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Learn the Top Turkish Compliments for Any Situation

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Compliments! Tell me who doesn’t like compliments. I believe that even those who say they don’t like compliments enjoy them deep inside.

Complimenting is a very human thing, and it can be done anywhere, anytime. However, you need to be very careful about it if you’re not a native speaker and you’re complimenting someone whose culture you’re not familiar with. You wouldn’t want to be embarrassed or hit with a purse, would you?

In this article, we’ll talk about how to compliment in Turkish, as well as when you should avoid complimenting. With the Turkish compliments in this article, you can bring a smile to anyone’s face!

Let’s start with the basics:

“Compliment”                                         – İltifat; kompliman; övgü

“Compliments” (plural)                          – İltifatlar; komplimanlar; övgüler

“Compliments” (as a separate word)      – Selamlar; saygılar; tebrikler

Now that you’ve learned the most important words related to compliments, it’s time to learn the top Turkish compliments you can use for different occasions to express your gratitude, appreciation, admiration, and likes.

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Table of Contents

  1. Compliments on Someone’s Look and Character
  2. Praising Someone at Work
  3. Kudos in Social Life
  4. When and Where to Avoid Complimenting
  5. What’s Expected After a Compliment
  6. You Will Do Great!

1. Compliments on Someone’s Look and Character

In this section, we’ll talk about Turkish compliments you can use for someone’s physical appearance or his/her character.

1- Physical Characteristics

You’re fascinated with a Turkish woman’s beauty, and you would like to express your feelings. Here are some Turkish compliments for girls that you can use:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Ne kadar güzelsiniz! Ne kadar güzelsin! “You are so beautiful.”
Literally: “How beautiful you are!”
Güzelliğiniz karşısında büyülendim. Güzelliğin karşısında büyülendim. “I’m fascinated by your beauty.”
Bu saçlar size çok yakışmış. Bu saç sana çok yakışmış. “Your hair looks good.”
Gamzelerinize bayılıyorum. Gamzelerine bayılıyorum. “I love your dimples.”
Gülüşünüz ne kadar içten. Gülüşün ne kadar içten. “Your smile is very sincere.”
Literally: “How sincere your smile is.”

Compliments for Girls

Ladies! You don’t have to worry, you’re also covered. Here comes the compliments for a handsome male:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Çok yakışıklısınız! Çok yakışıklısın! “You are very handsome!”
Sakal size çok yakışmış. Sakal sana çok yakışmış. “Your beard looks good on you.”
Harika görünüyorsunuz! Harika görünüyorsun! “You look wonderful!”
Çok güzel gözleriniz var. Çok güzel gözlerin var. “You have very beautiful eyes.”
Saçlarınız çok güzel! Saçların çok güzel! “Your hair is very beautiful.”
Parfümünüzü çok beğendim. Parfümünü çok beğendim. “I like your cologne.”

2- Appearance

There might be times when you like someone’s clothes, accessories, shoes, or general appearance, and you might feel the urge to say so. Here are some Turkish compliments you can use in such situations:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Çok hoş görünüyorsunuz. Çok hoş görünüyorsun. “You look very nice.”
Çok şıksınız. Çok şıksın. “You are elegant.”
Bu pantolon size çok yakışmış. Bu pantolon sana çok yakışmış. “These pants look good on you.”
Gözlüklerinize bayıldım. Gözlüklerine bayıldım. “I love your glasses.”
Makyajınızı çok beğendim. Makyajını çok beğendim. “I like your makeup.”
Çok karizmatiksiniz. Çok karizmatiksin. “You are very charismatic.”
Çok zarifsiniz. Çok zarifsin. “You are very graceful.”
Yaşınızı hiç göstermiyorsunuz. Yaşını hiç göstermiyorsun. “You don’t show your age at all.”

3- Character

There will be times when you’d like to express your admiration for someone’s character, be it a friend, a colleague, or even your child. Below are some compliments in Turkish that you can use to compliment his or her character:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Çok zekisiniz. Çok zekisin. “You are very clever.”
Dürüstlüğünüze hayranım. Dürüstlüğüne hayranım. “I admire your honesty.”
Çok iyi bir mizah anlayışınız var. Çok iyi bir mizah anlayışın var. “You have a very good sense of humor.”
Siz çok temiz kalplisiniz. Sen çok temiz kalplisin. “You are very good-hearted.”
Literal translation: “You are very clean-hearted!”

2. Praising Someone at Work

Let’s imagine you’re working with Turkish people and you want to give one of your colleagues a compliment in Turkish. Here’s how you can compliment someone about his or her work:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Harika bir performans sergilediniz. Harika bir performans sergiledin. “You performed great.”
Tebrikler, iyi iş çıkardınız. Tebrikler, iyi iş çıkardın. “Congratulations, you did a good job.”
Harikalar yarattınız. Harikalar yarattın. “You’ve done wonders.”
Bunu hak ettiniz! Bunu hak ettin! “You deserved it.”
Hak edilmiş bir başarı. Hak edilmiş bir başarı. “A deserved success.”

