Have you completed the intermediate level in your Turkish studies? Would you like to continue improving your language skills in order to stand out and impress native speakers? 

Then you’ve hit the bullseye! You’re at the right address. 

In this article, we will introduce you to all of the essential advanced Turkish words you should know. This includes general vocabulary for everyday life, as well as words related to academia, business, the legal system, and medicine. At the end, we’ll also show you several words you can incorporate into your essays or writing tests to score higher. 

Learning these advanced Turkish vocabulary words will require more diligence and effort, but if you stay focused on the target, you’ll reap the fruits of your hard work.

→ You can also visit our lesson on the 25 must-know advanced Turkish phrases to familiarize yourself with more advanced structures.

Table of Contents

1. Advanced Words for Everyday Life
2. Advanced Academic Vocabulary
3. Advanced Business Vocabulary
4. Advanced Medical Vocabulary
5. Advanced Legal Vocabulary
6. Advanced Vocabulary for Essay Writing
7. Raise the Bar with TurkishClass101

1. Advanced Words for Everyday Life

First, let’s look at advanced Turkish words you’ll find useful in your day-to-day interactions with native speakers. We have categorized these words based on part of speech and included an example sentence for each one. 

Nouns

Maden	Türkiye’nin en büyük altın madeni Kışladağ altın madenidir.
Mine	The Kışladağ gold mine is the largest gold mine in Turkey.

Kapşon	Kapşonunu geçir; dışarıda hava soğuk.
Hood	Put your hood up; it’s cold outside.

Madde	Maddenin üç hali vardır: sıvı, gaz ve katı.
Matter	Matter has three states: liquid, gas, and solid.

Mazeret	Dersi kaçırdım ama geçerli bir mazeretim vardı.
Excuse	I missed the class, but I had a legitimate excuse.

Ciddiyet	Hayatın ciddiyetini yeni fark etti.
Seriousness	(S)he just realized the seriousness of life.

Çare	Ölümden başka her şeyin bir çaresi vardır.
Remedy	There is a remedy for everything except death.

Adjectives

Cimri	Henry çok cimri bir insandır.
Stingy	Henry is a very stingy person.

Art niyetli	Ondan uzak dur; o çok art niyetli biri.
Malevolent	Stay away from him/her; (s)he is a very malevolent person.

Marifetli	O el işlerinde çok marifetlidir.
Skillful	(S)he is very skillful with handicrafts.

Masum	Bence o masum; ben ona inanıyorum.
Innocent	I think (s)he is innocent; I believe him/her.

Suçlu	O suçlu bulundu ve ceza aldı.
Guilty	(S)he was found guilty and was sentenced.

Aç gözlü	Mary hep daha fazlasını ister; o çok aç gözlüdür.
Greedy	Mary always wants more; she is very greedy.

Adverbs

Cesurca	Tebrik ederim, cesurca her şeyi söyledin ona.
Bravely	Congratulations, you bravely said everything to him/her.

Cömertçe	Tüm parasını cömertçe ağlayan çocuğa verdi.
Generously	(S)he gave all his/her money generously to the crying boy/girl.

Ciddi bir şekilde	Bu konuyu ciddi bir şekilde düşünmeni istiyorum.
Seriously	I want you to think about this subject seriously.

Tam olarak	Tam olarak nerede olduğunu bilmek istiyorum.
Exactly	I want to know exactly where you are.

Verbs

Eleştirmek	Eleştir ama lütfen yapıcı ol.
To criticize	Criticize, but please be constructive.

Fısıldamak	Kardeşim annemin duymasını istemediği için kulağıma yavaşça fısıldadı.
To whisper	My sibling whispered softly in my ear because (s)he didn’t want my mom to hear.

Eşleştirmek	Aşağıdaki kelimeleri tanımları ile eşleştirin.
To match	Match the words below with their definitions.

Tepki vermek/göstermek	Bu duruma aşırı tepki gösteriyorsun.
To react	You are overreacting to this situation.

Karşılaştırmak	Bu iki tabloyu karşılaştırman gerek.
To compare	You need to compare these two tables.

Katlamak	Kazaklarını bavula koymadan önce katla lütfen.
To fold	Please fold your sweaters before you put them in the suitcase.

Aşırmak	Mutfaktan bir tane kurabiye aşırdım.
To steal	I stole a cookie from the kitchen.

Fırlatmak	Topu yukarı fırlattım ama pencereye çarptı.
To throw	I threw the ball up, but it hit the window.

Sarkmak	Kollarınızın omuzlarınızdan serbestçe sarkmasına izin verin.
To dangle from	Let your arms dangle freely from your shoulders.

2. Advanced Academic Vocabulary

Do you plan to attend university in Turkey? Then you’ll greatly benefit from learning these advanced Turkish words related to academia. These words will help you understand lectures, write essays, and perform well on tests. 

Nouns

Tez	Tezinizi yazarken net cümleler kullanın.
Thesis / Paper	Use clear sentences when writing your thesis/paper.

Makale	Makale yazarken alıntılama kurallarına dikkat etmen gerekir.
Article	When writing an article, you should pay attention to the rules of citation.

Araştırma	Araştırma konun nedir?
Research	What is your research topic?

Taslak	Makaleni yazmadan önce bir taslak oluşturmalısın.
Outline	Before you write your article, you should create an outline.

Anket	Bu araştırma için on tane anket yaptım.
Survey	I did ten surveys for this research.

Kanıt / Delil	Teorini ispatlamak için kanıt sunman gerekir.
Evidence	To prove your theory, you have to provide evidence.

Alıntı	Lütfen alıntı kurallarına dikkat et.
Citation	Please pay attention to the citation rules.

Veri	Verileri göndermeniz gerekiyor.
Data	You need to submit the data.

Sunum	Araştırmam ile ilgili bir sunum yapacağım.
Presentation	I will make a presentation about my research.

Proje	Bitirme projemi yarın teslim etmem lazım.
Project	I have to deliver my graduation project tomorrow.

Tablo	Verileri Excel tablosuna aktarmak gerekiyor.
Table	It is necessary to transfer the data to the Excel table.

Satır	Tablo 50 satırdan oluşmaktadır.
Row	The table consists of 50 rows.

Sütun	Tablo 50 sütundan oluşmaktadır.
Column	The table consists of 50 columns.

Verbs

Göstermek	Bu çalışmanın sonuçlarını göstermek gerek.
To demonstrate	It is necessary to demonstrate the results of this study.

İçermek	Bu dosya tüm verileri içermektedir.
To include / To involve	This file includes all the data.

Analiz etmek	Analiz etmeden sonuca varamazsın.
To analyze	You can’t come to a conclusion without analyzing it.

Çözmek	Bu soruyu çözmek için tam 20 dakika harcadım.
To solve	I spent 20 minutes solving this question.

Deney yapmak	Deney yapmak için laboratuvara gidiyorum.
To experiment	I’m going to the lab to do an experiment.

Sunmak	Yarın projemi sunacağım.
To present	I will present my project tomorrow.

Ölçmek	Tabloyu oluşturmak için önce malzemeleri ölçmek lazım.
To measure	In order to create the table, we first need to measure the materials.

Yorumlamak	Öncelikle bu rakamları yorumlamak lazım.
To interpret	First of all, these numbers should be interpreted.

Kontrol etmek	Kendini kontrol etmeyi öğrenmelisin.
To control	You have to learn to control yourself.

Tartışmak	Bilim adamları bu konuyu kendi aralarında tartıştılar.
To discuss	Scientists discussed this topic among themselves.

Kanıtlamak	O hipotezini kanıtladı.
To prove	(S)he proved his hypothesis.

Etkinleştirmek	Şifreni etkinleştirmeyi unutma!
To activate	Don’t forget to activate your password.

3. Advanced Business Vocabulary

Impress your colleagues by using the following advanced Turkish vocabulary words related to the business world. 

Genel müdürlük	Genel müdürlük başka bir yere taşındı.
Headquarters	The headquarters moved to another location.

Vizyon	Çalıştığım şirket vizyonunu geliştiren bir şirket olduğu için çok şanslıyım.
Vision	I’m very lucky that the company I work for is a company that enhances its vision.

Misyon	Bir şirketin vizyonu kadar misyonu da önemlidir.
Mission	A company’s mission is as important as its vision.

Strateji	Pandemi dolayısıyla satış stratejimizi değiştirmemiz gerek.
Strategy	Because of the pandemic, we need to change our sales strategy.

Kâr	Bu yılki kâr marjımız %10 daha yüksek.
Profit	Our profit margin is 10% higher this year.

Yatırım	Bu yıl yatırımlarımızı artırmamız lazım.
Investment	This year, we need to increase our investments.

Fon	Yeterince fonumuz yok.
Fund	We don’t have enough funds.

Masraf	Sabit masraflarımızı düşürmemiz gerek.
Expense	We need to reduce our fixed costs.

Mali	Bu yıl mali açıdan güçlüyüz.
Financial	This year, we are strong in terms of finances.

Faiz oranı	Faiz oranları düştü.
Interest rate	Interest rates have dropped.

Varlık	Araçlar sabit varlık olarak kabul edilir.
Asset	Vehicles are considered fixed assets.

Mal	Bu mallar için büyük bir depoya ihtiyacımız var.
Merchandise / Goods	We need a large warehouse for these goods.

Malzeme	Malzeme ihtiyaç listesi üzerinde çalışıyorum.
Material	I am working on a material requirements list.

Envanter	Yarın envanter sayımı yapılacak.
Inventory	There will be an inventory count tomorrow.

Departman	Satınalma departmanında çalışıyorum.
Department	I work in the purchasing department.

Muhasebe	Bordro kesintilerinizi muhasebe departmanına sorabilirsiniz.
Accounting	You can tell the accounting department about your payroll deductions.

İnsan Kaynakları	Özgeçmişinizi insan kaynakları departmanına gönderin.
Human Resources	Send your CV to the human resources department.

Satış	Satış hedeflerimizi belirledik.
Sales	We determined our sales goals.

Satın alma	Onların merkezi bir satın alma departmanları var.
Purchasing	They have a central purchasing department.

Sözleşme	Yeni bir satış sözleşmesi yaptık.
Contract	We made a new sales contract.

4. Advanced Medical Vocabulary

Another set of important words in Turkish for advanced learners is medical vocabulary. Whether you plan to attend medical school in Turkey or happen to find yourself in the ER during your travels, knowing these words and terms will prove quite useful. 

Nouns

Acil servis	Baş ağrım beni öldürüyordu, bu yüzden acil servise gitmem gerekti.
Emergency room	My headache was killing me, so I had to go to the emergency room.

Yoğun bakım	Teyzem henüz yoğun bakımdan çıkmadı.
Intensive care	My aunt has not left intensive care yet.

Ameliyathane	Ameliyat için beni ameliyathaneye götürmek üzereler.
Surgery room	They are about to take me to the surgery room for the operation.

Tansiyon	Tansiyonum yüksek; hemen hastaneye gitmem lazım.
Blood pressure	My blood pressure is high; I have to go to the hospital.

Alerji	Baharda alerji belirtileri artıyor.
Allergy	Allergy symptoms increase in the spring.

Bağışıklık	Bağışıklık sistemini güçlü tutman gerek.
Immunity	You need to keep your immune system strong.

Röntgen	Acilen röntgen çektirmem gerekiyor.
X-ray	I urgently need to get an X-ray.

Kalp krizi	Arkadaşım yakın zaman içinde kalp krizi geçirdi.
Heart attack	My friend has recently had a heart attack.

Kanser	Amcam kanserden öldü.
Cancer	My uncle died of cancer.

Ameliyat	Ameliyat gayet başarılı geçti.
Surgery	The surgery was very successful.

Anestezi	Ameliyat genel anestezi ile yapıldı.
Anesthesia	The surgery was carried out under general anesthesia.

Teşhis	Sam’in teşhisinde çok geç kaldılar.
Diagnosis	They were too late for Sam’s diagnosis.

Travma	Okulda çıkan yangının ardından öğrenciler travma tedavisi gördü.
Trauma	The students were treated for trauma after the fire at school.

Yara	Şaşırtıcı bir şekilde, yara kendi kendine iyileşti.
Wound	To my surprise, the wound healed itself.

Tedavi	O kanser tedavisi görüyor.
Treatment	(S)he is getting cancer treatment.

Reçete	Doktor reçete yazdı mı?
Prescription	Has the doctor written a prescription?

Yan etki	Bu ilacın bilinen bir yan etkisi yoktur.
Side effect	This medicine has no known side effects.

Aşı	Corona aşısını uzun bir süre bekledik.
Vaccine	We have waited for the Coronavirus vaccine for a long time.

İğne	Doktor başımın ağrısı için iğne yaptı.
Injection	The doctor gave me an injection for my headache.

Adjectives

Bulaşıcı	Corona bulaşıcı bir virüstür.
Contagious	The Coronavirus is a contagious virus.

Steril	Ameliyathaneler mutlaka steril olmalı.
Sterile	Surgery rooms must be absolutely sterile.

