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Basic words in Turkish

314 words in Turkish on the topic “basic words”: evet — yes, hayır — no, iyiyim — I am fine, iyi — good. 314 words can be played from recordings.

Updated September 1, 2026 · Lingofly

314 words on the topic

  • evet
    yes
    Plain agreement, no fine print. Mind the gesture that can replace it: head tipped back with a quick tongue click means "no", even though from afar it looks like a nod.
  • hayır
    no
    Turks often accompany a refusal with a tongue click and a small upward nod — that little package is a "no" too.
  • iyiyim
    I am fine
    "iyi" ("good") plus "-yim" ("I"): literally "I am good". The verb "to be" is just an ending here.
  • iyi
    good
    One word serves as adjective and adverb alike: iyi bir kitap is "a good book", iyi uyudum is "I slept well". English needs two words where Turkish makes do with one.
  • kötü
    bad
    ö — pucker your lips as for "oo" and say "e" as in "bed": kö-tü
  • çok iyi
    very well
    "çok" means "very" and always stands right before the word it boosts, just like English "very".
  • ve
    and
    An Arabic conjunction, often replaced in live speech by the tail -le/-la: annemle babam is "mom and dad". In a list ve appears only before the last item.
  • ama
    but
    The most common "but". The bookish one is fakat; the conversational booster is ama yani. It opens the second clause, as in English.
  • yarım
    half
    dotless ı: ya-RUHM
  • Bana gerek yok
    I do not need it
    Literally "I have no need" — with yok. The polite refusal for a pushy seller.
  • bir tane daha
    one more
    tane is a counting word like "piece": bir tane, iki tane. daha is "more", and it always comes after.
  • yeter
    enough
    yetmek is "to suffice". Said sharply, Yeter! is already "enough!"
  • sadece
    just
    Both "only" and "merely". It stands before the word it plays down.
  • açık
    open (on a sign)
    Also "light" about color: açık mavi is "light blue". And "clear": açık hava is "clear weather".
  • kapalı
    closed (on a sign)
    kapı is "door", kapalı is "with the door shut". Hence also Kapalıçarşı — Istanbul's Covered Bazaar.
  • daha fazla
    more
    daha is "more", and it alone makes the comparative. fazla is "plenty, too much".
  • daha az
    less
    The same scheme in reverse: daha plus az ("little"). There is no separate word for "less" in Turkish.
  • ağır
    heavy
    ğ is silent, it only stretches the vowel: aa-UHR
  • hafif
    light (weight)
    Light in weight. Light as in "not difficult" is another word, kolay.
  • yeni
    new
    The root of Istanbul's Yenikapı district — "the New Gate" — and of yeniden, "anew".
  • eski
    old (thing)
    Old about things. A person is not said this way — there it is yaşlı, from yaş ("age").
  • bozuk
    broken
    bozmak is "to spoil". bozuk para is "small change", literally "broken money".
  • Her şey yolunda
    everything is fine
    Literally "everything is on its road": yol is "road". The answer to nasılsın? when all is calm.
  • Her şey iyi
    everything is good
    her "each", şey "thing": "every thing is good". Beside it, her şey yolunda — "everything is in order".
  • insan
    person
    A human as a being, a person in general; insanlar is "people". From it, insan hakları — "human rights".
  • parça
    piece
    ç like "ch": par-CHA
  • koku
    smell
    Any smell — bread, rain, perfume; good perfume is simply güzel koku, "a nice smell". The verb of the same root is kokmak, "to smell".
  • on bir
    eleven
    No special word: "on" plus "bir", ten and one. Every number up to a hundred works the same — yirmi üç is exactly "twenty-three".
  • on iki
    twelve
    A dozen is düzine, but at the market people just say on iki. And Turkish counting holds its line: after a number the noun stays singular — on iki yumurta, never yumurtalar.
  • on üç
    thirteen
    ü like German ü; ç is "ch" as in "church": ohn-EWCH
  • on dört
    fourteen
    The only trap is spelling: "on dört" in two words, never "ondört". Numbers are joined only when spelled out in money documents, such as a cheque.
  • on beş
    fifteen
    A quarter of an hour is both on beş dakika and çeyrek saat. And dakika never takes a plural after a number.
  • on altı
    sixteen
    ı is the dotless letter, a short unstressed "uh" as in "sofa": ohn-al-TUH
  • on yedi
    seventeen
    Stress lands on the last syllable, on ye-DÍ — as it does on almost everything in Turkish. kişi after a number stays singular: on yedi kişi.
  • on sekiz
    eighteen
    In Turkey you come of age at eighteen, on sekiz yaşında. Age is said like this: the number, then yaş ("year") in the singular with the ending -ında — the possessive -ı plus "in".
  • on dokuz
    nineteen
    The last number built on "on". The tens have their own words after this: yirmi, otuz, kırk.
  • yirmi
    twenty
    Its own word, not "two-ten". After it everything follows the pattern and stays two words: yirmi bir, yirmi beş — no "and" between the places.
  • otuz
    thirty
    The tens have their own words, not derived from the units: otuz, kırk, elli. But altmış, yetmiş, seksen and doksan are built from the units altı, yedi, sekiz, dokuz.
  • kırk
    forty
    dotless ı in one syllable: KUHRK
  • elli
    fifty
    Do not confuse with el ("hand"): the numeral spells two l's. "Fifty-fifty" is yarı yarıya, "half and half".
  • altmış
    sixty
    You can see altı ("six") in there, but the ı drops out: altı becomes altmış. The same trick as yetmiş from yedi.
  • yetmiş
    seventy
    From yedi ("seven"), rebuilt the same way as altmış. seksen and doksan also come from the units, but in a different way.
  • seksen
    eighty
    From sekiz, but the -iz disappears entirely. A trap for fresh ears: seksen is eighty, not sixty.
  • doksan
    ninety
    From dokuz on the same pattern as seksen from sekiz. The nineties as a decade is doksanlar.
  • yüz
    hundred
    ü with lips pushed forward, voiced z: YEWZ
  • bin
    thousand
    Also without bir: a thousand is bin, two thousand is iki bin. The same word is the command "get on!" from binmek — so Bin! shouted in a dolmuş is about boarding, not money.
  • milyon
    million
    A loanword, but it behaves like bin: iki milyon kişi, the noun stays singular. A billion is milyar, easy to mix up by ear.
