Bir dakika bekleyin
“Bir dakika bekleyin” — wait a moment in Turkish. Phrase, level A1, topic — phrases that save you. In speech it is usually cut down to bir dakika, "one sec". Even shorter, very Istanbul: bi dakka. In a live sentence: “Bir dakika bekleyin, hemen geliyorum” — Wait a moment, I will be right there. You can hear how it sounds right here. One of 20 words in the set “phrases that save you” in the Turkish course.
In short
| Written in Turkish | Bir dakika bekleyin |
| Translation | wait a moment |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | A1 |
- Bir dakika bekleyinwait a moment
Why it looks that way
In speech it is usually cut down to bir dakika, "one sec". Even shorter, very Istanbul: bi dakka.
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- Bir dakika bekleyin, hemen geliyorumWait a moment, I will be right there
Nearby words: phrases that save you
“I don't understand”, “say that again”, “slower, please”, “help”. They are learned first for a reason: they bring back a conversation that has already gone wrong.
- anlamıyorumI do not understandNegation is the syllable -ma-/-mı- slipped inside the word: anlıyorum ("I understand") becomes anlamıyorum. The negative hides in the middle, not in front.
- yavaşslowlySaying it twice, yavaş yavaş, means "take it easy, little by little" — a very Turkish trick of doubling words.
- tekrar, lütfenagain, please"tekrar" means "again, a repeat"; add lütfen and you have a polite request. The full version, "could you repeat", is tekrar eder misiniz.
- İngilizce biliyor musunuz?do you speak English?Literally "do you know English?". The little particle "mu" is the question mark made audible.
- yardım!help!The noun "help", used as the cry itself. To ask for help in full: yardım eder misiniz. From it, yardımcı — "helper".
- kayboldumI am lostkaybolmak is "to vanish, to get lost"; -dum is "I" in the past. The same verb speaks of things: çantam kayboldu, "my bag has gone missing".
- çalışmıyorit does not workThe familiar çalışmak serves people and machines alike. Negation is an -mı- slipped into the middle: çalışıyor becomes çalışmıyor.
- Tamirci çağırıncall a repairmanğ is silent, it stretches the vowel: cha-uh-RUHN
- AçamıyorumI cannot open itaçmak is "to open", the insert -ama- is "cannot": açıyorum ("I open") becomes açamıyorum ("I cannot open").
- ambulansambulanceCalled at 112 — one number for every service. The emergency room is acil, "the urgent".
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “phrases that save you”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “wait a moment” in Turkish?
In speech it is usually cut down to bir dakika, "one sec". Even shorter, very Istanbul: bi dakka.
- How do you say “it does not work” in Turkish?
The familiar çalışmak serves people and machines alike. Negation is an -mı- slipped into the middle: çalışıyor becomes çalışmıyor.
- How do you say “again, please” in Turkish?
"tekrar" means "again, a repeat"; add lütfen and you have a polite request. The full version, "could you repeat", is tekrar eder misiniz.
- How do you say “ambulance” in Turkish?
Called at 112 — one number for every service. The emergency room is acil, "the urgent".
- How do you say “I am lost” in Turkish?
kaybolmak is "to vanish, to get lost"; -dum is "I" in the past. The same verb speaks of things: çantam kayboldu, "my bag has gone missing".
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- 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.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “wait a moment” in Turkish?
«Bir dakika bekleyin». In a live sentence: “Bir dakika bekleyin, hemen geliyorum” — Wait a moment, I will be right there. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Phrase, level A1, from the set “phrases that save you”.
Why does this word look the way it does?
In speech it is usually cut down to bir dakika, "one sec". Even shorter, very Istanbul: bi dakka. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.