5. Advanced Legal Vocabulary

As you approach an advanced level in Turkish, you’ll benefit from picking up at least a few words related to the legal system. This will allow you to follow the news with greater ease, engage in more complex conversations, and even avoid unfortunate misunderstandings. Here’s the advanced legal vocabulary in Turkish you should start learning: 

Nouns

Hukuk	Hukuk önünde herkes eşittir.
Law	Everyone is equal before the law.

Adalet	Adalete inanıyorum.
Justice	I believe in justice.

İnsan hakları	İnsan hakları hakkında hiçbir şey bilmiyorlar.
Human rights	They know nothing about human rights.

Avukat	Bu konuda with avukata danışmam lazım.
Lawyer	I need to consult with a lawyer on this matter.

Hâkim	Hâkim davayı erteledi.
Judge	The judge adjourned the case.

Noter	Bu belgenin bir noter tarafından onaylanması gerekiyor.
Notary	This document needs to be certified by a notary.

Tanık / Şahit	Tanık hırsızın kaçtığını söyledi.
Witness	The witness said the robber escaped.

Mahkeme	Mahkemede çok heyecanlandım.
Court	I got very excited in court.

Hapishane	Hapishanede kavga çıktı.
Jail / Prison	A fight broke out in prison.

Sabıkalı	Onun bir sabıkalı olduğunu duyduğumda şok oldum.
Criminal	I was shocked when I heard he was a criminal.

Şüpheli	Şüpheli polis koruması altındaydı.
Suspect	The suspect was under police protection.

Dava	Onları dava açmakla tehdit ettim.
Lawsuit	I threatened to file a lawsuit against them.

Duruşma	Avukat duruşma sırasında kalp krizi geçirdi.
Trial	The lawyer had a heart attack during the trial.

Soruşturma	Soruşturma henüz bitmedi.
Investigation	The investigation is not over yet.

Para cezası	Hapis yerine para cezası aldı.
Fine	(S)he got a fine rather than prison.

Adjective

Kanuni / Yasal	Uyuşturucu kullanmak kanuni/yasal değildir.
Legal	It’s not legal to use drugs.

Verbs

Savunmak	Avukatım seni iyi savunacaktır.
To defend	My attorney will defend you well.

İhlal etmek	Trafik kurallarını ihlal ettiği için para cezası aldı.
To violate	(S)he was fined for violating traffic rules.

Beraat etmek	Arkadaşım nihayet suçsuz bulundu ve beraat etti.
To be acquitted	My friend was finally found not guilty and has been acquitted.

Teşhis etmek	Sonunda şüpheliyi teşhis edebildi.
To identify	Finally, (s)he was able to identify the suspect.

6. Advanced Vocabulary for Essay Writing

Are you attending school in Turkey? Then there are a few advanced Turkish words and phrases you should know in order to write better essays, score higher on exams, and impress your teachers. 

Nouns

Önemli nokta	Kitabın önemli noktası ana karakterin psikolojisiydi.
Highlight	The highlight of the book was the main character’s psychology.

İçerik	İçerik belirleme konu seçimi kadar önemlidir.
Content	Content determination is as important as topic selection.

Uygulama	Uygulama bazen teoriden daha önemlidir.
Practice / Application	Practice is sometimes more important than theory.

Terminoloji	Doktorun dediklerinden hiçbir şey anlamadım; sürekli tıp terminolojisi kullanıyor.
Terminology	I did not understand anything the doctor said; he was constantly using medical terminology.

Adjectives

Yüzeysel	Yüzeysel bir yaklaşımdan uzak durmalısın.
Superficial	You should avoid a superficial approach.

Ayrıntılı	Bunu daha ayrıntılı bir şekilde anlatmalısın.
Detailed	You should explain this in a more detailed way.

Gerekli	Örneklerin verilmesi gereklidir.
Necessary	Providing examples is necessary.

Geçerli	Bana geçerli bir neden söylemelisin.
Valid	You must tell me a valid reason.

Geçersiz	Bu veriler geçersiz.
Invalid	This data is invalid.

Adverbs

İstikrarlı bir şekilde	Jack, öğretmeni onu uyardığından beri her gün istikrarlı bir şekilde okula zamanında geliyor.
Consistently	Jack has been coming to school consistently on time every day ever since his teacher warned him.

Kesinlikle	Sana kesinlikle katılıyorum.
Definitely	I definitely agree with you.

Tamamen	Bu durumda tamamen sen haklısın.
Exactly	In this case, you are exactly right.

Verbs

İfade etmek	Yanlış anlaşılmak istemiyorsan kendini daha iyi ifade etmelisin.
To express	If you don’t want to be misunderstood, you should express yourself better.

Yönlendirmek	Tüm çabalarınızı kitabınızı yazmaya yönlendirin.
To direct	Direct all your efforts into writing your book.

Etkilemek	Okuyucuları etkilemek istiyorsan daha içten yazmalısın.
To impress	If you want to impress readers, you have to write more sincerely.

Vurgulamak	Ana fikri daha çok vurgulamalısın.
To emphasize	You should emphasize the main idea more.

Algılamak	Bu sessizliği kabullenme olarak algılama.
To perceive	Don’t perceive this silence as acceptance.

Keşfetmek	Senin nasıl bir hayal dünyan olduğunu keşfetmek istiyorum.
To explore	I want to explore what kind of a fantasy world you have.

Maruz kalmak	Nükleer santralde meydana gelen kaza nedeniyle çok sayıda kişi radyasyona maruz kaldı.
To be exposed to	Many people were exposed to radiation because of the accident at the nuclear plant.

Ortaya çıkarmak	Tanık onun aradığı cevapları ortaya çıkardı.
To reveal	The witness revealed the answers (s)he was looking for.

Onaylamak	Bu siparişi onaylıyorum.
To confirm	I’m confirming this order.

Desteklemek	Bu fikrini destekleyecek argümanlar bulmalısın.
To support	You need to find arguments to support this idea.

Reddetmek	Teklifi neden reddettiğini bana hemen söylemelisin.
To reject	You need to tell me right now why you rejected the offer.

Düzene sokmak/düzenlemek	Bütçemizi düzenlemek için elimizden gelenin en iyisini yapmalıyız.
To regulate	We must try our best to regulate our budget.

Kısıtlamak	Aslında o, onun faaliyetlerini kısıtlamak istemedi.
To restrict	Actually, (s)he didn’t mean to restrict his/her activities.

7. Raise the Bar with TurkishClass101

You now have easy access to a long list of advanced Turkish words in a variety of categories. Make sure to add the most relevant words to your flashcard deck and start practicing right away! 

You can learn even more advanced Turkish words at TurkishClass101.com by making use of our vocabulary lists, free resources, and online Turkish dictionary. For 1-on-1 coaching and personalized assignments, you can upgrade to Premium PLUS and take advantage of our MyTeacher service. 

Not sure where to start? We recommend checking out our advanced Turkish lesson series, which contains 25 lessons and assignments designed for advanced learners like yourself.  

What’s more, you can download the free app to learn Turkish wherever you are! 

Last but not least, please continue to provide us with feedback about all the resources provided at TurkishClass101. 

Happy learning!

In life, there are times when we just need to say “no.” Whether we’re refusing something offered to us, rejecting an action or idea, or letting someone know we weren’t responsible for something, this little word and its friend “not” come in handy on a daily basis. 

However, whatever the intentions behind your negative sentences, the way you say them makes a huge difference!

Today, you’ll learn about negation in the Turkish language. This article will cover everything you need to know, from how to form basic negative sentences to how double negation works. 

Let’s dive in!

Table of Contents

1. Negation in Sentences
2. Negation in Interrogative Sentences
3. Double Negation
4. Access Full Turkish Grammar Content on TurkishClass101.com

1. Negation in Sentences

In Turkish, negative sentences can be formed in one of two ways:

1. By using negation words
2. By using suffixes

Let’s take a closer look at each Turkish negation method. 

A- Negation Words

If you wish to negate a noun clause, place the word değil (“not”) at the end of the sentence. This will give you the form: 

X is not Y. 

Let’s take a look at some examples:

Turkish (+)	English (+)	Turkish (-)	English (-)
Bu benim kitabım.	This is my book.	Bu benim kitabım değil.	This is not my book.
Selen güzel bir kız.	Selen is a beautiful girl.	Selen güzel bir kız değil.	Selen is not a beautiful girl.

Here are some other words you can use to make a sentence negative in Turkish: 

Hayır (No)

• Hayır, kızgın değilim. (No, I am not angry.)

Yok (There isn’t / There aren’t)

• Bu dairede balkon yok. (There isn’t a balcony in this apartment.)
• Burada hiç araba yok. (There aren’t any cars here.)

Ne…ne[de] (Neither…nor)

• Ne kedi severim, ne de köpek. (I like neither cats nor dogs.)

In most cases, ne…ne (de) is used with a positive verb. However, there are also some cases where it’s used with a negative verb. Here are some examples:

• Ne Paris’e, ne de Roma’ya hiç gitmemiş. (She/he has gone to neither Paris nor Rome.)
• Ne sevdim diyebilirim, ne de sevmedim. (I can say neither that I liked it nor disliked it.)

And here are some words that are only used in negative sentences (with one exception, which we’ll talk about later): 

Hiç (Ever / Never / At all)

• Siyahı hiç sevmem. (I don’t like black at all.)
• Kanada’yı hiç görmedim. (I have never seen Canada.)             

Asla (Never)

• Onunla asla bir daha konuşmayacağım. (I will never talk to him/her again.)

Hiç kimse (Nobody)

• Hiç kimse fikrimi değiştiremez. (Nobody can change my opinion.)

Hiç bir şekilde (In no way)

• Hiç bir şekilde seni affetmeyeceğim. (In no way will I forgive you.)

Hiçbir yerde (Nowhere / Anywhere)

• O hiç bir yerde uzun süre kalamaz. (He/she can’t stay anywhere too long.)

A Quick Note on Negative Prefixes 

Unlike English, Turkish has very few words that take a prefix in order to become negative (think “unprepared” or “improper”). We have only the negation prefixes nâ and bî, which are inherited from Ottoman Turkish and are rarely used today. Here are some examples:

• Tamam (Complete)
• Nâ-tamam (Incomplete)
• Haberdar (Informed)
• Bî–haber (Uninformed)

B- Suffixes

There are a few different Turkish negative suffixes you should know about. They are: 

-me / -ma 

To make a verb negative, the suffix -me is added to the root of the verb if the last syllable of the verb has an -e, -i, -ö, or -ü.

Infinitive (Turkish)	Infinitive (English)	Negative (Turkish)	Negative (English)
Seçmek	To choose	Seçmemek	Not to choose
İçmek	To drink	İçmemek	Not to drink
Görmek	To see	Görmemek	Not to see
Gülmek	To laugh	Gülmemek	Not to laugh

To make a verb negative, the suffix -ma is added to the root of the verb if the last syllable of the verb has an -a, -ı, -o, or -u.

Infinitive (Turkish)	Infinitive (English)	Negative (Turkish)	Negative (English)
Kalmak	To stay	Kalmamak	Not to stay
Sarılmak	To hug	Sarılmamak	Not to hug
Koymak	To put	Koymamak	Not to put
Uyumak	To sleep	Uyumamak	Not to sleep

A verb may have many suffixes (such as those used to show the tense and the personal pronoun), but the negating suffix is always immediately after the verb root. All of the other suffixes follow the negating suffix, ordered just as though the verb were positive. Below are some examples:

Verb: To drink (İçmek)
Negative: Not to drink (İçmemek)

Personal Pronoun	Simple Present Tense (+)	Simple Present Tense(-)	Future Tense (+)	Future Tense (-)	Simple Past Tense (+)	Simple Past Tense (-)	Reported Past Tense (+)	Reported Past Tense(-)
Ben (I)	İçerim	İçmem	İçeceğim	İçmeyeceğim	İçtim	İçmedim	İçmişim	İçmemişim
Sen (You)	İçersin	İçmezsin	İçeceksin	İçmeyeceksin	İçtin	İçmedin	İçmişsin	İçmemişsin
O (He/She/It)	İçer	İçmez	İçecek	İçmeyecek	İçti	İçmedi	İçmiş	İçmemiş
Biz (We)	İçeriz	İçmeyiz	İçeceğiz	İçmeyeceğiz	İçtik	İçmedik	İçmişiz	İçmemişiz
Siz (You)	İçersiniz	İçmezsiniz	İçeceksiniz	İçmeyeceksiniz	İçtiniz	İçmediniz	İçmişsiniz	İçmemişsiniz
Onlar (They)	İçerler	İçmezler	İçecekler	İçmeyecekler	İçtiler	İçmediler	İçmişler	İçmemişler

Did you notice that the present continuous tense is not on the table? This is because there’s an exception. In the present continuous tense, the suffixes -mı, -mi, -mu, and -mü are used to make the verb negative based on the vowel in the last syllable of the verb:

• If it’s “a” or “ı,” -mı is used.
• If it’s “e” or “i,” -mi is used.
• If it’s “o” or “u,” -mu is used.
• If it’s “ö” or “ü,” -mü is used.