  • sıfır
    zero
    both ı dotless and hushed: SUH-fuhr
  • birinci
    first
    The suffix -inci makes ordinals by vowel harmony: bir becomes birinci, iki becomes ikinci, altı becomes altıncı. With no gender in Turkish, one form serves all.
  • ikinci
    second
    The same suffix: iki becomes ikinci. Careful with floors: what a Turk calls zemin kat is the ground floor, and birinci kat is already above it.
  • üçüncü
    third
    three rounded vowels in a row, ç like "ch": ewch-ewn-JEW
  • son
    last
    The same word as "the end": son works as both noun and modifier. Its pair is ilk — "first in a line", not birinci.
  • kaç
    how many
    Stands right before the noun, and the noun stays singular: kaç kişi?, kaç lira?. Without counting units, "how much?" is ne kadar?
  • çift
    pair
    A pair of shoes — bir çift ayakkabı — and a married couple — bir çift. As an adjective the same word means "even": çift sayı, an even number.
  • tane
    piece (counting word)
    A counting word: between number and thing a Turk often slips in tane — beş tane elma. Leaving it out is also right, but at the shop beş tane sounds more natural.
  • yüzde
    percent
    Literally "in the hundred", and the number comes AFTER: yüzde yirmi is "twenty percent" — the reverse of English. The % sign goes before the number: %20.
  • her
    every
    The noun after it is always singular: her gün, her insan. her biri is "each one separately", hepsi is "all together".
  • kim
    who
    The root of half a question family: kime "to whom", kimi "whom", kiminle "with whom". About things the question is different — ne?
  • neden
    why
    As a noun the same word means "the cause": neden geldin? is literally "for what reason did you come?". In conversation the short niye is heard more often.
  • niçin
    what for
    ç like "ch" in "church". Like most question words, stressed on the first syllable: NI-chin
  • hangi
    which
    Asks about a choice from a known set: hangi otobüs? is "which of the buses?". About qualities the question is different — nasıl bir ev?, "what kind of house?"
  • kimin
    whose
    No separate word: it is kim with the possessive ending -in. The answer is built with the same tail — Ali'nin, komşunun.
  • hiç kimse
    no one
    ç like "ch" in "church": heech kim-SE
  • bir şey
    something
    Literally "one thing". In a question the same phrase means "anything", and with a negation "nothing": bir şey yok.
  • her ikisi
    both
    her ("each") plus iki with a possessive tail: "each of the two". The particle de almost always stands next to it and goes untranslated.
  • bilmiyorum
    I do not know
    the stress slips onto the syllable before the negation: BIL-mi-yo-rum
  • görmek
    to see
    ö with rounded lips, as in German schön: gur-MEK
  • duymak
    to hear
    One word for "hear" and "feel": acı duymak is "to feel pain". saygı duymak ("to respect") is assembled the same way.
  • uyumak
    to sleep
    a y sits between the two u's: u-yu-MAK
  • taşımak
    to carry
    ş is "sh", both ı dotless: ta-shuh-MAK
  • koymak
    to put
    Turkish does not split "put", "place" and "set" — all koymak. What matters is that the spot takes the directional ending -a/-e: masaya koy.
  • kırmak
    to break
    both ı dotless: kuhr-MAK
  • inşa etmek
    to build
    ş is "sh": in-SHAH et-MEK
  • çok
    many, much
    ç like "ch", short o: CHOK
  • az
    little
    The partner of çok. daha az is "less", and en az means "at least, at minimum".
  • yumuşak
    soft
    ş is "sh": yu-mu-SHAK
  • sert
    hard
    The partner of yumuşak. The same word means "stern" about a person and "strong" about coffee and wind.
  • ıslak
    wet
    dotless ı, closer to "uh": uhs-LAK
  • kuru
    dry
    The partner of ıslak. From it kuruyemiş — nuts and dried fruit — and kuru temizleme, "dry cleaning".
  • ince
    thin
    c as "j" in "jam": in-JE
  • derin
    deep
    Deep water and deep sleep — derin uyku. The noun from it is derinlik, "depth".
  • yuvarlak
    round
    Related to yuvarlanmak, "to roll": round is what rolls. yuvarlak masa is both a round table and the talks held at it.
  • nereye
    to where
    Like most question words, stressed on the first syllable: NE-re-ye
  • her yerde
    everywhere
    her ("each") plus yer ("place") with the -de ending: "in every place". Swap the tail and you get her yere ("to everywhere") and her yerden ("from everywhere").
  • hiçbir yerde
    nowhere
    ç like "ch": heech-BIR yer-DE
  • risk
    risk
    From French risque. The final k does not soften before a vowel ending: riski, not "risği"; one-syllable loanwords skip this change. Hence riskli "risky," a word used by doctors and bank clerks.
  • yedek plan
    backup plan
    yedek means "spare, backup," the same word as in yedek lastik and yedek anahtar. "Plan B" is understood too: B planı. The phrase usually leans on var: "Yedek planım var."
  • aksilik
    a setback
    aksi means "contrary, against the grain" (from Arabic, "the reverse"); aksilik is whatever went against the plan. "Bir aksilik çıktı," "something came up," is a polite reason to cancel a meeting without going into details.
  • sebep
    cause
    From Arabic. Next to it is neden, which means both "reason" and "why": people ask with neden and explain with sebep. With a linking vowel the p voices: sebebi, sebebini, sebebiyle.
  • sonuç
    result
    from son, "end": what the end produces. "Sonuç olarak" — as a result — opens conclusions
  • bu yüzden
    therefore
    yüz is "face" and "side"; bu yüzden is "from this side," that is, for this reason. It comes at the START of the second sentence, after a comma or period: "Yağmur yağdı, bu yüzden çıkmadık." Equivalents: bu nedenle and onun için.
  • çünkü
    because
    A Persian word that does not behave the Turkish way: it comes at the START of the second clause, like English "because," not at the end of a subordinate clause. It needs a comma before it. The native Turkish way is "hasta olduğum için," with the link at the end.
  • bundan dolayı
    because of this
    dolayı means "because of"; it puts its word in the "from" form and comes AFTER it: bundan dolayı, yağmurdan dolayı. The colloquial twin is bu yüzden, the bookish one bu sebeple.