Praising Someone at Work

When it comes to complimenting someone’s skills at work, you can use the following Turkish compliments:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Etkileyici bir özgeçmişiniz var. Etkileyici bir özgeçmişin var. “You have an impressive resume.”
Çok yeteneklisiniz. Çok yeteneklisin. “You’re very talented.”
Çok yaratıcısınız. Çok yaratıcısın. “You’re very creative.”
Ne kadar hızlısınız. Ne kadar hızlısın. “You are so fast.”
Literally: “How fast you are.”
Değişime adaptasyon yeteneğiniz çok yüksek. Değişime adaptasyon yeteneğin çok yüksek. “Your ability to adapt to change is very high.”
Kavrama beceriniz çok yüksek. Kavrama becerin çok yüksek. “Your ability to comprehend is very high.”
Ekip çalışmasına çok yatkınsınız. Ekip çalışmasına çok yatkınsın. “You’re very prone to teamwork.”
Konulara farklı açıdan bakabilmeniz çok güzel. Konulara farklı açıdan bakabilmen çok güzel. “It’s good that you can look at the subjects from a different perspective.”

Someone Receiving an Employee of the Month Award

3. Kudos in Social Life

In social life, there may be cases where you’d like to give a compliment in Turkish. It could be at a gathering, a restaurant, or even a friend’s house. Here are the top Turkish compliments that can be used in social life:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Eviniz ne kadar güzelmiş. Evin ne kadar güzelmiş. “Your house is so beautiful.”

Literally: “How beautiful your house is.”

Çok zevklisiniz. Çok zevklisin. “You have a good taste.”
Çok güzel dans ediyorsunuz. Çok güzel dans ediyorsun. “You dance very well.”
Elinize sağlık. Eline sağlık. Literally: “Health to your hand.”
Emeğinize sağlık. Emeğine sağlık. Literally: “Health to your effort.”
Çok güzel görünüyor. Çok güzel görünüyor. “It looks very nice.”
Çok güzel kokuyor. Çok güzel kokuyor. “It smells very nice.”
Çok lezzetli olmuş. Çok lezzetli olmuş. “It’s delicious.”
Tadı çok güzel! Tadı çok güzel! “It tastes very good!”

A Woman Staring at Chocolate Cake

4. When and Where to Avoid Complimenting

Compliments make most people happy. However, people like to hear real, sincere compliments; it doesn’t make any sense to give fake compliments. In order to sound sincere, you should look the person in the eyes and say your compliment in a tone that reflects how you really feel.

Don’t forget that every culture is different. When you’re using Turkish compliments for girls, make sure to do it under appropriate conditions, at the right time, and in a suitable environment.

If you want to compliment a Turkish girl, you need to be very careful if there’s a boyfriend, a brother, or a husband around. Turkish men are usually overprotective when it comes to the women in their lives. Even if you approach her in a friendly manner, you can be misunderstood. It might be a good idea not to compliment her physical characteristics or appearance, in this case.

If you’re using Turkish compliments for girls late at night in an uncrowded place, even if you’re sincere and have good intentions, it can be perceived badly (as is probably the case in most cultures).

If you’re complimenting someone of the opposite sex at work among other colleagues, you should also be careful about how you do so. You wouldn’t want to have your compliment perceived the wrong way and get in trouble for it.

Again, where, when, and how you compliment matters!

Compliments

5. What’s Expected After a Compliment

As I indicated earlier, I think that even those who claim not to like compliments still enjoy them deep inside. However, you can’t know how they’ll react to them.

Some people may pleasantly accept compliments. Here are some sentences Turkish people might use when they feel positive about your compliments:

Turkish (Formal) Turkish (Informal) English
Teşekkür ederim. Teşekkür ederim. “Thank you.”
Teşekkürler. Teşekkürler. “Thanks.”
Teveccühünüz. Teveccühün. “That’s very kind of you.”
O sizin iyi görüşünüz. O senin iyi görüşün. “That’s your good point of view.”

Some might feel uncomfortable and shy away from compliments. Others might suspect that you’re not sincere, and think you have bad intentions. Furthermore, some people might even think that you expect or want something in return.

Don’t forget that the tone and gestures you use when complimenting really matter!

Positive Feelings

6. You Will Do Great!

Did you enjoy reading about Turkish compliments? Now you know the top Turkish compliments and how to compliment in Turkish. Are you ready to compliment the girl or boy you like? How about your colleague for his collaboration? I’m sure you’ll do great!

However, this isn’t enough. You need to keep learning more! Make sure to utilize all of the free resources, including the dictionary, at TurkishClass101.com! You can also download the app for free and use it wherever you are. Don’t forget that there’s also the premium service MyTeacher, which allows you to practice with a private teacher.

We look forward to your feedback about your experience with the services offered at TurkishClass101. Good luck with your Turkish learning!

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