Verbs with a or ı in the last syllable

Verbs with e or i in the last syllable

Verbs with o or u in the last syllable

Verbs with ö or ü in the last syllable

Personal Pronoun	To take (Almak)	Not to take (Almamak)	To cut (Kesmek)	Not to cut (Kesmemek)	To ask (Sormak)	Not to ask (Sormamak)	To cover (Örtmek)	Not to cover (Örtmemek)
Ben (I)	Alıyorum	Almıyorum	Kesiyorum	Kesmiyorum	Soruyorum	Sormuyorum	Örtüyorum	Örtmüyorum
Sen (You)	Alıyorsun	Almıyorsun	Kesiyorsun	Kesmiyorsun	Soruyorsun	Sormuyorsun	Örtüyorsun	Örtmüyorsun
O (He/She/It)	Alıyor	Almıyor	Kesiyor	Kesmiyor	Soruyor	Sormuyor	Örtüyor	Örtmüyor
Biz (We)	Alıyoruz	Almıyoruz	Kesiyoruz	Kesmiyoruz	Soruyoruz	Sormuyoruz	Örtüyoruz	Örtmüyoruz
Siz (You)	Alıyorsunuz	Almıyorsunuz	Kesiyorsunuz	Kesmiyorsunuz	Soruyorsunuz	Sormuyorsunuz	Örtüyorsunuz	Örtmüyorsunuz
Onlar (They)	Alıyorlar	Almıyorlar	Kesiyorlar	Kesmiyorlar	Soruyorlar	Sormuyorlar	Örtüyorlar	Örtmüyorlar

-maz / – mez 

This suffix is added to the verb roots or stems in order to make them negative adjectives.

Examples:

• Utan (verb root) 
  • Be ashamed
• Utanmaz adam (becomes adjective) 
  • Shameless man 
• Bilin (verb stem) 
  • Be known
• Bilinmez kader (becomes adjective) 
  • Unknown fate

-madan / -meden

This suffix forms verbal adverbs; it comes after the verb root and makes it an adverb.

The suffix -madan is added to the root of the verb if the last syllable of the verb has an –a, -ı, -o, or -u.

Al (verb root) / Take

• Almadan / Without taking
• Onu almadan gelme. / Don’t come without taking him/her/it.

Kır (verb root) / Break

• Kırmadan / Without breaking
• Kalbini kırmadan konuş. / Talk without breaking his/her heart.

Soy (verb root) / Peel

• Soymadan / Without peeling
• Elmayı soymadan yeme. / Don’t eat the apple without peeling it.

Kuru (verb root) / Dry

• Kurumadan / Without drying
• Yerler kurumadan basma. / Don’t step on the floor before it is dried.

The suffix -meden is added to the root of the verb if the last syllable of the verb has an -e, -i, -ö, or -ü.

Ver (verb root) / Give

• Vermeden / Without giving
• Vermeden alınmaz. / You can’t take without giving.

Bit (verb root) / Finish

• Bitmeden / Without finishing
• Ödevin bitmeden gitme. / Don’t go without finishing your homework.

Gör (verb root) / See

• Görmeden / Without seeing
• Beni görmeden gitme. / Don’t leave without seeing me.

Gül (verb root) / Laugh

• Gülmeden / Without laughing
• Gülmeden konuş / Talk without laughing

-maksınzın / -meksizin 

This suffix is added to the verb roots or stems in order to make them negative. The suffix -maksızın is added to the root of the verb if the last syllable of the verb has an -a, -ı, -o, or -u. The suffix -meksizin is added to the root of the verb if the last syllable of the verb has an -e, -i, -ö, or -ü.

Bak (verb root) / Look

• Bakmaksızın / Without looking
• Arkasına bakmaksızın gitti. / (S)he went without looking back.

Sevil (verb stem) / Be loved

• Sevilmeksizin / Without being loved
• O sevilmeksizin sevdi. / (S)he loved without being loved.

-sız / -siz / -suz / -süz 

The -sız suffix makes negative adjectives from nouns. It may be used as -siz / -suz / -süz based on the vowel harmony.

• Akıl (Mind)
• Akılsız (Mindless)

• Düşünce (Thought)
• Düşüncesiz (Thoughtless)

• Tuz (Salt)
• Tuzsuz (Saltless)

• Ölüm (Death)
• Ölümsüz (Immortal)

-meyip / -mayıp 

These suffixes (based on the vowel harmony) are added to the verb roots and form another negation in the Turkish language.

Git (verb root) / Go

• Gitmeyip / Without going
• Keşke gitmeyip kalsaydın. / I wish you didn’t go, and stayed.

Gör (verb root) / See

• Görmeyip / Without seeing OR Not seeing
• Taksiyi görmeyip otobüse bindim. / I didn’t see the taxi, and got on the bus.

Ağla (verb root) / Cry

• Ağlamayıp / Without crying OR Not crying
• Ağlamayıp konuşmalıydın. / You should have spoken and not cried.

Koş (verb root) / Run

• Koşmayıp / Without running OR Not running
• Koşmayıp yürüseydin yorulmazdın. / You wouldn’t get tired if you didn’t run, and walked instead.

2. Negation in Interrogative Sentences

In Turkish, negative interrogative sentences are also formed in two ways:

1. By using negation words
2. By using suffixes

A- Negation Words

We use the word değil (not) to make negative interrogative sentences. Here are some examples:

• Sevgi üzgün değil mi? (Isn’t Sevgi sad?)
• Bu ev sizin değil mi? (Isn’t this house yours?)
• Beni arayan sen değil miydin? (Weren’t you the one who called me?)

B- Suffixes

Below, you’ll find the most important suffixes for Turkish negation when forming interrogatives. 

-me / -ma 

These suffixes are used exactly the same way as they’re used in negative declarative sentences. The conjugations for tense and the exception in the present continuous tense apply here as well. Below are some examples:

• Dans etmeyi sevmez misin? (Don’t you like dancing?)
• Bugün okula gitmeyecek misin? (Won’t you go to school today?)
• Notumu okumadın mı? (Didn’t you read my note?)
• Yemek yapmamış mı? (Hasn’t he/she cooked?)
• Beni dinlemiyor musun? (Aren’t you listening to me?)

Last but not least, I would like to point out that exception I mentioned earlier in this article. The word hiç can also be used in affirmative interrogative sentences, but it has a negative meaning:

• Hiç gider miyim sanıyorsun? (Do you think I’ll ever go?)

Here, the person implies that he/she won’t go. Although it’s used in an affirmative interrogative sentence, it has a negative meaning.

• Senin gibi birine güvenir miyim hiç? (Would I ever trust someone like you?)

Again, the person implies here that he/she doesn’t trust the other person. Although it’s used in an affirmative interrogative sentence, it has a negative meaning.

3. Double Negation

In English, double negation normally leads to a positive meaning:

[ I don’t want nothing. ] = [ I want something. ]

However, this is not always the case in Turkish. There are certain cases where a double negative can result in a negative meaning, rather than a positive meaning. 

A- Negative verb + Olmaz (not to be)

• Değişik mutfakları denemezsen olmaz. (It’s not okay if you don’t try other cuisines.)

Meaning: You need to try other cuisines.

• Söz verdim, gitmezsek olmaz. (I promised; it’s not okay if we don’t go.)

Meaning: We need to go.

In both examples, the meaning is positive.

B- Negative verb + Kalmaz (not left)

• Ona söylersen duymayan kalmaz. (If you tell him/her, there will be no one who does not hear.)

We can reword this as: If you tell him/her, everybody will hear.

• Bunu gizlemezsen bilmeyen kalmaz. (If you don’t hide this, there won’t be anyone who doesn’t know it.)

In both examples, the meaning is positive.

C- Negative verb + Değil (not)

Söylediklerini anlamıyor değil. (It’s not that he/she doesn’t understand what you are saying.)

Meaning: He/she understands what you are saying.

Yine de her şey güzel olmadı değil. (It’s not that everything wasn’t good.)

Meaning: Everything was good.

In both examples, the meaning is positive.

D- Yok (there isn’t) + Değil (not)

Zamanım yok değil ama gitmeliyim. (It’s not that I don’t have time, but I have to go.)

In other words: I have time, but I have to go.

Param yok değil ama bunu alamam. (It’s not that I don’t have money, but I can’t buy this.)

In other words: I have money, but I can’t buy this.

In both examples, the meaning is positive.

E- Hiç (none / not at all) + Yok (there isn’t)

• Bende sabır hiç yok. (I don’t have patience at all.)

Unlike all the other sentences we’ve looked at here, this sentence has a negative meaning although there is double negation.

F- Word + -sız / -siz olmaz (not to be)

• Bu parti sensiz olmaz. (This party won’t be without you.)

Here’s another sentence with a negative meaning. 

G- Word + -sız / -siz değil (not)

İnan bana, o ilgisiz değil. (Believe me, he/she is not uninterested.)

Meaning: He/she is interested.

This double negation sentence has a positive meaning.

4. Access Full Turkish Grammar Content on TurkishClass101.com

Stay positive, but use Turkish negation words and sentences whenever you need to. 

Be sure to let us know in the comments if you still have any questions regarding negation in Turkish. We’ll be glad to help you out!

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Verbs are one of the most important elements of a sentence. But unfortunately, their infinitive forms don’t make much sense when used in a sentence; verbs must be conjugated to indicate the time of the action, as well as whether the action has been completed or is still happening. 

We make these distinctions by using tenses.

Tenses in the Turkish language carry certain conjugation rules with them—and when conjugation enters the scene, things get interesting! This is because it brings with it pronouns and vowel harmony.

Don’t worry, though. You just need to study the rules and practice, practice, practice!

Before we look at each tense in detail, let’s go over the basics of conjugation.

Table of Contents

1. Conjugation
2. Present Tense
3. Past Tense
4. Future Tense
5. Auxiliary Verbs
6. How TurkishClass101 Can Speed Up Your Turkish Learning

1. Conjugation

There are certain factors that Turkish verbs conjugate for. Let’s see what they are:

I. Person / Subject

Verbs get different suffixes based on the person/subject used in the sentence. 

II. Number of Subjects

Verbs will also receive different suffixes based on whether the subject is singular or plural. 

III. Politeness Level

In Turkish, the plural “you” is used the same way it is in English, though we also use it as a polite, formal way of addressing someone. The plural “you” and polite “you” follow the same conjugation rules in Turkish. 

IV. Tense

Verbs are conjugated differently according to each tense.

→ This is only an overview. If you would like to study Turkish conjugation in greater depth, please see our article on Turkish Conjugation Rules.

Now, let’s look closer at that final point and go over all of the tenses in Turkish.

2. Present Tense

There are two subdivisions of the Turkish present tense: the present continuous and the simple present.

I. Present Continuous Tense

This tense is used for actions that are happening now. It’s used with the following time-related words and phrases:

• Şimdi          –       “Now”
• Şu anda     –       “At the moment”
• Hemen       –       “Immediately”

Conjugation here is based on the tense and the personal pronoun. Vowel harmony also comes into play. 

Verb + (ı)yor / (i)yor / (u)yor / (ü)yor + suffix to indicate the personal pronoun

↓

Tense conjugation with vowel harmony

The following suffixes are used for all verbs, whether they end with a consonant or a vowel. However, if the verb root ends in a vowel, the vowel must be dropped before the suffixes are added.

	a/ı	e/i	o/u	ö/ü
Ben (I)	-ıyorum	-iyorum	-uyorum	-üyorum
Sen (You) [s]	-ıyorsun	-iyorsun	-uyorsun	-üyorsun
O (He/She/It)	-ıyor	-iyor	-uyor	-üyor
Biz (We)	-ıyoruz	-iyoruz	-uyoruz	-üyoruz
Siz (You) [p]	-ıyorsunuz	-iyorsunuz	-uyorsunuz	-üyorsunuz
Onlar (They)	-ıyorlar	-iyorlar	-uyorlar	-üyorlar

Here are some examples:

Ben açıyorum. “I am opening.”	Ben seçiyorum. “I am choosing.”	Ben okuyorum. “I am reading.”	Ben bölüyorum. “I am dividing.”
Sen açıyorsun. “You are opening.”	Sen seçiyorsun. “You are choosing.”	Sen okuyorsun. “You are reading.”	Sen bölüyorsun. “You are dividing.”
O açıyor. “He/she/it is opening.”	O seçiyor. “He/she/it is choosing.”	O okuyor. “He/she/it is reading.”	O bölüyor. “He/she/it is dividing.”
Biz açıyoruz. “We are opening.”	Biz seçiyoruz. “We are choosing.”	Biz okuyoruz.  “We are reading.”	Biz bölüyoruz. “We are dividing.”
Siz açıyorsunuz. “You are opening.”	Siz seçiyorsunuz. “You are choosing.”	Siz okuyorsunuz. “You are reading.”	Siz bölüyorsunuz. “You are dividing.”
Onlar açıyorlar. “They are opening.”	Onlar seçiyorlar. “They are choosing.”	Onlar okuyorlar.  “They are reading.”	Onlar bölüyorlar. “They are dividing.”