  • bağlı olmak
    to depend on
    bağlı is "tied" (bağlamak, "to tie"): to depend is to be tied TO, to-where tail -a
  • sebebini açıklamak
    to explain the reason
    açık is open, açıklamak is to reveal, explain; hence açıklama, both an explanation and an official statement. Here "reason" takes the linking vowel plus the object ending: sebeb-i-ni. A polite request: "Sebebini açıklar mısınız?"
  • amaç
    purpose
    A purpose as intention, the goal behind an action. The neighboring hedef is a measurable target: satış hedefi, a sales target. amaç gives the bookish purpose phrase "-mek amacıyla"; the colloquial one is "-mek için."
  • anlam
    meaning
    from anlamak "to understand": the understanding, the sense. "Anlamı ne?" — what does it mean?
  • çıkarım
    conclusion
    çıkarmak is "to extract," and -ım gives what is extracted. The word is bookish, from logic; in speech a conclusion is "made" with a verb: "sonuç çıkarmak" or "Şu sonuca vardım," I came to this conclusion.
  • fırsat
    opportunity
    fırsat — fuhr-SAT
  • mümkün
    feasible
    mümkün — muum-KUUN
  • imkânsız
    impossible
    imkânsız — im-kyan-SUHZ
  • gereklilik
    necessity
    gerek "needed" made into a noun of state: the necessity. Forms say "zorunluluk" too
  • mutlaka
    without fail
    Arabic "of necessity": necessarily. "Mutlaka gel" — come without fail — is an order wrapped in warmth
  • zorunda kalacağım
    I'll have to
    zor is hard, and zorunda is "under compulsion." The pattern is infinitive plus zorunda: "Gitmek zorundayım," I have to go. With kalmak it shifts to the future: "I will have to."
  • serbest
    permitted
    Persian for "free." On signs it means "allowed": "Park serbest," "Giriş serbest." About a person the same word means "free, not busy," and serbest çalışmak is to be self-employed.
  • yasak
    forbidden
    From Mongolian jasaq, "law, ban". It works as both an adjective and a noun: "Sigara içmek yasak," smoking is forbidden; "Yasak koydular," they imposed a ban. On signs it stands alone: YASAK.
  • tercih
    choice
    Arabic "preferring": the choice, the preference. The verb is "tercih etmek"; school forms ask for your "tercih listesi"
  • seçenek
    option
    seçmek is "to choose," and -enek gives "what one chooses from." On menus and forms these are the options; for the choices on a test, people say şık. "Başka seçenek yok," there's no other option.
  • şüphe
    doubt
    From Arabic. It leans on verbs: şüphe duymak, to feel doubt; şüpheye düşmek, to begin to doubt; "Şüphem yok," I have no doubt. From it comes şüpheli, a suspect.
  • şüphe etmek
    to doubt
    What you doubt takes the "from" form: "Bundan şüphe ediyorum." "Şüpheliyim" sounds livelier, while şüphelenmek means "to suspect someone": "Ondan şüpheleniyorum."
  • emin
    sure
    Arabic for "trustworthy, secure." It takes the "from" ending: "Bundan eminim," I'm sure of it. emniyet, as in emniyet kemeri (seat belt), shares the root. About a thing you say güvenli; about a person, emin.
  • pek sanmam
    hardly
    Literally "I don't much suppose": pek is "very," sanmak is "to think, suppose," and -mam is the "in general" negative for I. It stands as a reply on its own or at the end of a sentence. "zor" works the same way: "Bugün gelmesi zor."
  • herhalde
    probably
    Literally "in every state" (her + hâl + -de), but in Turkish it means "probably, most likely." belki is weaker: "maybe, maybe not." It goes at the start or at the very end: "Herhalde uyudu" = "Uyudu herhalde."
  • kesinlikle
    definitely
    kesin "certain" (from kesmek, "to cut"): settled by cutting. The -likle makes it an adverb of certainty
  • bana öyle geliyor
    it seems to me
    Literally "it comes to me that way": gelmek here is about an impression, not arrival. It opens a thought and softens it. sanırım and galiba say the same thing more briefly.
  • aslında
    actually
    asıl is "the real, the origin": aslında is "in its real self". The truth-teller's word
  • tahmin etmek
    to guess
    From Arabic tahmin, an estimate by eye. One verb covers "suppose," "guess," and "forecast": hava tahmini is the weather forecast, "Tahmin et!" means "guess!" The strict "assume" is varsaymak, a bookish word.
  • emin değilim
    I'm not sure
    emin "sure" + değilim "I am not": doubt, stated politely. The useful refuge of learners
  • deneyim
    experience
    denemek is "to try," and -yim gives what is accumulated by trying. Next to it is Arabic tecrübe, meaning the same, and job ads write iş tecrübesi. deney without -im is a scientific experiment: three neighboring words that are easy to mix up.
  • durum
    case
    from durmak "to stand": the situation as things stand. "Bu durumda" — in this case
  • örnek
    example
    örnek — ur-NEK
  • mesela
    for instance
    From Arabic, at home in conversation; its written twin is örneğin, from örnek. It opens a sentence with a comma, but can also sit mid-sentence right before the example itself.
  • fark
    difference
    From Arabic, and it leans on verbs: "Fark var mı?" is there a difference? "Fark etmez," it makes no difference. Careful: "fark etmek" with a direct object means something else, "to notice": "Seni fark etmedim."
  • karşılaştırma
    comparison
    karşı is "opposite," karşılaştırmak is "to compare," and -ma makes the action noun. What you compare with takes ile: "Bunu onunla karşılaştır." The bookish synonym is kıyaslama.
  • farklı olmak
    to differ
    Turkish says "to differ" with the adjective farklı plus "to be." What it differs from takes the "from" ending: "Bu ondan farklı." The similar ayrılmak means "to separate, part."
  • benzer
    similar
    from benzemek "to resemble": the look-alike. "Bana benziyorsun" — you resemble me
  • benzerlik
    similarity
    -lik turns an adjective into an abstract noun: benzer is similar, benzerlik is similarity. güzellik and güvenlik are built the same way. The opposite is farklılık, difference.
  • değişiklik
    change
    değişmek is "to change." değişiklik is a specific change, an amendment: "Programda değişiklik var." değişim is change as a process, about time and society. "Bir değişiklik olsun" means "for a change."
  • birincisi
    first of all
    "the first of them": ordinal plus possessive. Listing, Turkish style: birincisi… ikincisi…
