuilding siteinşaat — in-sha-AT
- yol çalışmasıroadworksyol çalışması — yol cha-luhsh-ma-SUH
- yön levhasısignpostyön levhası — yun lev-ha-SUH
- umumi tuvaletpublic toiletumumi Arabic "general, public": the public toilet. Change in your pocket beats a card here
- temizcleanold Turkic. Temizlik is next to godliness in both languages — and a school subject here once
- kirlidirtythe partner of temiz. Laundry says "kirli" on one basket, "temiz" on the other
- kalabalıkcrowdedkalabalık — ka-la-ba-LUHK
- köyvillageköy — kuy
- başkentcapital cityş like "sh": baş-KENT
- toplu taşımapublic transportş like "sh", dotless ı: top-LU ta-şı-MA
- anaokulukindergartenana is mother, okul school: a "mother school". A crèche for the tiniest ones is kreş, a separate institution.
- çocuk parkıplaygroundç like "ch", dotless ı: ço-JUK par-KI
- fıskiyefountaindotless ı: fıs-ki-YE
- mezarlıkcemeterydotless ı: me-zar-LIK
- itfaiye aracıfire truckc like "j", dotless ı: it-fa-i-YE a-ra-JI
- mahalleneighborhoodBoth the part of town where everyone knows everyone and the official unit of an address.
- küçük parkpocket parkTurkish has no special word: a patch of green on the corner is just called a little park.
- kuletowerIn names it takes the izafet: Galata Kulesi, "the Galata Tower".
- banliyösuburbFrench banlieue. The commuter train is banliyö treni.
- kasabasmall townSmaller than a şehir, bigger than a köy: one square and one market.
- yoldan geçenpasserbyThe participle -en does the job of a separate word: "one passing along the road".
- yayapedestrianWorks as an adverb too: yaya gitmek is "to go on foot". The crosswalk is yaya geçidi.
- tabelasignThe sign above a shop and the road sign on a post alike.
- çöp kovasıtrash cankova is "a bucket": the street bin gets the same name as the kitchen one.
- sokak feneristreet lampfener is a lamp with a glass; people more often say sokak lambası, which the course already knows.
- çimlawnçim is the grass itself; the green patch in front of the house is often çimenlik. Wild grass is ot.
- çiçek tarhıflower bedAn izafet: tarh takes the possessive tail -ı — literally "a bed of flowers".
- giriş merdivenifront stepsNo special word: a Turk says "the stairs of the entrance", an izafet. The sill under the door is eşik.
- basamakstepOne step is a basamak, the whole staircase is merdiven. The final k softens: basamak becomes basamağa.
- kapı numarasıhouse numberAn izafet: numara becomes numarası. A Turk numbers not the house but the door; the apartment number is daire numarası.
- sokak adıstreet nameAn izafet: ad becomes adı. The plaque with it on the corner is sokak tabelası.
- direkpoleA pole, a mast, a support. The final k softens: direk becomes direğe; a lamppost is aydınlatma direği.
- eski şehirold townModifier in front, no tail — no izafet here. In Istanbul the same place is also called tarihi yarımada, "the historic peninsula".
- konut binasıresidential buildingkonut is housing in officialese — the course knows it from konut kredisi; in everyday speech the same building is an apartman.
- sessizliksilenceA ladder of suffixes: ses is "sound", sessiz is "soundless", sessizlik is "silence".
- binabuildingAny building, usually multi-story; the course knows konut binası, a residential building. ev is not a building but a home, a house as one's own place.
- meydantown squareThe square of a city, not the shape. Taksim Meydanı — Taksim Square: in names it is the second word that takes the ending -ı.
- bakkalcorner storeunlike a market chain, a bakkal is always family-run
- pazarlıkhagglingin a chain store there is no haggling, and it's not worth trying
- İstiklalIstiklalThe tram has run here since 1875, with a break: the line was restored in 1990.
How it sounds in a sentence
A word list is a blank. Conversation is made of sentences, and these are the ones the words fit into most often.
What is worth knowing about these words
şehir — city. A Persian word. With endings the second syllable's vowel drops: şehir becomes şehre, şehrin. burun ("nose") and ağız ("mouth") behave the same way.
sokak — street. A small street. The avenue is cadde, printed larger on signs.
banka — bank. Do not confuse with banko — that is a counter, a desk in an office. Both words are Italian, but in Turkish they split into two.
eczane — pharmacy. The Persian tail -hane ("house, establishment") wore down to -ane: ecza ("medicines") plus house. hastane ("hospital") and postane ("post office") are built the same way.
Test yourself
First by ear — the way you will meet the word in conversation. Click the speaker and pick the translation.
- What is this word?
It is şehir — city.
- What is this word?
It is otobüs durağı — bus stop sign.
- What is this word?
It is park — park.
- What is this word?
It is kavşak — intersection.
- What is this word?
It is sokak lambası — streetlight.
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “city” in Turkish?
A Persian word. With endings the second syllable's vowel drops: şehir becomes şehre, şehrin. burun ("nose") and ağız ("mouth") behave the same way.
- How do you say “bus stop sign” in Turkish?
durmak is "to stand", durak the place of stopping. With the linker the k goes to ğ again: durak → durağı
- How do you say “park” in Turkish?
English park. The same word says 'to park': park etmek
- How do you say “intersection” in Turkish?
from kavuşmak "to meet, join": roads joining. Navigation says "kavşaktan sağa" — right at the junction
- How do you say “streetlight” in Turkish?
"the street lamp": sokak + lamba. Moths vote for it unanimously
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
Street, square, pharmacy, bank. An address is built out of these, and an address is something you have to both say and understand.
A list is read in a minute and forgotten in a day. What works: hide the translation, try to recall, get it wrong — and come back to the same words tomorrow.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- This holds not only in experiments but in ordinary classrooms, with real students.checked many timesMawson & Kang, 2025, Behavioral Sciences 15(6):771 · 22 studies, d = 0.54 (confidence interval 0.31–0.77). The authors warn that individual studies disagree widely.
Frequently asked
How do you say “city” in Turkish?
«şehir». A Persian word. With endings the second syllable's vowel drops: şehir becomes şehre, şehrin. burun ("nose") and ağız ("mouth") behave the same way. It is one of 83 words in the set “the city and its places” — the rest are in the table above.
How many street and place words do you need to start?
A dozen is enough. The set of 83 words on this page covers nearly every everyday case on the topic — but it is best taken a few at a time, not all at once.
Is there audio?
Yes, 83 words on this page can be played — click the speaker next to the word. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.