II. Simple Present Tense (Aorist Tense)

The simple present (aorist) tense is used to indicate that an action happens in general or as a routine. It’s used with the following time words:

• Her gün                 –       “Every day”
• Her zaman/daima       –       “Always”
• Sık sık/Sıklıkla      –       “Often”
• Genellikle             –       “Usually”  

Now, here are the rules for simple present tense conjugation in Turkish.

1. The following suffixes are added to the verb root for verbs ending with a vowel:

	Last Vowel of the Verb Root
	a/ı	Example	e/i	Example	o/u	Example	ö/ü	Example
Ben (I)	-rım	Ben tararım.  “I comb.”	-rim	Ben yerim. “I eat.”	-rum	Ben korurum. “I protect.”	-rüm	Ben yürürüm. “I walk.”
Sen (You) [s]	-rsın	Sen tararsın.  “You comb.”	-rsin	Sen yersin. “You eat.”	-rsun	Sen korursun. “You protect.”	-rsün	Sen yürürsün. “You walk.”
O (He/She/It)	-r	O tarar.  “He/she combs.”	-r	O yer. “He/she/it eats.”	-r	O korur. “He/she/it protects.”	-r	O yürür. “He/she/it walks.”
Biz (We)	-rız	Biz tararız.  “We comb.”	-riz	Biz yeriz. “We eat.”	-ruz	Biz koruruz. “We protect.”	-rüz	Biz yürürüz. “We walk.”
Siz (You) [p]	-rsınız	Siz tararsınız.  “You comb.”	-rsiniz	Siz yersiniz. “You eat.”	-rsunuz	Siz korursunuz. “You protect.”	-rsünüz	Siz  yürürsünüz. “You walk.”
Onlar (They)	-rlar	Onlar tararlar.  “They comb.”	-rler	Onlar yerler. “They eat.”	-rlar	Onlar korurlar. “They protect.”	-rler	Onlar yürürler. “They walk.”

2. Verbs that have one syllable and end with a consonant take the following suffixes:

	Last Vowel of the Verb Root
	a/ı/o/u	Example	e/i/ö/ü	Example
Ben (I)	-arım	Ben kaçarım. “I escape.”	-erim	Ben içerim.  “I drink.”
Sen (You) [s]	-arsın	Sen kaçarsın. “You escape.”	-ersin	Sen içersin.  “You drink.”
O (He/She/It)	-ar	O kaçar. “He/she/it escapes.”	-er	O içer.  “He/she/it drinks.”
Biz (We)	-arız	Biz kaçarız. “We escape.”	-eriz	Biz içeriz.  “We drink.”
Siz (You) [p]	-arsınız	Siz kaçarsınız. “You escape.”	-ersiniz	Siz içersiniz.  “You drink.”
Onlar (They)	-arlar	Onlar kaçarlar. “They escape.”	-erler	Onlar içerler.  “They drink.”

Keep in mind that the following verbs do not follow this rule:

• Almak                                –       “To take”
• Bilmek                               –       “To know”
• Bulmak                              –       “To find”
• Durmak                             –       “To stop”
• Gelmek                              –       “To come”
• Görmek                              –       “To see”
• Kalmak                              –       “To stay”
• Olmak (helping verb)     –       “To be”
• Ölmek                                –       “To die”
• Sanmak                             –       “To suppose”
• Vermek                             –       “To give”
• Varmak                              –       “To arrive”

3. The following suffixes are added to the verb root of verbs that have more than one syllable and end with a consonant:

	Last Vowel of the Verb Root
	a/ı	Example	e/i	Example	o/u	Example	ö/ü	Example
Ben (I)	-ırım	Ben bayılırım.  “I faint.”	-irim	Ben getiririm. “I bring.”	-urum	Ben  otururum. “I sit.”	-ürüm	Ben götürürüm. “I take.”
Sen (You) [s]	-ırsın	Sen bayılırsın. “You faint.”	-irsin	Sen getirirsin. “You bring.”	-ursun	Sen oturursun. “You sit.”	-ürsün	Sen götürürsün. “You take.”
O (He/She/It)	-ır	O bayılır. “He/she/it faints.”	-ir	O getirir. “He/she/it brings.”	-ur	O oturur. “He/she/it sits.”	-ür	O götürür. “He/she/it takes.”
Biz (We)	-ırız	Biz bayılırız. “We faint.”	-iriz	Biz getiririz. “We bring.”	-uruz	Biz otururuz. “We sit.”	-ürüz	Biz götürürüz. “We take.”
Siz (You) [p]	-ırsınız	Siz bayılırsınız. “You faint.”	-irsiniz	Siz getirirsiniz. “You bring.”	-ursunuz	Siz oturursunuz. “You sit.”	-ürsünüz	Siz götürürsünüz. “You take.”
Onlar (They)	-ırlar	Onlar bayılırlar. “They faint.”	-irler	Onlar getirirler. “They bring.”	-urlar	Onlar otururlar. “They sit.”	-ürler	Onlar götürürler. “They take.”

Keep in mind that the helping verbs etmek and olmak do not follow this rule. Please refer to the “Auxiliary Verbs” section below for more information. 

3. Past Tense

I think you’ll find the Turkish past tense interesting. Why? Because there are two different types of past tense, one of which does not exist in most other languages.

Let’s see what they are.

I. Definite Past Tense

In Turkish, the definite past tense is used to indicate that an action happened in the past. It’s used with the following time words:

• Dün                    –       “Yesterday”
• Geçen hafta         –       “Last week”
• 3 gün once           –       “3 days ago”

Conjugating the definite past tense is a little more complicated than what we’ve seen so far. You need to know the last vowel and the last letter of the verb in order to use the correct rule. 

	Last Vowel of the Verb Root
	a/ı		e/i		o/u		ö/ü
PERSON	If the very last letter of the verb root is one of these letters: “ç/f/h/k/s/ş/t/p”	If the very last letter of the verb root is any other consonant	If the very last letter of the verb root is one of these letters: “ç/f/h/k/s/ş/t/p”	If the very last letter of the verb root is any other consonant	If the very last letter of the verb root is one of these letters: “ç/f/h/k/s/ş/t/p”	If the very last letter of the verb root is any other consonant	If the very last letter of the verb root is one of these letters: “ç/f/h/k/s/ş/t/p”	If the very last letter of the verb root is any other consonant
Ben (ı)	-tım	-dım	-tim	-dim	-tum	-dum	-tüm	-düm
Sen (You) [s]	-tın	-dın	-tin	-din	-tun	-dun	-tün	-dün
O (He/she/it)	-tı	-dı	-ti	-di	-tu	-du	-tü	-dü
Biz (We)	-tık	-dık	-tik	-dik	-tuk	-duk	-tük	-dük
Siz (You) [p]	-tınız	-dınız	-tiniz	-diniz	-tunuz	-dunuz	-tünüz	-dünüz
Onlar (They)	-tılar	-dılar	-tiler	-diler	-tular	-dular	-tüler	-düler

Here are a few examples to help you understand how the Turkish definite past tense is conjugated:

Ben kalktım. “I got up.”	Ben erteledim. “I postponed.”	Ben yoruldum. “I got tired.”	Ben öptüm. “I kissed.”
Sen kalktın. “You got up.”	Sen erteledin. “You postponed.”	Sen yoruldun. “You got tired.”	Sen öptün. “You kissed.”
O kalktı. “He/she/it got up.”	O erteledi. “He/she/it postponed.”	O yoruldu. “He/she/it got tired.”	O öptü. “He/she/it kissed.”
Biz kalktık. “We got up.”	Biz erteledik. “We postponed.”	Biz yorulduk. “We got tired.”	Biz öptük. “We kissed.”
Siz kalktınız. “You got up.”	Siz ertelediniz. “You postponed.”	Siz yoruldunuz. “You got tired.”	Siz öptünüz. “You kissed.”
Onlar kalktılar. “They got up.”	Onlar ertelediler. “They postponed.”	Onlar yoruldular. “They got tired.”	Onlar öptüler. “They kissed.”

 

II. Reported Past Tense

I know you’re curious to know what this is! The reported past tense in Turkish is used in the following cases:

• When the speaker is explaining something he/she has heard but not witnessed:
  
  Babam telefonumu bulmuş.           –       “My father has found my phone.”
  (My father told me he found it, but I didn’t actually see him find it.)

• When the speaker is telling a story:
  
  Küçük bir çocuk varmış.                   –       “There was a young child.”
  (I haven’t seen the child; it’s just a character in a story.)

• When the speaker is telling someone that he/she has done something without noticing it:
  
  Telefonumu sessize almışım.         –       “I muted my phone.”
  (I didn’t realize I muted it.)
  
  Bu filmi daha önce seyretmişim.    – “I have seen this movie before.”
  (I’ve started watching a movie, but realize that I’ve seen it before and forgot.)

• When the speaker is telling someone about their dream: 
  
  Rüyamda çok gençmişim.               –       “I was very young in my dream.”
  (It’s like storytelling; you’re telling someone about your dream, which is not reality.)

• When the speaker is imagining something and talking about it with someone:
  
  Mesela, ben doktormuşum.         –       “For example, I was a doctor.”
  (This is again not reality; you’re imagining that you were a doctor.)

Now that you know when to use this tense, let’s see how it’s conjugated.

	Last Vowel of the Verb Root
	a/ı	Example	e/i	Example	o/u	Example	ö/ü	Example
Ben (I)	-mışım	Ben atmışım.  “I threw.”	-im	Ben seçmişim. “I chose.”	-um	Ben korumuşum. “I protected.”	–üm	Ben gülmüşüm. “I laughed.”
Sen (You) [s]	-mışsın	Sen atmışsın.  “You threw.”	-sin	Sen seçmişsin. “You chose.”	-sun	Sen korumuşsun. “You protected.”	–sün	Sen gülmüşsün. “You laughed.”
O (He/She/It)	-mış	O atmış.  “He/she threw.”	–miş	O seçmiş. “He/she/it chose.”	–muş	O korumuş. “He/she/it protected.”	–müş	O gülmüş. “He/she/it laughed.”
Biz (We)	-mışız	Biz atmışız.  “We threw.”	-iz	Biz seçmişiz. “We chose.”	-uz	Biz korumuşuz. “We protected.”	–üz	Biz gülmüşüz. “We laughed.”
Siz (You) [p]	-mışsınız	Siz atmışsınız.  “You threw.”	-siniz	Siz seçmişsiniz. “You chose.”	–sunuz	Siz korumuşsunuz. “You protected.”	–sünüz	Siz gülmüşsünüz. “You laughed.”
Onlar (They)	-mışlar	Onlar atmışlar.  “They threw.”	-ler	Onlar seçmişler. “They chose.”	-lar	Onlar korumuşlar. “They protected.”	-ler	Onlar gülmüşler. “They laughed.”

4. Future Tense

This tense is used for actions that will happen in the future. It’s used with the following time words:

• Yarın                      –       “Tomorrow”
• Gelecek hafta       –       “Next week”
• Gelecek Pazartesi    –       “Next Monday”

	Verbs Ending with a Consonant		Verbs Ending with a Vowel
	a/ı/o/u	e/i/ö/ü	a/ı/o/u	e/i/ö/ü
Ben (I)	-acağım	-eceğim	-[y]acağım	-[y]eceğim
Sen (You) [s]	-acaksın	-eceksin	-[y]acaksın	-[y]eceksin
O (He/She/It)	-acak	-ecek	-[y]acak	-[y]ecek
Biz (We)	-acağız	-eceğiz	-[y]acağız	-[y]eceğiz
Siz (You) [p]	-acaksınız	-eceksiniz	-[y]acaksınız	-[y]eceksiniz
Onlar (They)	-acaklar	-ecekler	-[y]acaklar	-[y]ecekler

There are two verbs that do not follow these rules:

• Demek                   –       “To say” / “To tell”
• Yemek                 –       “To eat”

When conjugating these verbs for the future tense, the letter “e” changes to “i,” and then the suffixes outlined above are added. For example:

• Ben yiyeceğim.     –       “I will eat.”
• Sen diyeceksin.   –       “You will tell.”

She’s going to eat.

Here are a few examples of how the Turkish future tense is used:

Ben kalacağım. “I will stay.”	Ben seçeceğim. “I will choose.”	Ben uyuyacağım. “I will sleep.”	Ben eleyeceğim. “I will eliminate.”
Sen kalacaksın. “You will stay.”	Sen seçeceksin. “You will choose.”	Sen uyuyacaksın. “You will sleep.”	Sen eleyeceksin. “You will eliminate.”
O kalacak. “He/she/it will stay.”	O seçecek. “He/she/it will choose.”	O uyuyacak. “He/she/it will sleep.”	O eleyecek. “He/she/it will eliminate.”
Biz kalacağız.  “We will stay.”	Biz seçeceğiz. “We will choose.”	Biz uyuyacağız. “We will sleep.”	Biz eleyeceğiz. “We will eliminate.”
Siz kalacaksınız. “You will stay.”	Siz seçeceksiniz. “You will choose.”	Siz uyuyacaksınız. “You will sleep.”	Siz eleyeceksiniz. “You will eliminate.”
Onlar kalacaklar. “They will stay.”	Onlar seçecekler. “They will choose.”	Onlar uyuyacaklar. “They will sleep.”	Onlar eleyecekler. “They will eliminate.”