  • ikincisi
    secondly
    "the second of them": the second shelf of the argument. Follows birincisi everywhere
  • her şeyden önce
    above all
    "before everything": from-where tail -den doing priority work. Health comes önce
  • ayrıca
    besides
    ayrı is separate, and ayrıca is "separately, in addition." It opens the second sentence, usually with a comma: "Ayrıca, fiyat da uygun." Within one sentence the same meaning comes from "-in yanı sıra."
  • bu arada
    by the way
    Literally "in this interval," and it means two things at once: "by the way" and "meanwhile." It opens a remark with a comma. When a thought has just occurred to you, say "aklıma gelmişken."
  • genel olarak
    all in all
    "generally speaking": genel "general" + olarak "as". Summing-up in two words
  • kısacası
    in short
    kısa is short, and kısacası is "the short of it." It opens a summing-up sentence, with a comma: "Kısacası, gelmiyor." The full idiom is "uzun lafın kısası," the short of a long speech.
  • başka bir deyişle
    to put it differently
    "with another saying": deyiş from demek "to say". Rephrasing, announced honestly
  • en önemlisi
    most importantly
    önemli is important, en önemlisi is "the most important of it"; the -si ending makes it a noun. It opens a sentence with a comma or works as a predicate: "En önemlisi sağlık."
  • sonuçta
    ultimately
    sonuç is a result, and the "at" ending gives "in the end, ultimately." It opens a conclusion: "Sonuçta herkes memnun." The end in time is a different word: "En sonunda geldi," he finally came.
  • gerçi
    although
    From Persian. It comes at the START of the concessive part, and the second part nearly always begins with ama: "Gerçi yorgunum, ama gelirim." The native Turkish concession is "-e rağmen" at the end of the clause; gerçi is simpler and more colloquial.
  • buna karşılık
    in return
    karşılık is a response, a return: "in return for this, in contrast." It opens the second sentence, with a comma. Everyday speech often gets by with a plain ama instead: "Küçük ama ucuz."
  • tam tersine
    on the contrary
    "fully opposite": tam "exactly" + ters "contrary". Corrections served cold
  • -e rağmen
    despite
    It comes AFTER its word, putting it in the "to" form: "Yağmura rağmen çıktık." With a verb it closes the subordinate clause: "Yorgun olmasına rağmen geldi." No comma separates it from the main clause.
  • ancak
    however
    It opens the second sentence, like English "however": "Denedim; ancak olmadı." It has a second, quite different meaning, "only, just": "Ancak iki kişi geldi," only two people came. Its position in the sentence tells them apart.
  • bir yandan
    on the one hand
    yan is side. The phrase opens the first half of an argument, at its start. The second half must be introduced by öte yandan or diğer yandan: in Turkish this pair is not split up.
  • öte yandan
    on the other hand
    öte yandan — u-TE yan-DAN
  • yine de
    nevertheless
    yine is "again," de is "and, also, even": together, "and still, even so." It opens the second sentence or sits right before the verb: "Yorgundum, yine de gittim." Like every de meaning "also, even," it is written as a separate word.
  • onun yerine
    instead
    yer is place, and -ine gives "into its place, instead of it." It opens a sentence with a substitute: "Onun yerine çay içelim." With a noun it works the same way and also follows: "Kahve yerine çay," tea instead of coffee.
  • fark etmez
    it doesn't matter
    Literally "it makes no difference": the reply when the choice doesn't matter to you. "Çay mı kahve mi? Fark etmez." The stubborn "anyway, regardless" is a different phrase, yine de.
  • yanlışlıkla
    by accident
    yanlış is a mistake, and -lıkla gives "by mistake": "accidentally" in the sense of "not on purpose." Chance coincidence is a different word, tesadüfen: "Onu tesadüfen gördüm," I ran into him by chance.
  • bilerek
    on purpose
    bilmek is "to know," and -erek gives "knowing": done with awareness of what you are doing, on purpose. It goes before the verb: "Bilerek yapmadım," I didn't do it on purpose. The legal "deliberately" is kasten.
  • başarısızlık
    failure
    başarısızlık — ba-sha-ruh-suhz-LUHK
  • adım adım
    step by step
    adım adım — a-DUHM a-DUHM
  • işlem sırası
    the order of steps
    işlem sırası — ish-LEM suh-ra-SUH
  • ayrıntılı olarak
    in detail
    ayrıntılı olarak — ay-ruhn-tuh-LUH o-la-RAK
  • kendi kelimelerinle
    in your own words
    The ending -le means "with": "in your own words" is literally "with your words." Turkish must tie "own" to a person: kendi kelimelerimle, kelimelerinle, kelimeleriyle.
  • Basitçe söylersek
    simply put
    Basitçe söylersek — ba-SIT-che suy-ler-SEK
  • Bir örnek ver
    give an example
    Bir örnek ver — bir ur-NEK ver
  • Nasıl yapıldığını göster
    show how it is done
    Nasıl yapıldığını göster — NA-suhl ya-puhl-duhh-uh-NUH gus-TER
  • Anladın mı?
    is that clear?
    Anladın mı? — an-la-DUHN muh?
  • Şimdi anladım
    now I get it
    Şimdi anladım — SHIM-di an-la-DUHM
  • Kafam karıştı
    I got confused
    Kafam karıştı — ka-FAM ka-ruhsh-TUH
  • hatırlamak
    to recall
    hatırlamak — ha-tuhr-la-MAK
  • unutmak
    to forget
    A forgetful person is unutkan, with the same -kan ending as çalışkan. Unutma means "don't forget"; "unuttum gitti" means "it slipped my mind completely."
  • niyet
    intention
    Arabic "aim, intent": the intention. "Niyetim kötü değildi" — my intention was not bad — is the universal defense
  • fikrini değiştirmek
    to change your mind
    fikrini değiştirmek — fik-ri-NI dee-ish-tir-MEK
  • Her şey planlandığı gibi
    everything is going to plan
    Her şey planlandığı gibi — her shey plan-lan-duhh-UH gi-BI
  • Fırsat olursa
    if it works out
    Fırsat olursa — fuhr-SAT o-LOOR-sa
  • Henüz karar vermedim
    I haven't decided yet
    Henüz karar vermedim — HE-nuuz ka-RAR VER-me-dim
  • Her şey değişti
    everything changed
    Her şey değişti — her shey dee-ish-TI
  • iyiye doğru
    for the better
    iyiye doğru — i-yi-YE doh-ROO
  • kötüye doğru
    for the worse
    kötüye doğru — ku-tuu-YE doh-ROO
  • ait olmak
    belong to