5. Auxiliary Verbs

The main auxiliary verbs in Turkish (also known as helping verbs) are:

Etmek                               –       “To do” / “To make” / “To perform”     
Olmak                              –       “To become” / “To happen” / “To occur”
Yapmak                            –       “To do” / “To make”

Here are some examples of how they’re used:

Teşekkür etmek                –       “Thank you”
Pişman olmak                   –       “To regret”
Katkı yapmak                    –       “To contribute”

Thank you! / Teşekkür ederim!

Now, let’s see how they’re conjugated:

Pronoun	Present Continuous	Simple Present	Definite Past	Reported Past	Future
Ben (I)	Ediyorum	Ederim	Ettim	Etmişim	Edeceğim
Sen (You) [s]	Ediyorsun	Edersin	Ettin	Etmişsin	Edeceksin
O (He/She/It)	Ediyor	Eder	Etti	Etmiş	Edecek
Biz (We)	Ediyoruz	Ederiz	Ettik	Etmişiz	Edeceğiz
Siz (You) [p]	Ediyorsunuz	Edersiniz	Ettiniz	Etmişsiniz	Edeceksiniz
Onlar (They)	Ediyorlar	Ederler	Ettiler	Etmişler	Edecekler
Ben (I)	Oluyorum	Olurum	Oldum	Olmuşum	Olacağım
Sen (You) [s]	Oluyorsun	Olursun	Oldun	Olmuşsun	Olacaksın
O (He/She/It)	Oluyor	Olur	Oldu	Olmuş	Olacak
Biz (We)	Oluyoruz	Oluruz	Olduk	Olmuşuz	Olacağız
Siz (You) [p]	Oluyorsunuz	Olursunuz	Oldunuz	Olmuşsunuz	Olacaksınız
Onlar (They)	Oluyorlar	Olurlar	Oldular	Olmuşlar	Olacaklar
Ben (I)	Yapıyorum	Yaparım	Yaptım	Yapmışım	Yapacağım
Sen (You) [s]	Yapıyorsun	Yaparsın	Yaptın	Yapmışsın	Yapacaksın
O (He/She/It)	Yapıyor	Yapar	Yaptı	Yapmış	Yapacak
Biz (We)	Yapıyoruz	Yaparız	Yaptık	Yapmışız	Yapacağız
Siz (You) [p]	Yapıyorsunuz	Yaparsınız	Yaptınız	Yapmışsınız	Yapacaksınız
Onlar (They)	Yapıyorlar	Yaparlar	Yaptılar	Yapmışlar	Yapacaklar

6. How TurkishClass101 Can Speed Up Your Turkish Learning

By now, you should be much more familiar with the different Turkish-language tenses, how to form them, and when to use each one. How confident do you feel so far? 

If you would like to reinforce what you’ve learned today, then create your free lifetime account with TurkishClass101! We provide numerous Turkish lessons for learners at every level, in both audio and video formats. In addition, we offer our learners a variety of free resources, including an online Turkish-English dictionary for quick reference and themed vocabulary lists. 

Premium PLUS members also get access to our MyTeacher service, which allows you to learn and practice with your own private tutor. 

Finally, make sure you download our free app so you can learn Turkish anywhere, anytime. 

Happy learning!

Learning a new language is a process that requires time and effort; it can’t be completed overnight. 

As an aspiring Turkish learner, you’re likely wondering at this point: Okay, so how long does it take to learn Turkish? 

I can understand why you want to know the length of your learning journey in advance. This information can help you decide whether to take the plunge or not, make plans, and get prepared for your upcoming studies. 

But you know what? There’s no formula where you can plug in a few variables and calculate the time right away! It’s not that simple. 

However, there are a few factors that can be taken into consideration.

Table of Contents

1. Factors That Affect Your Language Learning Progress
2. Proficiency Levels
3. Useful Tools to Help You Learn Turkish Effectively
4. Learn Turkish Online with TurkishClass101!
5. Utilize TurkishClass101 to Learn Turkish the Easy Way!

Factors That Affect Your Language Learning Progress

A number of factors are involved in determining how long it takes to learn Turkish. Following is a breakdown of each one and how it will affect your ability to learn the Turkish language. 

Your Reason for Learning 

The first thing you need to do is determine your reason for learning Turkish. 

Will you use it for managing a business relationship or for social conversations? Will you be writing academic papers in Turkish or do you need it to search for information on the internet? Or maybe you need it because you’ll be traveling or studying in Turkey? 

Your objective will determine the proficiency level you need to achieve, which in turn will tell you how long you’ll need to study. 

In addition, your goal can clue you in on how to use your time. If there’s some urgency to attain a certain level of Turkish, you have to plan accordingly and be more systematic. If there’s no urgency, you can extend your studies over a longer period of time. 

Your Learning Environment

What are your learning methods? What resource(s) are you using? Are you attending a college course, seeing a private tutor, or learning online? And how intensive are your courses? 

These are all factors that can speed up or slow down your progress! 

Your Native Language

If your native language is structured very differently from Turkish in terms of alphabet/script, grammar, phonology, syntax, etc., it will take longer for you to learn Turkish. 

The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) of the United States has categorized all world languages into four groups, according to their linguistic and/or cultural differences from English. Category I languages are the easiest for English speakers to pick up, while Category IV languages are the most difficult. Turkish is considered a Category III language. To give you an idea, a few other languages in this category include: 

• Bulgarian
• Czech
• Finnish
• Greek
• Hebrew
• Hungarian
• Polish
• Russian
• Tagalog

Now, how long does it take to learn the Turkish language based on the estimations of the FSI? They’ve estimated that it takes 44 weeks or 1100 hours to reach a professional working level in Category III languages.

Your Previous Language Learning Experience

If you have prior language learning experience or were raised bilingual, it will take you less time to learn a new language. This is because you’ve been down that road before. You already know the best methods for studying, memorizing vocabulary, and practicing your skills, so you’ll find the process much easier than a monolingual would. 

Your Capability and Talent

I think we have to accept that some people are more talented at learning new languages than others. Those who have natural ability or are inclined to learn new languages are definitely at an advantage.

Learning pace

Proficiency Levels

The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR or CEFRL) is the international standard for determining one’s proficiency level in a language. It has six levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2.

Let’s take a look at these levels and go over what you can accomplish in Turkish at each stage.

Beginner Level

The beginner stage encompasses levels A1 and A2 of the CEFR scale, and it’s also referred to as the “Basic User” level. 

Once you complete the beginner level:

• You can carry out daily conversations and perform tasks such as introducing yourself, shopping, asking and answering simple questions, and meeting your urgent requirements.
• You will know some basic nouns, adjectives, and verbs.

To get a better idea of what you’ll be learning as you approach this level, check out the beginner lesson 5 Sentence Patterns for Beginners on TurkishClass101.com. 

100-120 hours of study will be required to reach this level. Flashcards will be useful at this stage.

You can take the A1 or A2 TOMER test at Istanbul University or Anadolu University in order to prove your proficiency. 

Intermediate Level

CEFR refers to this stage as “Independent User,” which consists of the B1 and B2 levels. 

Once you complete the intermediate level:

• You can (to a certain degree) speak and understand Turkish, read newspapers and articles in Turkish, and even think in Turkish.
• You will know even more vocabulary, including pronouns, adverbs, and conjunction words.
• You will also be familiar with some of the tenses used in Turkish. 

Are you curious what intermediate-level lessons will look like? Then head over to our lesson 25 Must-Know Intermediate Phrases!

450-490 hours will be required to get to this level. Talking with native speakers, reading Turkish content, and watching Turkish television shows will be very helpful in getting to this stage.

You can test for the B1 or B2 level through TOMER at Istanbul University or Anadolu University. You can also get B2-level certification if you take and pass the TYS (Türkçe Yeterlik Sınavı) / TPE (Turkish Proficiency Exam).

Advanced Level

CEFR refers to this stage as “Proficient User” and it consists of the C1 and C2 levels. 

Once you complete the advanced level:

• You can carry out deeper conversations about culture, science, art, literature, and politics. 
• You can engage in more complex situations, such as trade or business-related exchanges. 

To get an idea of what you’re dealing with at this point in your learning journey, have a look at our lesson 25 Must-Know Advanced Phrases. 

1000-1100 hours will be required to get to this level. In addition to watching, listening to, and reading Turkish content, being able to live or study in Turkey for a while will help you attain this level of fluency much faster.

You can get C1 and C2 certification if you take and pass the TYS (Türkçe Yeterlik Sınavı) / TPE (Turkish Proficiency Exam).

Useful Tools to Help You Learn Turkish Effectively

Now that you have a better idea of how long it takes to learn the Turkish language, you can start preparing yourself accordingly. To give you a headstart, here are a few tips on how to study Turkish for the best results. 

• Schools and private lessons. 
  
  These are two of the best and quickest ways to learn Turkish. However, both are quite expensive and offer little (if any) flexibility timewise.

• Learning on your own. 
  
  If traditional classes are not a practical option for you, you might be wondering how to learn Turkish by yourself. While the idea may seem daunting, there are plenty of effective ways to learn from home!
  
  For example, you can learn Turkish online (oftentimes, for free). TurkishClass101 is a great resource you can use, but we’ll talk more about us later. 😉

• Real-life application. 
  
  Whichever path you take, the most important thing is to put together and apply everything you’ve learned. You can do this by…
  
  …reading Turkish blogs, articles, books, and newspapers.
  …listening to Turkish radio channels or podcasts.
  …watching TV shows, videos, and movies in Turkish.
  speakers
  
  Of course, you should also consider moving to Turkey and living there for a while. This will help you improve in all aspects of your learning!

Just a reminder: Don’t be afraid of making mistakes. Be brave and try to use the things you’ve learned.

Learn Turkish Online with TurkishClass101!

Would you like to learn Turkish online in a fun and effective way? If yes, all you need to do is visit TurkishClass101.com and create your free lifetime account. 

So, what great resources do we offer our learners? How can we benefit your studies? 

A Single Resource for All

TurkishClass101.com provides lessons and other learning materials that cover all aspects of the Turkish language, for learners at every level. You can find tons of written, audio, and video materials covering Turkish grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation, as well as exercises to improve your listening, writing, and speaking skills. We also have plenty of lessons about Turkish culture, so you can get the full experience! 

Free Resources

Many of the resources we offer are free, and they’re a great place to start if you need to pick up the Turkish-language basics. Here are just a few examples of what you can expect from our free content: 

• Learn the Turkish Alphabet from A to Z! 
• Your Ultimate Turkish Pronunciation Guide
• Turkish Grammar
• Turkish Core 100 Word List
• Turkish Key Phrase List

We also have numerous vocabulary lists, a Word of the Day feature, and a Turkish dictionary to help you build up your vocabulary base! 

Premium and Premium PLUS Services

Upgrading to a Premium account will give you access to even more content not accessible with a basic account. While this upgrade isn’t necessary to learn the language or use our site, it will help you learn more efficiently with a broader range of resources. 

To speed up your progress and further enhance your learning, you can upgrade to Premium PLUS. The most notable feature of this subscription is our MyTeacher service, which allows you to study and practice with a private teacher. 

This service will also give you: 

• One-on-one interaction with your personal teacher
• Guidance & ongoing assessment
• Weekly assignments and badges for the assignments you complete
• Constructive feedback

Learn On the Go 

Location is no longer a roadblock in your Turkish studies! With today’s technology, you can continue learning wherever you are. Download the free InnovativeLanguage101 app and use it anywhere, anytime.

Utilize TurkishClass101 to Learn Turkish the Easy Way!

In this article, we answered the question: How fast can you learn Turkish? We also guided you concerning the best ways to learn Turkish both online and offline, so that you can make the most of your study time. 

Don’t lose any more time—start utilizing all of the resources TurkishClass101.com has to offer. 

Already a member? Feel free to leave us feedback on your experiences so we can continue to get better, and make your learning journey even more enjoyable. 

Before you go: How likely are you to start learning Turkish after reading this article? Is there anything still holding you back? Let us know in the comments, and we’ll do our best to help!

I believe proverbs are an important part of any culture. Though we don’t know under what circumstances or by whom they were put forward, they have been passed down from one generation of people to another. They serve to teach us life lessons while showing us different points of view. 

As a learner of the Turkish language, you’ll greatly benefit from studying Turkish proverbs and sayings. Doing so will expand your vocabulary, help you better understand the inner workings of the language, and provide you with insight into the core values and traditions of Turkish culture. 

In this article, you’ll learn thirty inspirational and motivational Turkish proverbs with their English translations. We’ve categorized them by topic, so feel free to skim through and find a topic or theme that interests you!

→ By the way, to spice up your Turkish conversations even more, you may want to brush up on these Essential Idioms That Will Make You Sound Like a Native Speaker!

Table of Contents

1. Turkish Proverbs About Time
2. Turkish Proverbs About Hope
3. Turkish Proverbs About Friendship
4. Turkish Proverbs About Happiness
5. Turkish Proverbs About Trust
6. Turkish Proverbs About Money
7. Turkish Proverbs About Wisdom
8. Miscellaneous Proverbs
9. Learn More with TurkishClass101!



1. Turkish Proverbs About Time

Time is many things to us. It’s full of opportunity, it’s always running out, there’s never quite enough of it, and we’re always looking for the best ways to spend the time we do have. With this in mind, here are some Turkish proverbs about time: 

1	Turkish	Zaman her şeyin ilacıdır.
	Literally	Time is the medicine of everything.
	Equivalent in English	Time is the best medicine.
	As time passes, all the troubles we experience are forgotten or the sorrow we feel decreases. Example: Üzülme, bugünler de geçecek; zaman her şeyin ilacıdır. “Don’t worry, these days will be over, too; time is the best medicine.”




2	Turkish	Sakla samanı, gelir zamanı.
	Literally	Save the hay, its time will come.
	Equivalent in English	Keep a thing seven years and you’ll find a use for it.
	If you hold onto something you have for long enough, it will eventually become useful. Example: İyi ki kızımın bebek arabasını saklamışım, şimdi senin çok işine yarayacak. Eee, sakla samanı gelir zamanı. “Fortunately, I saved my daughter’s stroller. It will be very useful for you now. See, keep a thing for seven years and you’ll find a use for it.”




3	Turkish	Vakit nakittir.
	Literally	Time is cash.
	Equivalent in English	Time is money.
	This proverb emphasizes that time is a valuable resource. Example: Bir an önce işe gitmeliyim. Eee, ne de olsa vakit nakittir. “I have to go to work as soon as possible. Well, after all, time is money.”




4	Turkish	Bugünün işini yarına bırakma.
	Literally	Don’t leave today’s work for tomorrow.
	Equivalent in English	Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.
	This one emphasizes that one should not delay doing something that can be done today.  Example: Ödevimi yarın yaparım deyince babam bugünün işini yarına bırakma dedi. “When I said I would do my homework tomorrow, my father said ‘Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.’ “




5	Turkish	Sona kalan dona kalır.
	Literally	The one who stays the last, is left for the frost.
	Equivalent in English	The devil takes the hindmost.
	The people who lag behind will either lose or not have any benefits. Example: Ali amca çocuklara şeker veriyor, koşun; sona kalan dona kalır. “Uncle Ali is giving candy to the children, run; the devil takes the hindmost.”




6	Turkish	Erken kalkan yol alır.
	Literally	The one who gets up early proceeds.
	Equivalent in English	The early bird catches the worm.
	This proverb advises that if someone does something immediately (or before anyone else), he/she will have an advantage. Example: Daha 5 saatlik yolumuz var, artık yola çıksak iyi olur. Ne de olsa, erken kalkan yol alır. “We have five more hours to go, we’d better get going. After all, the early bird catches the worm.”









2. Turkish Proverbs About Hope

We could all use some uplifting words now and then, especially when we’re at our lowest point. Whether you or a loved one needs some encouragement, these two Turkish proverbs about hope will deliver! 

7	Turkish	Çıkmadık candan umut kesilmez.
	Literally	If the person didn’t die, there is still hope.
	Equivalent in English	While there’s life, there’s hope.
	If something didn’t fail completely, there is still a chance to save it. Example: Üzülme, son aday henüz açıklanmadı. Çıkmadın candan umut kesilmez. “Don’t worry, the last candidate has not been announced yet. While there’s life, there’s hope.”




8	Turkish	Gün doğmadan neler doğar.
	Literally	Before the sun rises, a lot of things rise.
	Equivalent in English	Tomorrow is another day.
	A person should never lose hope, because nobody knows what’s going to happen tomorrow. Example: Öyle hemen umudunu kaybetme. Gün doğmadan neler doğar. “Don’t lose your hope. Tomorrow is another day.”




3. Turkish Proverbs About Friendship

A true friendship is one of the most precious things a person can experience—and a fake or weak friendship can be one of the worst things! The following Turkish proverbs about friendship offer advice on how to choose friends wisely and how to be a good friend yourself. 

9	Turkish	Bana arkadaşını söyle sana kim olduğunu söyleyeyim.
	Literally	Tell me who your friend is, I will tell you who you are.
	Equivalent in English	Tell me who you go with, and I’ll tell you who you are.
	This proverb means that a person’s friends are a reflection of who he/she is. Example: John o gruba girdiğinden beri her gün kavga ediyor. Eee, ne demişler ‘Bana arkadaşını söyle sana kim olduğunu söyleyeyim.’ “Since John got into that group, he’s been fighting every day. Well, they say, ‘Tell me who you go with, and I’ll tell you who you are.’ ”




10	Turkish	Dost kara günde belli olur.
	Literally	A real friend is understood on a bad day.
	Equivalent in English	A friend in need is a friend indeed.
	A person who stays by your side during difficult times is someone you can really rely on. Example: İflas ettiğinden beri Mary dışında hiçbir arkadaşı yanında değil.  Eee, dost kara günde belli olur. “Since she went bankrupt, none of her friends are with her except for Mary. Well, a friend in need is a friend indeed.”









11	Turkish	Dost acı söyler.
	Literally	Real friend talks bitter.
	A real friend always tells the truth—including when their friend is wrong—even if it hurts. Example: Kusura bakma bu olayda sen hatalısın; dost acı söyler. “Sorry, in this case you are wrong; real friend talks bitter.”




4. Turkish Proverbs About Happiness

We all desire happiness, but there are days when it seems impossible to find. Below are a couple of Turkish proverbs about happiness that provide insight on the topic. 

12	Turkish	Kutlu gün doğuşundan bellidir.
	Literally	A happy day is known from the way of the sunrise.
	The affairs that will lead to happy and good results manifest themselves from the beginning. Example: Başından beri her şey o kadar iyi gitti ki, işi senin alacağını biliyordum. Büyüklerin dediği gibi: ‘Kutlu gün doğuşundan bellidir.’ “Everything went so well from the start that I knew you would get the job. As the elderly say: ‘A happy day is known from the way of the sunrise.’ “




13	Turkish	Ulu ağacın gürültüsü dal ile, mutlu evin yakışığı döl ile.
	Literally	The noise of the great tree with the twig, the light of the happy house with the offspring.
	Just as a tree grows by branching, the happiness of a family is reinforced by the children it raises. Example: Onlar çok kalabalık bir aile. Eee, ne de olsa Ulu ağacın gürültüsü dal ile, mutlu evin yakışığı döl ile. “They are a very crowded family. Well, after all, the noise of the great tree with the twig, the light of the happy house with the offspring.”









5. Turkish Proverbs About Trust

Knowing who (or what) to trust is an important skill to have, but it can also be one of the most difficult things to determine. To give you a bit of advice on the matter, here are a couple of Turkish proverbs about trust. 

14	Turkish	Güvenme varlığa, düşersin darlığa.
	Literally	Don’t trust wealth, you would fall into poverty.
	People should not be extravagant with their spending if they have a lot of money. If they don’t manage their money properly, they can find themselves in poverty.  Example: Paranı çarçur etme; ne derler ‘Güvenme varlığa, düşersin darlığa.’ “Don’t waste your money; they say, ‘Don’t trust wealth, you would fall into poverty.’ “




15	Turkish	Güvenme dostuna, saman doldurur postuna.
	Literally	Do not trust your friend, he/she will fill your skin with hay.
	This proverb implies that before you trust someone, you should test him/her. If you trust someone blindly, he/she might deceive you. Example: Sen herkese çok güveniyorsun. Şu atasözünü hiç duymadın mı? ‘Güvenme dostuna, saman doldurur postuna.’ “You trust everyone very much. Have you ever heard of this proverb? ‘Do not trust your friend, he/she will fill your skin with hay.’ “




6. Turkish Proverbs About Money

As we all know, every language has plenty of quotes and proverbs about money and how to use it wisely. Below are some famous Turkish proverbs about money.

16	Turkish	Parayı veren düdüğü çalar.
	Literally	The one who gives the money blows the whistle.
	Equivalent in English	He who pays the piper calls the tune.
	The one who pays for something is the one who has a say in related matters. Example: Sen de ona para verseydin, sana da dondurma getirirdi; parayı veren düdüğü çalar. “If you had given him money, he would have brought you ice cream, too; who pays the piper calls the tune.”




17	Turkish	Para parayı çeker.
	Literally	Money draws money.
	Equivalent in English	Them as has, gits.
	If someone has money, he/she can make more money with it since money brings more advantages and opportunities. Example: Jane lotoyu tutturmuş. Eee para parayı çeker. “Jane has won the lottery. Well, them as has, gits.”




18	Turkish	Ekmek aslanın ağzında.
	Literally	Bread is in the mouth of the lion.
	Equivalent in English	Money doesn’t grow on trees.
	This proverb means that it’s not easy to earn money; it requires a lot of effort. Example: Paranı çarçur etmemelisin. Malum, ekmek aslanın ağzında. “You shouldn’t waste your money. As you know, bread is in the mouth of the lion.”




19	Turkish	Para ile imanın kimde olduğu bilinmez.
	Literally	It’s not known who has money or faith.
	Faith is something within the heart of a person, so we don’t know who really has faith in God. Likewise, we really don’t know how much money a person has. Example: Joe amcanın 10 milyon dolar miras bırakmasına çok şaşırdım. Para ile imanın kimde olduğu bilinmez. “I was surprised that Uncle Joe left a legacy of ten million dollars. It’s not known who has money or faith.”




20	Turkish	Para insana dil, elbise insana yol öğretir.
	Literally	Money teaches man a language, clothes teach the way.
	Your wealth and position determine your place in society, and can give you more or less prestige than others. Example: O adamı lotoyu kazanana dek hiç kimse sevmezdi. Şimdi etrafında bir sürü insan var. Eee, para insana dil, elbise insana yol öğretir. “Nobody liked that man until he won the lottery. Now there are a lot of people around him. Well, money teaches man a language, clothes teach the way.”









7. Turkish Proverbs About Wisdom

Wisdom is another concept that people in every culture talk a lot about. Below are a few great Turkish proverbs that offer general words of wisdom for many of life’s circumstances. 

21	Turkish	Akıl akıldan üstündür.
	Literally	One mind is better than another one.
	Equivalent in English	Two heads are better than one.
	We can’t know it all. It’s good to ask for other people’s opinions, because they may have better ideas than we do.  Example: Sana da sorayım. Ne de olsa akıl akıldan üstündür. Sence ona nasıl davranmalıyım?  “Let me ask you as well. After all, two heads are better than one. How do you think I should treat him/her?”




22	Turkish	Akıl yaşta değil baştadır.
	Literally	Wisdom isn’t at age, it’s on the head.
	Equivalent in English	Wisdom doesn’t come with age.
	A person doesn’t need to be old in order to think wisely, or to realize what’s going on. Using one’s brain and learning from experience leads to wisdom. Therefore, a person is not wise just because they’re old; a person who is young may also be wise. Example: Çok genç ve tecrübesiz olmasına rağmen durumu iyi idare etti. Ne de olsa, akıl yaşta değil baştadır.  “Although he is very young and inexperienced, he managed the situation well. After all, wisdom doesn’t come with age.”




23	Turkish	Akla gelmeyen başa gelir.
	Literally	The one that doesn’t come to mind, happens.
	Equivalent in English	The unexpected always happens.
	We shouldn’t forget that things can happen, even if we don’t expect or foresee them. Example: Kapının önünde zili tamir ediyordum. Kapı açık diye anahtarımı almadım. Bir rüzgar esti, kapı kapandı. Akla gelmeyen başa geliyor.  “I was fixing the bell in front of the door. I didn’t get my key because the door was open. The wind blew, the door got closed. The unexpected always happens.”









24	Turkish	Akıllı düşmandan değil; salak dosttan kork.
	Literally	Be afraid of a stupid friend, not of a smart enemy.
	People who act thoughtlessly, do not see the truth, and cannot see the consequences of the words they say, may unknowingly harm their friends—even if they have good intentions. On the other hand, we can anticipate and predict what a smart enemy can do and take precautions.  Example: En iyi arkadaşım patavatsızca konuşup, beni zor durumda bıraktı. Akıllı düşmandan değil; salak dosttan kork. “My friend talked thoughtlessly and put me in a difficult situation. Be afraid of a stupid friend, not of a smart enemy.”