    ait means pertaining to, and it demands the to-where tail: bu ev bana ait — this house belongs to me. Turkish has no verb "to belong" at all — a noun with a linking verb instead.
  • başkasının
    someone else’s
    ş like "sh", dotless ı: baş-ka-sı-NIN
  • ortak
    shared
    From orta, the middle. Ortak is both "shared" and "a co-owner": ortak mutfak is a shared kitchen, iş ortağı a business partner.
  • itmek
    push
    Doors say İTİNİZ — "push" — and on the neighbor panel ÇEKİNİZ — "pull". Jostling in a crowd is itişmek, with the mutual -iş.
  • çekmek
    pull
    ç like "ch": chek-MEK
  • vurmak
    hit
    vurmak is to strike, to thump and to shoot. The ball is hit with the to-where form: not topu but topa vurmak.
  • metre
    meter
    From French mètre. After a number the measure takes no plural: üç metre kumaş — three meters of cloth, never metreler. A square meter is metrekare.
  • santimetre
    centimeter
    stress on the last syllable: san-ti-met-RE
  • kilometre
    kilometer
    Speed is written km/saat and read "kilometre saat". Distance is asked as kaç kilometre? — livelier than the bookish ne kadar uzak.
  • litre
    liter
    A liter of milk is bir litre süt — no plural, no owner form. At the gas station they say yirmi litre benzin.
  • gram
    gram
    A hundred grams is yüz gram. At the market people trade in half kilograms: yarım kilo is heard more often than beş yüz gram.
  • ağırlık
    weight
    ğ is not sounded, it stretches the vowel: a-ır-LIK
  • uzunluk
    length
    uzun is long. The same tail -lık as in ağırlık, genişlik, derinlik: Turkish has one model for all measures, and you learn it once.
  • genişlik
    width
    ş like "sh": ge-niş-LIK
  • yükseklik
    height
    ü rounded: yük-sek-LIK
  • derinlik
    depth
    derin is deep. The word goes figurative too: the depth of a book and of a person is the same as the depth of a pool.
  • yaklaşık
    approximately
    ş like "sh", dotless ı: yak-la-ŞIK
  • neredeyse
    almost
    Literally "if anywhere". It means both "almost" and "nearly did": neredeyse düşüyordum — I nearly fell.
  • tam
    exactly
    Before a number tam means "exactly": tam üçte — at three sharp. Alone it answers "just right" about a size, and it lives inside tam tersine, "quite the opposite".
  • ortalama olarak
    on average
    orta is the middle, ortalama the mean; olarak makes the adverb. Ortalama also lives as a noun: notların ortalaması — a grade point average.
  • iki kat
    twice as much
    Here kat is not a floor but a fold, a multiple: iki kat twofold, üç kat threefold. In comparisons daha is added: iki kat daha pahalı.
  • rakam
    digit
    rakam is a sign from zero to nine, sayı a number as a quantity. Telefon numarası on bir rakam — a phone number has eleven digits.
  • çeyrek
    quarter
    ç like "ch": chey-REK
  • tartmak
    weigh
    Weighing on scales is tartmak, while "to weigh so much" is çekmek: bavul yirmi kilo çekiyor. Household scales are tartı.
  • fazla
    extra
    One word for "spare", "too" and "more": fazla tuz — too much salt, fazla konuşma — do not say too much, yüz kişiden fazla — more than a hundred people.
  • boş
    empty
    ş like "sh": boş
  • kaçınmak
    avoid
    ç like "ch", dotless ı: ka-chın-MAK
  • olgu
    fact
    olmak is to be, to happen; olgu is what has happened. In speech gerçek carries the same idea — Bu bir gerçek; olgu stays with the press and science.
  • soru
    question
    sormak is to ask. Soru sormak is to ask a question. A question as an issue on the agenda is a different word: mesele or konu.
  • önemli
    important
    ö rounded: ö-nem-LI
  • olumlu
    positive
    From olmak. A positive answer, a positive test result and a positive person are all olumlu. The pair to it is olumsuz.
  • olumsuz
    negative
    The pair to olumlu, with -suz instead of -lu. In grammar olumsuz is the negative form of the verb, and the textbook calls it exactly that.
  • kıyasla
    compared to
    dotless ı: kı-yas-LA
  • aynı
    the same
    dotless ı at the end: AY-nı
  • avantaj
    advantage
    From French. Avantajı var — there is an upside. Superiority over someone is a separate word, üstünlük.
  • dezavantaj
    drawback
    The pair to avantaj, equally French. A flaw in a thing is kusur, a lack of something eksiklik; dezavantaj is the minus in a comparison.
  • sonuçlar
    consequences
    ç like "ch": so-nuç-LAR
  • dikkate almak
    take into account
    dikkat is attention: "to take into attention". The longer bookish variant is göz önünde bulundurmak. To ignore is dikkate almamak.
  • büyük ihtimalle
    most likely
    ü twice: bü-YÜK ih-ti-mal-LE
  • kesin
    for sure
    kesmek is to cut; kesin is "cut off", final. As an adverb it means "for sure": kesin gelir. kesinlikle is stronger — "definitely".
  • olasılık
    probability
    dotless ı twice: o-la-sı-LIK
  • tahmin
    guess
    Arabic. The weather forecast is hava tahmini, a conjecture a tahmin. The verb tahmin etmek — to guess — comes from the same word.
  • görünüşe göre
    it seems that
    ö and ü rounded, ş like "sh": gö-rü-nü-ŞE gö-RE
  • olmalı
    must be
    The same tail -meli as in "should", but after a third person it marks a conclusion: yorgun olmalı — he must be tired. Even more bookish is olsa gerek.
  • olamaz
    that can’t be
    ol-a-maz: "to be" plus possibility plus negation. It means "that can’t be" as astonishment and "not allowed" as a ban; as a standalone cry — Olamaz!
  • en azından
    at least
    dotless ı: en a-zın-DAN
  • her durumda
    in any case
    durum is a state, a case: "under any scenario". fark etmez answers "which will you take", while her durumda stands inside the sentence.
  • ne olur ne olmaz
    just in case
    Literally "whether it happens or not". A ready-made formula; the words never swap places. Shorter is her ihtimale karşı.
  • -saydı
    if (past unreal)
    dotless ı: -say-DI
  • şartıyla
    on condition that
    ş like "sh", dotless ı: şar-TIY-la
  • -se bile
    even if
    The conditional -sa/-se plus bile — "even". The order is rigid: bile always comes after the verb, not before it.
  • o hâlde
    in that case
    the â stretches: o haal-DE
  • yoksa
    otherwise
    yok plus -sa: "if not". It means "otherwise, or else". In a question the same word means "or": çay mı, yoksa kahve mi?
  • o zaman
    then (in that case)