25	Turkish	Cahile söz anlatmak, deveye hendek atlatmaktan güçtür.
	Literally	It is more difficult to speak to an ignorant person than to get a camel over a ditch.
	Equivalent in English	Like getting blood from a turnip.
	This proverb means that it’s impossible to explain something to an ignorant person. Example: Hepimiz en az üç kez anlattık ama anlamadı. Cahile söz anlatmak, deveye hendek atlatmaktan güç. “All of us told him at least three times, but he didn’t understand. It’s like getting blood from a turnip.”




8. Miscellaneous Proverbs

To wrap up, let’s look at some of the best Turkish proverbs on a variety of other concepts! 

26	Turkish	Olacakla öleceğe çare yoktur.
	Literally	There is no cure for the things that will happen or the person that will die.
	Equivalent in English	Whatever will be, will be.
	We can’t control everything. Whatever is meant or predetermined to take place will take place. Example: O kadar uğraştım ama yine de olmadı. Anladım ki olacakla öleceğe çare yok. “I tried so hard, but it still didn’t happen. I realized that whatever will be, will be.”




27	Turkish	Lafla peynir gemisi yürümez.
	Literally	The cheese ship doesn’t move with words.
	Equivalent in English	Actions speak louder than words.
	This one means that nothing happens when we only talk about it; action is needed. In other words, what you do is more important than what you say. Example: O hep konuşuyor, hiçbir şey yaptığı yok ama lafla da peynir gemisi yürümez.  “He/she always talks, he/she does nothing, but actions speak louder than words.”




28	Turkish	Komşunun tavuğu komşuya kaz görünür.
	Literally	The neighbor’s chicken seems like a goose to the neighbor.
	Equivalent in English	The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.
	This proverb means that what other people have always seems better than what we have. Example: Sally Jen’in elbisesini çok beğendi. Halbuki aynısı onda da var. Komşunun tavuğu komşuya kaz görünür. “Sally liked Jen’s dress very much. However, she has the same dress. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.”




29	Turkish	Sütten ağzı yanan yoğurdu üfleyerek yer.
	Literally	The one who is burnt by the milk, eats yogurt by blowing on it.
	Equivalent in English	Once burnt, twice shy.
	If someone has had an unpleasant experience in the past, they become more cautious. Example: O hemen David’in evlenme teklifini kabul etmek istemiyor. Eee, sütten ağzı yanan yoğurdu üfleyerek yer. “He doesn’t want to accept David’s marriage proposal right away. Well, once burnt, twice shy.”




30	Turkish	Altın pas tutmaz.
	Literally	Gold doesn’t get rusted.
	Nobody can dishonor someone who is honorable and dignified. Example: O ne derse desin, herkes beni biliyor. Altın pas tutmaz. “No matter what he/she says, everyone knows me. Gold does not get rusted.”




9. Learn More with TurkishClass101!

In this article, we went over a bunch of Turkish proverbs with their English translations. Now you can impress your Turkish friends, colleagues, or even your boss by using these popular Turkish proverbs at the right moment. 

Would you like to continue your Turkish studies in the fastest, easiest, and most fun way possible? Then bookmark TurkishClass101.com! We provide numerous video and audio lessons, tons of vocabulary lists, and a number of free resources (such as this Turkish dictionary), all designed to help you get a better grasp of the language. We also provide the MyTeacher service for Premium PLUS members; this service allows you to work and practice one-on-one with your own personal language tutor. 

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Happy learning! 

Let me look into my magic crystal ball and tell you what I see… You’re interested in learning Turkish or have just started working on it. You’re curious to know what Turkish grammar looks like and whether it’s similar to English grammar. And actually, you’re dying to learn what kind of an adventure you’re getting yourself into.

Of course, I’m not a fortune teller. But if I guessed correctly, you’re at the right address. This page serves as an overview of Turkish, an essential grammar guide, and a quick reference for those who want to brush up on specific grammar topics.

Our quick guide will show you the similarities and dissimilarities between Turkish and English as well as the basic structure of Turkish grammar, from vowel harmony to conjugation.

Let’s get started.

Table of Contents

1. General Overview
2. Word Order
3. Word Structure and Agglutination
4. Suffixes, Vowel Harmony, and Buffers
5. Possessives
6. Verbs and Conjugation
7. Access More Turkish Grammar Content on TurkishClass101.com

1. General Overview

Before we get into the details, it’s important that we cover the basic Turkish grammar rules and how they compare to those you’re familiar with in English. 

Similarities

First of all, both languages use the Latin alphabet. The Turkish alphabet, however, consists of 29 letters, 6 of which don’t exist in English ( -ç, -ğ, -ı, -ö, -ş, -ü). There are also 3 letters in English (-q, -w, -x) that don’t exist in the Turkish alphabet.

There are a few words that exist in both Turkish and English that have the same meaning:

➢ TV
➢ Plan
➢ Program
➢ Market
➢ Silo
➢ Video

Like English, Turkish also uses the indefinite article in front of nouns as a separate word: 

➢ Bir araba (“A car”)
➢ Bir otel (“A hotel”)

In addition, neither Turkish nor English uses grammatical gender for objects.

It’s safe to say that there are no accent marks in English, since the words that have them are taken from other languages. There are no accent marks in Turkish, either. 

However, the circumflex is used for some loanwords. It affects the pronunciation of a word by implying that the word’s pronunciation should be longer or that there should be palletization of the consonant that comes before the vowel.

For example: “Âmâ” is an Arabic word that means “blind.” The circumflex here makes both of the “a” sounds longer. There’s another word, “ama,” which means “but.” Although they are spelled the same way (except for the circumflex), those two words are pronounced differently.

Dissimilarities

Now let’s take a look at the features of Turkish grammar that differ from English.

Pronouns

There’s just one word used in Turkish for “he,” “she,” and “it,” which is o.

In Turkish, the plural “you” is not only used as it is in English, but also as a polite, formal way of addressing someone. The same set of rules apply to both the plural “you” and the polite “you” in Turkish.

The Definite Article

Turkish has no definite article (“the”) as a separate word. When definite nouns or pronouns are used as an object, then they take the “-ı, -i, -u, -ü” suffixes based on the vowel harmony rules. Let me give you an example:

➢ Anahtarlar çantamın içinde. (“The keys are in my purse.”) 

Here, “keys” is used without an article.

➢ Anahtarları çantamın içine koydum. (“I put the keys in my purse.”)

Here, “keys” takes the suffix -ı to indicate the definite article.

Numbers as Adjectives

When numbers are used as adjectives to count nouns, the noun does not become plural based on the number. Rather, it stays in the singular form. Here’s an example:

➢ Bir elma (“One apple”)
➢ Beş elma (“Five apples”)

Word Order

The Turkish word order is Subject-Object-Verb. This topic will be covered in more detail later.

Vowel Harmony and Suffixes

Vowel harmony is another feature that doesn’t exist in English. You can see the details about this in the “Suffixes, Vowel Harmony, and Buffers” section of this page.

Conjugations

The conjugation in Turkish is much different from that in English, which we’ll discuss in more detail later on in the “Verbs and Conjugation” section. But to give you an example, there’s a tense called “reported past tense,” which doesn’t exist in most languages. 

2. Word Order 

In Turkish grammar, word order typically follows the SOV (Subject-Object-Verb) structure. In other words, the sentence begins with the subject, which is followed by the object (if any), and then the verb. 

However, this is not a strict rule and there’s some flexibility, meaning that you can put an object or a verb at the beginning of a sentence. Doing so won’t change the meaning of the sentence, but the word you’re emphasizing will definitely change. 

The word that you want to stress should be placed as close to the verb as possible, and if you want to emphasize the verb, then you should place it at the beginning of the sentence.

Subject-Object-Verb	Ben okulumu seviyorum.	“I love my school.”
Object-Subject-Verb	Okulumu ben seviyorum.	“I love my school.”
Object-Verb-Subject	Okulumu seviyorum ben.	“I love my school.”
Verb-Subject-Object	Seviyorum ben okulumu.	“I love my school.”

All of the sentences above have the same meaning, but the emphasis is on the words highlighted in blue.

→ Also see our article A Journey into the Turkish Word Order for more detailed information on how this aspect of Turkish grammar works!

3. Word Structure and Agglutination

In Turkish grammar, suffixes and vowel harmony play a huge role in how words are formed and used. In this section, we’ll introduce you to word structure and agglutination in Turkish. 

Structure of Words

In the structure of a Turkish word, a vowel always follows a consonant and a consonant always follows a vowel:

➢ bebek (“baby”)
➢ araba (“car”)

Therefore, if you see a word where one consonant follows another, you can tell that it’s a loanword: 

➢ pratik (“practical”) 
➢ armut (“pear”)

In order to keep the “vowel + consonant” rule, buffers are used. Those buffers are “y, n, s.” 

You can see some relevant examples of this in our section on vowel harmony and buffers.

Agglutination of Words

Turkish is called an agglutinative language, meaning that new words are formed by adding suffixes to the root words. To give you an idea, a suffix can be added to a noun to 1) make it another noun, or 2) turn it into a verb. It can also be added to a verb to make it a noun or another verb.

Are you confused? Here are some examples to help you understand these Turkish suffix rules better:

➢ Yolcu (Noun)                                          –       “Passenger”

     Yolcu+luk = Yolculuk (Noun)                –       “Trip”

➢ Göz (Noun)                                             –        “Eye”

     Göz+le = Gözle (Verb)                           –       “Observe,” “Monitor”

➢ Bil (Verb)                                                 –         “Know”

     Bil+mece = Bilmece (Noun)                  –       “Puzzle”

➢ Kal (Verb)                                                –       “Stay”

     Kal+dır = Kaldır (Verb)                          –       “Lift,” “Remove”

4. Suffixes, Vowel Harmony, and Buffers

People who want to learn Turkish grammar and vocabulary usually think that these characteristics are really interesting, probably because they don’t exist in most other languages. I wonder if you’ll agree with them!

That said, these are some of the most important Turkish language grammar rules, so pay attention.

Vowel Harmony

In Turkish, words are structured so that vowels follow a certain pattern, and this pattern is called vowel harmony. It’s used to determine which vowel will be used when adding a suffix to a word. Here’s a table showing the vowel types:

	FRONT		BACK
	UNROUNDED	ROUNDED	UNROUNDED	ROUNDED
OPEN	-e	-ö	-a	-o
CLOSED	-i	-ü	-ı	-u

And here are the vowel harmony rules:

• Back vowels follow back vowels and front vowels follow front vowels.
• Unrounded vowels follow unrounded vowels.
• A rounded vowel can be followed by a mix of rounded closed and unrounded open vowels.

Suffixes

Let’s see when suffixes are added:

• Suffixes are based on the person/subject that a verb alludes to.
• Suffixes are used when the subject is plural.
• Suffixes are used based on the tenses.
• Suffixes are used if there is negativity.
• Suffixes are used if interrogative particles will be used.
• Suffixes are used when passive, reflexive, causative, or a verb of mutual action will be formed.
• When definite nouns or pronouns are used as an object, then they take the “-ı, -i, -u, -ü” suffixes, based on the vowel harmony rules.
• Suffixes are used when using possessive pronouns, since there are no separate words for them in Turkish. The suffixes “-m, -ım, -im, -um, -üm” (in conjugated forms) come after the pronoun to make it possessive.
• Suffixes are used when motion towards an object (to), motion from an object (from), and static location (on, at) is to be specified.

It’s a great thing to be able to use the right suffix! However, you also need to make sure that you choose the right vowels for those suffixes based on the vowel harmony.

Buffers

As mentioned earlier, there are three buffers (y, n, s). These are used to maintain the “vowel + consonant” rule when adding suffixes.

• Usage of “y“:
  • Used with an accusative suffix
    
    Example: Silgi+y+i = Silgiyi (“The eraser”)
  
  
  • Used with dative. (Movement towards something)
    
    Example: Parti+y+e = Partiye (“To the party”)

• Usage of “n“:
  • Used with genitive case [Ownership]
    
    Example: Ayna+n+ın = Aynanın (“The mirror’s”)
    
                   Aynası+n+ın = Aynasının (“His/her/its mirror”)
  
  
  • Used for nouns that already have suffixes
    
    Example: Boya+lar+ı+n+a = Boyalarına (“To their paints”)
    
                   Oda+sı+n+dan = Odasından (“From his/her/its room”)

• Usage of “s“:
  • Only used with the third person suffixes (-ı, -i, -u, -ü)
    
    Example: Elma+s+ı = Elması (“His/her/its apple”)

5. Possessives

In Turkish grammar, possessives are formed much differently from how English speakers are used to. In this section, we’ll cover two topics: how to form possessive pronouns and how to use the possessive (genitive) case.

Possessive Pronouns

In the Turkish language, there aren’t separate words that stand for possessive pronouns. However, suffixes (-m, -ım, -im, -um, -üm), in conjugated forms, come after a pronoun to make it possessive. Let’s take a look at a couple of examples:

➢ Sen+in = Senin (“Your”)
➢ Biz+im = Bizim (“Our”)

Possessive pronouns can be omitted because the nouns they are modifying also take suffixes, which imply the possessive pronoun. However, if you want to stress the possessive pronoun, then you can use it in the sentence. Here are some examples:

➢ Benim valizim çok küçük. (“My suitcase is very small.”)
    Valizim çok küçük. (“My suitcase is very small.”)