    Literally "at that time", but in conversation it is "then, in that case". About the past people say o zamanlar — "back in those days".
  • -mek için
    in order to
    ç like "ch": -MEK i-CHIN
  • sanki
    as if
    san — "count it so" — plus ki, "that". It often pairs with "-mış gibi". Alone, sanki adds distrust: sanki bilmiyorsun — as if you didn’t know.
  • -mek yerine
    instead of (a verb)
    yer is place, -ine 'into its place'. The -mek word before it takes no endings. About things say onun yerine — instead of it.
  • çoğunlukla
    mostly
    ç like "ch", ğ stretches the vowel: ço-un-LUK-la
  • kural olarak
    as a rule
    kural is a rule, olarak "in the quality of". The bookier variant is genel olarak — "in general".
  • neredeyse hepsi
    almost everyone
    hep is "all along", hepsi "all of them"; neredeyse is "almost". After them the verb stays singular: neredeyse hepsi geldi.
  • istisna
    exception
    Arabic. İstisna olarak — as an exception; her kuralın istisnası vardır — every rule has an exception.
  • vesaire
    and so on
    Arabic "ve sâire" — "and the rest"; written as one word and shortened to vs. In living speech people drag out "falan filan".
  • farklı olarak
    unlike
    fark is a difference, farklı different. the from-where form is needed before the phrase: ondan farklı olarak. Its synonym is "-in aksine".
  • hariç
    except for
    ç like "ch": ha-RICH
  • tam değil
    not quite
    tam is full and exact; değil is not. A soft no in conversation: asked Öyle mi? — really? — people answer Tam değil.
  • aşağı yukarı
    more or less
    ş like "sh", ğ stretches the vowel: a-şa-A yu-ka-RI
  • zar zor
    barely
    Doubling for emphasis, like koşa koşa. It means "with effort, by a hair". The bookier synonym is güçlükle.
  • denemeye değer
    worth a try
    ğ is not sounded: de-ne-me-YE de-ER
  • -meliydi
    should have
    The tail of obligation -meli plus the past -ydi. Erken çıkmalıydın — you should have left earlier. The reproach is always audible in this form.
  • en iyisi
    the best thing
    en iyi is the best, and -si makes it "the best of it". At the front of a sentence it means "the best thing would be": En iyisi yarın konuşalım.
  • en kötüsü
    the worst thing
    ö and ü rounded: en kö-tü-SÜ
  • en kısa sürede
    as soon as possible
    dotless ı, ü rounded: en kı-SA sü-re-DE
  • boşuna
    in vain
    ş like "sh": bo-şu-NA
  • üstesinden gelmek
    cope with
    ü rounded: üs-te-sin-DEN gel-MEK
  • deneme
    attempt
    denemek is to try; deneme is an attempt and, in literature, an essay. Deney is a laboratory experiment — a different word.
  • yani
    in other words
    Arabic. A Turk inserts it into speech more often than he notices — often simply as a pause filler. The bookier neighbor is başka bir deyişle.
  • meğer
    it turns out
    ğ stretches the vowel: me-ER
  • sonuç olarak
    as a result
    ç like "ch": so-NUÇ o-la-RAK
  • yol açmak
    lead to
    ç like "ch": YOL aç-MAK
  • sayesinde
    thanks to
    saye is shade, protection (Persian): "under your wing". It stands AFTER the noun: senin sayende. It is never said about the bad — that is yüzünden.
  • ilk seferde
    on the first try
    sefer is an occasion and also a trip, a flight. Its synonym is ilk denemede. Bu sefer means "this time".
  • iki yüz
    two hundred
    the ü is like German ü — say "ew" with rounded lips: ee-KEE YEWZ
  • üç yüz
    three hundred
    ç is "ch" as in "church", both ü rounded like German ü: EWCH YEWZ
  • dört yüz
    four hundred
    Written in separate words, and so on down the line: dört yüz elli beş, "four hundred fifty-five", four words in a row without a single hyphen.
  • beş yüz
    five hundred
    But a five-hundred note is beşyüzlük — one word with the -lük tail: a fused name of a thing, no longer a number.
  • altı yüz
    six hundred
    ı is dotless and unvoiced, like the final "a" in "sofa": al-TUH YEWZ
  • yedi yüz
    seven hundred
    Stress falls on the last syllable of each word: ye-DÍ YÜZ. The flat tone between them is what tells you it is one number.
  • sekiz yüz
    eight hundred
    Numerals never decline: the case ending lands on the word after them — sekiz yüz kişiye, "to eight hundred people".
  • dokuz yüz
    nine hundred
    The last of the hundreds: next comes bin ("thousand"), and it no longer adds on but stands as its own word. Prices are read in full — dokuz yüz doksan dokuz.
  • dördüncü
    fourth
    ö and ü with rounded lips, c like "j" in "jam": dur-dewn-JEW
  • beşinci
    fifth
    beş ends in a consonant, so the tail comes on whole: beş + inci. The front vowel e pulls in an i — front-row harmony.
  • altıncı
    sixth
    altı ends in a vowel — and the tail's own first vowel drops out: altı + ncı, not altıincı. Same story with ikinci and yedinci.
  • yedinci
    seventh
    yedi + nci: the root's final vowel again eats the tail's vowel. The Turkish week is counted exactly this way — yedinci gün, the seventh day.
  • sekizinci
    eighth
    sekiz + inci, by the last vowel i. Long, but assembled mechanically: root as-is plus the right tail.
  • dokuzuncu
    ninth
    The root's last vowel is u, so the tail is rounded too: dokuz + uncu. The same choice in onuncu and otuzuncu ("thirtieth").
  • onuncu
    tenth
    on + uncu. The vowel o pulls in a u — the same harmony as in dokuzuncu, just a shorter root.
  • yüzüncü
    hundredth
    all three ü with rounded lips, c like "j": yew-zewn-JEW
  • veya
    or
    Another Arabic loan, like "ve" ("and"). Homegrown Turkish once managed without conjunctions altogether.
  • de
    also
    Written separately but pronounced glued to the previous word: ben de is "me too". Fused "-de" is already the case ending "in/at".
  • sadece
    only
    A bookish twin of "yalnızca". On its own, yalnız means "lonely" — watch the company it keeps.
  • çoktan
    already
    ç is "ch": chok-TAN
  • daha
    still
    The same word also builds comparatives: daha güzel is "prettier". One word, two jobs — "still" and "-er".
  • çok fazla
    too (excessively)
    Plain "fazla" on its own works as well. "Çok" without "fazla" is just "very" — the difference between "very expensive" and "too expensive".
  • birlikte
    together
    From bir ("one"): "as one". The synonym beraber is every bit as common in speech.