➢ Sizin aileniz nerede? (“Where is your family?”)
    Aileniz nerede? (“Where is your family?”)

Possessive (Genitive) Case

In the possessive case, both the “possessor” and “possessed” are suffixed. Here are a couple of examples:

➢ Araba+nın anahtar+ı (“The car’s key”)
➢ Elbise+nin düğme+si (“The button of the dress”)

6. Verbs and Conjugation

The final points we’ll cover today have to do with verbs and conjugation. 

→ Because these are such crucial topics, we recommend that you also study our lesson on the Top 20 Turkish Verbs and read our blog post on Turkish verb conjugation.

How to Form Different Types of Verbs

• Passive verbs are formed by adding the affixes -n, -il, or -in. Here are some examples:
  
       Okumak (“To read”)
  
       Oku+n+mak (“To be read”)
  
       Germek (“To stretch”)
  
       Ger+il+mek (“To be stretched”)
  
       Silmek (“To erase”)
  
       Sil+in+mek (“To be erased”)

• Causative verbs are formed by adding the affixes -dir, -t, or -ir. Below are some examples:
  
       Yemek (“To eat”)
  
       Ye+dir+mek (“To make somebody eat”)
  
       Pişirmek (“To cook”)
  
       Pişir+t+mek (“To have something cooked”)
  
       İçmek (“To drink”)
  
       İç+ir+mek (“To make someone drink”)

• Reflexive verbs are formed by adding the -in affix. Here is an example:
  
       Giymek (“To wear clothes”)
  
       Giy+in+mek (“To dress oneself”)

• Verbs of mutual action are formed by adding the -iş affix. For example:
  
       Çarpmak (“To hit”)
  
       Çarp+ış+mak (“To collide”)

Reported Past Tense

I can hear you asking, “Reported tense? What is that?” 

You’re absolutely right in asking this question because it’s not a very common tense.

It’s used:

• when the speaker is explaining something that he/she hasn’t witnessed, but heard from someone else
  
       Annem bana hediye almış. (“My mother bought me a gift.”)
  
       [My mother told me she did, but I didn’t see her buying it.]

•  when telling a story
  
       Güzel bir kız varmış. (“There was a beautiful girl.”)
  
       [I haven’t seen the girl, it’s just a character in a story.]

•  when the speaker is telling someone that he/she (the speaker) has done something without noticing it
  
       Durakta uyumuşum ve otobüsü kaçırmışım. (“I slept at the bus stop and missed the bus.”)
  
       [I didn’t realize I slept and missed the bus.]
  
       Ben kitabı daha önce okumuşum. (“I have read this book before.”)
  
       [I started reading a book, but realized that I read it before and forgot until now.]

• when you’re telling someone about your dream
  
       Rüyamda çok zenginmişim. (“I was very rich in my dream.”)
  
       [It’s like storytelling; you’re telling someone about your dream, which is not reality.]

• when imagining something and telling someone
  
       Mesela, benim iki çocuğum varmış. (“For example, I had two kids.”)
  
       [This is again not reality; you’re imagining that you had two kids.]

Verb Conjugation

In Turkish grammar, verb conjugation is based on the following factors:

• Person / Subject: In Turkish, different suffixes are added to a verb based on the person/subject it alludes to. Vowels in the suffixes change based on the vowel harmony rules.
• Number of Subjects: Whether the subject is singular or plural impacts the suffix that the verb will get.
• Politeness Level: As mentioned above, the plural “you” is also the polite “you” and the same rules are applied to both.
• Tense: Based on the tense, verbs take different suffixes.

7. Access More Turkish Grammar Content on TurkishClass101.com

In this article, we presented you with information on the major topics of Turkish grammar. Which aspects seem the most difficult to you, and why? Let us know in the comments! 

Now that you have a better idea of what to expect from the language, you should have little trouble as you continue learning Turkish grammar online with us. 

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Any time we set out to learn something new—whether it be cooking, sewing, ballet, or biology—it intimidates us. Not knowing what we’ll face makes us worry. Furthermore, we question our ability to learn that specific thing because we’ve never done it before. These same concerns pop up when someone starts learning another language. 

But is Turkish hard to learn? Or is it easier than you think? 

The answer is simple: It might be different from the languages you know and speak, but it’s not difficult.

Yes, it will take some time and effort to learn Turkish, but as we all know, nobody becomes an expert right away. 

In this article, we’ll show you the easy parts of Turkish and help you understand the more challenging parts. This way, you’ll know what areas to really focus on when studying. TurkishClass101 will help you eliminate any prejudice you may have about the Turkish language and answer the question “How easy is Turkish to learn?”

Now, let’s start by talking about the easy features of Turkish.

Table of Contents

1. What Makes Turkish Easy to Learn?
2. So What Makes Turkish Hard to Learn?
3. How to Start Learning Turkish
4. TurkishClass101 is Awesome for Learning Turkish!
5. Utilize TurkishClass101 to Learn Turkish Today!

1. What Makes Turkish Easy to Learn?

Turkish uses the Latin alphabet, which gives most learners an advantage because more than 6000 languages worldwide use the Latin-based alphabet. There might be additional letters (or even missing letters) compared to other Latin-based languages, but still, it’s not like you’ll need to rediscover America! You’ll just need to learn how the letters sound.

Great news for those who aren’t familiar with genders or gender-related conjugations: Turkish doesn’t have any grammatical gender. That’s one less thing to worry about! 

Can you guess what else you won’t have to worry about? The article “the” doesn’t exist in Turkish. This means you don’t have to do anything special for nouns that function as subjects in a sentence. However, if a sentence has a noun that functions as an object, it will require a suffix:

• “The notebook is in my bag.” (Defter çantamın içinde.) 

“Notebook” is used without an article in Turkish.

• “I put the notebook in my bag.” (Defteri çantamın içine koydum.)

Here, “notebook” takes the suffix “i” in Turkish to indicate the article “the,” which is not a separate word in Turkish.

Let’s continue with another convenience. There are no accents in Turkish as there are in some languages (like French), so you won’t have to constantly ask yourself whether the accent is to the left or to the right! We only use the circumflex for loanwords, which is not a big deal!

The convenience doesn’t end there: Turkish also has a flexible word order. Turkish does use the SOV (Subject-Object-Verb) order, which is different from English, but you don’t need to use this order all the time. For example, you can put an object or a verb at the beginning of a sentence without changing its meaning; you’ll only be changing which word is emphasized. Therefore, changing the word order a little bit isn’t usually a problem. However, you have to place the suffixes correctly when you change the order of the words.

Here are some pairs of sentences which are all correct despite having a different word order. 

• Ne yapacaksın bugün? – “What will you do today?”
• Bugün ne yapacaksın? – “What will you do today?”

• Buraya gel! – “Come here!”
• Gel buraya! – “Come here!”

• Bugün çok yorgunum. – “I’m very tired today.”
• Çok yorgunum bugün. – “I’m very tired today.”

2. So What Makes Turkish Hard to Learn?

Whenever a student asks me why Turkish is hard to learn, I always tell them that the question needs to be rephrased: “Is Turkish hard to learn?” I try to break the prejudices first. Then, I answer by letting them know that while there will be challenges, the language itself is not hard. 

That said, let’s look at some characteristics that make Turkish difficult to learn for foreigners.

Suffixes and vowel harmony

Suffixes are one of the most challenging aspects of the language for new Turkish-learners, because these suffixes don’t exist in most other languages.

Suffixes are added;

• based on the person/subject that a verb alludes to.
• if the subject is plural.
• when definite nouns or pronouns are used as an object. Then, they take the “-ı, -i, -u, -ü” suffixes based on the vowel harmony rules.
• when using possessive pronouns, because there aren’t separate words for them in Turkish. However, the “-m, -ım, -im, -um,-üm” suffixes (in conjugated forms) come after the pronoun to make it possessive.
• based on the tenses.
• when negativity is used.
• when interrogative particles are used.

Once you learn when to use suffixes, the rules for their application, and the vowel harmony, it won’t seem nearly as difficult as it does now.

The pronunciation of letters that don’t exist in English

There are six letters in the Turkish alphabet that don’t exist in English: -ç, -ğ, -ı, -ö, -ş, -ü.

The letter ç, which is the “ch” sound in English (as in “challenge” or “chair”), and the letter ş, which is the “sh” sound in English (as in “shell” or “shame”) are usually pronounced correctly. However, new learners often struggle with the other four.

• ğ is pronounced like the “ou” syllable in the words “ounce” and “our.” 
• ı is pronounced like the second “o” in the word “color.”
• ö is pronounced like the “u” in the word “turn.”
• ü is pronounced like the “u” in the word “pure.”

Practicing the pronunciation of words that contain these letters will help you overcome any initial difficulties you might have with them.

Conjugation

Conjugation can make Turkish difficult when you first start studying the language. However, as you learn the rules and practice, you’ll be much less intimidated by it.

You need to know the factors that affect verb conjugation in Turkish, which are:

• Person / Subject
• Number of subject (singular or plural)
• Politeness level
• Tense

You should also note that there are passive voice, causative verbs (verbs formed by adding the causative suffix after the verb root), reflexive verbs, and a verb of mutual action in addition to verb conjugation.

3. How to Start Learning Turkish

Have you decided Turkish isn’t so bad after all? Here are some tips from TurkishClass101.com on how to get started with your Turkish studies! 

Alphabet

I’d recommend starting with the alphabet. As I mentioned earlier, not only do some of the letters look different, but they’re also pronounced differently. Make sure to learn how the consonants and vowels sound. Then, additional effort may be required to learn how the letters that don’t exist in your mother tongue are pronounced.

Vocabulary

Learning vocabulary is also essential. You need to start building up your vocabulary (nouns, adjectives, verbs), so once you start learning basic grammar, you can start applying the vocabulary you’ve learned.

You can expand your vocabulary by reading and listening. Make sure to write down the words you don’t know, and always use a dictionary. You can also make flashcards to help you remember words and their meanings. Remember that you need to repeat and use a word many times to memorize it.

Basic Grammar

Once that’s out of the way, start learning basic grammar so you can start making sentences. It might be a good idea to start with pronouns, then word order, sentence structure, and conjugation.

Practice

Finally, you need to put together all you’ve learned and put it to practice. I put “practice” at the end, but that doesn’t mean you have to learn everything before you start practicing. You have to practice as you go, and don’t shy away from making mistakes. On the contrary, be bold and use every opportunity to use the new things you’ve learned:

• You should listen to Turkish radio channels and Turkish music. This will help expand your vocabulary, improve your pronunciation, and give you better overall language comprehension.
• You should read Turkish blogs, articles, and books. This will expand your vocabulary even further and improve your comprehension.
• You should watch Turkish TV shows or videos to improve your vocabulary, pronunciation, and language comprehension.
• Try practicing with native Turkish-speakers whenever possible, as they can help point out and correct your mistakes. This will definitely boost your speaking ability! 

4. TurkishClass101 is Awesome for Learning Turkish!

Would you like to learn and practice Turkish in the quickest, easiest, and most fun way? If yes, all you need to do is visit TurkishClass101.com.

Here are some fantastic benefits you can expect when you sign up:

All-in-one resource

Our website teaches you everything you need to know about Turkish and gives you endless opportunities to practice. It teaches you grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation, and helps you build your listening, writing, reading, and speaking skills. We even teach you about the country’s culture!

Free resources

TurkishClass101.com has many free resources you can use. 

Here, you can learn the Turkish language basics, practice your Turkish pronunciation, and study the entire Turkish alphabet. Furthermore, you can learn about Turkish grammar, memorize the 100 Most Common Words, and master a few Key Turkish Phrases.

To learn more vocabulary, you get free access to our themed vocabulary lists, receive a word of the day, and can utilize our Turkish-English dictionary. 

Premium services

There’s also MyTeacher, a Premium PLUS service of TurkishClass101 that you can use to practice with a private teacher.

This service provides:

• One-on-one interaction with your personal teacher
• Guidance and ongoing assessment 
• Weekly assignments 
• Constructive feedback
• Badges for the assignments you complete

Mobility when learning

Don’t fall behind! Keep learning Turkish wherever you are, and never let you location be a barrier in your language-learning. 

How? Download the app for free and use it anywhere, anytime.

5. Utilize TurkishClass101 to Learn Turkish Today! 

Now you know the easiest and the most challenging parts of learning Turkish! We’ve given you advice on where to start and how to facilitate your learning with TurkishClass101.

Don’t lose any time; check out TurkishClass101 and utilize all of the resources mentioned above. Also, make sure to provide us with feedback about your experience with TurkishClass101!

Before you go, we’re curious: Do you find the Turkish language easy or hard so far? Let us know in the comments, and feel free to ask any questions you still have!