  • yasak
    not allowed
    Literally "forbidden" — it is the word on the signs. In speech the verb carries it: içemezsiniz, "you may not drink".
  • gerek
    it is necessary
    Impersonal, like English "one must": beklemek gerek, "one needs to wait". For a specific person add the tail -meli: beklemeliyim, "I must wait".
  • hayat
    life
    An Arabic loanword. The native yaşam is alive too and sounds more modern.
  • istemek
    to want
    To want to do something, put the infinitive first: gitmek istiyorum, literally "to go [I] want" — the action comes before the wanting.
  • yapabilmek
    can
    There is no standalone word: possibility is the tail -ebil built into the verb. Negation has its own shape, -eme.
  • kelime
    word
    An Arabic loanword. The native sözcük sounds more bookish, and söz also means "a promise".
  • mesele
    matter
    A matter as in a question to be settled. iş is work, a different word for a different thing.
  • yöntem
    way (of doing)
    Bookish. In speech people say yol — "the way": başka bir yol means both "another road" and "another way".
  • kolayca
    easily
    The tail -ca turns a trait into an adverb: kolay is "easy", kolayca is "easily".
  • zorlukla
    with difficulty
    From zorluk, "difficulty", plus the instrumental -la. Literally "with difficulty".
  • diye
    so that
    Stands AFTER its clause, and the verb inside takes the wish mood: geç kalmayayım diye, "so that I am not late". It also introduces quoted speech: geliyorum diye yazdı, "he wrote that he is coming".
  • eğer
    if
    Does not create the condition by itself — that job belongs to -sa/-se on the verb: yağarsa, "if it rains". Eğer just warns you at the front and is dropped freely.
  • iken
    while
    Usually glued to the verb as -ken: ben okurken, "while I read". Written as a separate word after nouns: çocuk iken, "while still a child".
  • madem
    since (given that)
    Often teams up with ki: madem ki. Opens the first clause and presents it as already known — English "seeing that".
  • yeter ki
    as long as
    Literally "may it just suffice", from yetmek ("to suffice"). The verb after it takes the wish mood: yeter ki gelsin.
  • öyleyse
    so
    Literally "if so": öyle plus the conditional -yse. Opens the second clause and serves it as a conclusion — like English "in that case".
  • arasında
    between
    It stands AFTER the nouns. Two nouns in between are joined by ile: banka ile market arasında, "between the bank and the market".
  • yakınında
    near
    A little word after the noun with the owner form in front: evin yakınında, "near the house". With a pronoun the person ending moves onto the little word itself: benim yakınımda.
  • yerine
    instead of
    From yer ("place"), literally "into the place of". takes the owner tail: şekerin yerine, "instead of the sugar"; benim yerime, "in my place".
  • karşı
    against
    A little word after the noun that demands the -a/-e tail on the noun, and it is required: plana karşı, hastalığa karşı, buna karşı — "against the plan, the illness, this".
  • olmadan
    without
    Turkish has no single word for "without": the usual tool is the suffix -sız (şekersiz, "sugar-free"). Olmadan is for whole words and clauses: sen olmadan, "without you".
  • için
    for
    A little word after the noun. With a noun it goes bare — çocuklar için, "for the children" — but a pronoun needs the owner form first: senin için, benim için.
  • hakkında
    about
    Bare after a noun — film hakkında, "about the film" — but through the owner form with pronouns: bunun hakkında, "about this".
  • ardından
    after
    sonra ("later") takes the from-where tail: yemekten sonra. Ardından says the same through the owner form: yemeğin ardından.
  • sırasında
    during
    A linked form of sıra ("turn, queue"). The word demands the owner tail: dersin sırasında, "during the lesson".
  • yüzünden
    because of
    From yüz ("face") in the from-where tail. Only for bad causes; for good ones Turkish gives thanks with a different little word — sayesinde.
  • etrafında
    around
    A little word after the noun with the owner form: masanın etrafında, "around the table". To walk around is etrafında dolaşmak, and the where form stays put.
  • üzerinden
    across
    The owner form on the noun, from-where form on the little word itself: köprünün üzerinden, "over the bridge". içinden has the same build, but means "through".
  • içeriden
    from inside
    the from-where form of içeri, the partner of içeride ("inside"). A door locked from the inside is içeriden kilitli.
  • civarda
    nearby
    From civar — "the outskirts, the neighborhood". The tempting yakında means "soon", so for place people say civarda.
  • açık
    open
    açık is both the "open" sign and açık renk, "light color" — one word. Also "clear" about the sky and "switched on" about a device.
  • kapalı
    closed
    kapalı is both the "closed" sign and "overcast" about the sky. About a phone it means "switched off": telefonu kapalı.
  • sorun
    problem
    A native word, from sormak ("to ask"). The borrowed problem is about a school task with an answer; sorun is about a trouble in life. Sorun değil is "no problem".
  • çok
    very
    çok is also "much, many" — one word, and position decides: before a noun it is "much" (çok su), before an adjective "very" (çok güzel). Çok iyi works as one whole.
  • iyi
    well
    iyi is also the adjective "good" — the adverb is the same word, no tail. As the answer to Nasılsın? people say İyiyim; for agreement they take tamam, not iyi.
  • yardım
    help
    yardım etmek, "to help", is this same noun plus etmek, "to do". Yardım! on its own is already a cry for help.
  • ile
    with (together with)
    The same thing as the ending -la/-le: arkadaşım ile and arkadaşımla are one and the same. As a separate word it belongs to careful writing.
  • olmak
    to be, to become
    In the present Turkish builds "am/is/are" without any verb: ben öğretmenim — I am a teacher. olmak is needed for the future (öğretmen olacağım), for "become" and for "turned out": çok güzel olmuş.
  • gerekmek
    to be needed
    Mostly heard as gerekiyor — "it is needed". Whoever needs it marks itself on the verb next door: gitmem gerekiyor — I need to go.

Download the word set (CSV) · Open the printable sheet

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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

evet — yes. Plain agreement, no fine print. Mind the gesture that can replace it: head tipped back with a quick tongue click means "no", even though from afar it looks like a nod.

hayır — no. Turks often accompany a refusal with a tongue click and a small upward nod — that little package is a "no" too.

iyiyim — I am fine. "iyi" ("good") plus "-yim" ("I"): literally "I am good". The verb "to be" is just an ending here.

iyi — good. One word serves as adjective and adverb alike: iyi bir kitap is "a good book", iyi uyudum is "I slept well". English needs two words where Turkish makes do with one.

Test yourself

First by ear — the way you will meet the word in conversation. Click the speaker and pick the translation.

  1. What is this word?

  2. What is this word?

  3. What is this word?

  4. What is this word?

  5. What is this word?

Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.

  1. How do you say “yes” in Turkish?

  2. How do you say “but” in Turkish?

  3. How do you say “closed (on a sign)” in Turkish?

  4. How do you say “broken” in Turkish?

  5. How do you say “twelve” in Turkish?

How to learn the set instead of just reading it

Yes, no, good, bad, very. The small change of a language — and no sentence assembles without it.

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.

Frequently asked

How do you say “yes” in Turkish?

«evet». Plain agreement, no fine print. Mind the gesture that can replace it: head tipped back with a quick tongue click means "no", even though from afar it looks like a nod. It is one of 314 words in the set “basic words” — the rest are in the table above.

How many basic words do you need to start?

The whole set on this page is 314 words, but there is no need to start with all of it: the words you will need in the next few days are enough. Take them a few at a time — five to seven new ones per session.

Is there audio?

Yes, 314 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.

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