Knowing a few basic Turkish words and expressions will not only please locals, it will also come in handy during your stay. Turks will try their best to help you, but not all Turks speak English — and that’s an understatement. Most restaurants have menus in both Turkish and English, but especially in snack bars the translations may be far from perfect.
This list of 250 basic Turkish words and expressions allows you to establish some kind of communication to address most inconveniences or questions you may have during your stay. Make sure to check out the Turkish pronunciation rules, too. At for your convenience, at the bottom you’ll find a link to print this page in a printer-friendly fashion.
Accomodation
| air-conditioning | klima |
| balcony | balkon |
| entrance | giriş |
| exit | çıkış |
| luggage | bagaj |
| pull | çekiniz |
| push | itiniz |
| reception | resepsiyon |
| restaurant | restoran / lokanta |
| shampoo | şampuan |
| shower | duş |
| soap | sabun |
| swimming pool | havuz |
| toilet | tuvalet |
| toilet paper | tuvalet kağıdı |
| towel | havlu |
Transportation
| airport | havalimanı |
| avenue | cadde |
| bus / coach | otobüs |
| fare | ücret |
| ferry | vapur |
| map | harita |
| passenger | yolcu |
| plane | uçak |
| platform | peron |
| port | liman |
| quay | iskele |
| road | yol |
| sea bus | deniz otobüsü |
| sea | deniz |
| ship | gemi |
| station | istasyon |
| street | sokak |
| subway / underground | metro |
| taxi | taksi |
| ticket office | bilet gişesi |
| ticket | bilet |
| timetable | tarife |
| train | tren |
Private Airport Shuttles to/from City Hotels
Touristic Places
| carpet | halı |
| castle | hisar |
| church | kilise |
| island | ada |
| mosque | cami |
| museum | müze |
| palace | saray |
| park | park |
| square | meydan |
| tourism | turizm |
| tourist information office | turizm danışma bürosu |
| tourist | turist |
| tower | kule |
| Turkish bath | hamam |
Colors
| black | siyah |
| blue | mavi |
| brown | kahverengi |
| green | yeşil |
| orange | turuncu |
| pink | pembe |
| purple | mor |
| red | kırmızı |
| white | beyaz |
| yellow | sarı |
Food and Drink
| beer | bira |
| black pepper | karabiber |
| bottle | şişe |
| bread | ekmek |
| breakfast | kahvaltı |
| butter | tereyağı |
| dessert | tatlı |
| dinner | akşam yemeği |
| enjoy your meal | afiyet olsun |
| fillet steak | bonfile |
| fish | balık |
| food | yemek |
| fork | çatal |
| glass | bardak |
| ice cream | dondurma |
| ice | buz |
| knife | bıçak |
| lamb grilled on a spit and served in thin slices | döner kebap |
| layered pastry with cheese/meat/spinach filling | börek |
| lemon | limon |
| lunch | öğle yemeği |
| main course | ana yemek |
| meat | et |
| menu | menü |
| peppers | biber |
| plate | tabak |
| rare (cooked) | az pişmiş |
| salad | salata |
| salt | tuz |
| serviette | peçete |
| soup | çorba |
| spoon | kaşık |
| starter | meze |
| steak | biftek |
| sugar | şeker |
| table | masa |
| tea | çay |
| tip | bahşiş |
| toast | tost |
| waiter / waitress | garson |
| walnuts | ceviz |
| water | su |
| well done | iyi pişmiş |
| white cheese | beyaz peynir |
| white wine | beyaz şarap |
| wine list | şarap listesi |
| with meat | etli |
| yoghurt drink | ayran |
Small Talk
| but | ama |
| child | çocuk |
| good evening | iyi akşamlar |
| good morning | günaydın |
| good night | iyi geceler |
| goodbye | hoşça kalın or bye bye |
| hello | merhaba |
| How many? | Kaç tane? |
| How much? (price) | Kaç para? |
| Mr | bay |
| Mrs | bayan |
| no | hayır |
| ok | tamam |
| or | ya da / veya |
| please | lütfen |
| sorry / excuse me | pardon / affedersiniz |
| thank you | teşekkür ederim, teşekkürler, sağol or mersi |
| yes | evet |
Cafe, Coffee & Evening Tours
Adjectives
| a little | az |
| a lot / very / too | çok |
| average / medium | orta |
| bad | kötü |
| big | büyük |
| closed | kapalı |
| cold | soğuk |
| good | iyi |
| hot | sıcak |
| open | açık |
| quick | hızlı / çabuk |
| slow | yavaş |
| small | küçük |
Directions
| broken | bozuk |
| down | aşağı |
| far | uzak |
| here | burada |
| left | sol |
| near | yakın |
| right | sağ |
| straight on | doğru |
| there | orada |
| up | yukarı |
In Case of Emergency
| accident | kaza |
| Call an ambulance! | Ambulans çağrın! |
| Call the police! | Polis çağrın! |
| dentist | diş hekimi |
| diarrhea | ishal |
| doctor | doktor |
| fever | ateş |
| Fire! | Yangın! |
| headache | baş ağrısı |
| Help! | İmdat! |
| hospital | hastane |
| medication | ilaç |
| pain | ağrı |
| pharmacy | ezcane |
| police | polis |
| sick / ill | hasta |
| Stop! | Dur! |
| Where is the nearest hospital? | En yakın hastane nerede? |
Money Matters
| ATM | bankamatik |
| bank | banka |
| bill | hesap |
| cash money | nakit |
| cheap | ucuz |
| cheque | çek |
| coins / small money | bozuk para |
| credit card | kredi kartı |
| deposit | depozito |
| discount | indirim |
| expensive | pahalı |
| foreign exchange office | döviz bürosu |
| free | bedava |
| high quality | kaliteli |
| invoice | fatura |
| money | para |
| paper money | kağıt para |
| price | fiyat |
| quality | kalite |
| receipt | makbuz |
| tax excluded | KDV hariç |
| tax included | KDV dahil |
| to buy | satın almak |
Prompts
| Can I have …? | … rica ediyorum. |
| Can you help me? (in a shop) | Bakar mısınız? |
| Can you help me? | Bana yardım edebilir misiniz? |
| Do you speak English? | İngilizce konuşuyor musunuz? |
| Excellent! | Çok güzel. |
| Go away! | Çekil! |
| How are you? | Nasılsın? |
| How much is it? | Bu ne kadar? |
| I can’t speak Turkish. | Türkçe bilmiyorum. |
| I don’t understand. | Anlamıyorum. |
| I would like … | … istiyorum. |
| I’m fine. | İyiyim. |
| Is there a … here? | Burada … var mı? |
| Please speak more slowly. | Lütfen, daha yavaş konuşur musunuz? |
| Please write it down for me. | Lütfen yazar mısınız? |
| Pleased to meet you. | Memnun oldum. |
| See you soon. | Görüşmek üzere. |
| What time is it? | Saat kaç? |
| Where are the toilets? | Tuvaletler nerede? |
| Where can I get …? | … nerede bulabilirim? |
| Where do I pay? | Kasa nerede? |
| Where is/are …? | … nerede? |
Numbers
| 0 | sıfır |
| 1 | bir |
| 2 | iki |
| 3 | üç |
| 4 | dört |
| 5 | beş |
| 6 | altı |
| 7 | yedi |
| 8 | sekiz |
| 9 | dokuz |
| 10 | on |
Days of the Week
| Monday | Pazartesi |
| Tuesday | Salı |
| Wednesday | Çarşamba |
| Thursday | Perşembe |
| Friday | Cuma |
| Saturday | Cumartesi |
| Sunday | Pazar |
Time Expressions
| afternoon | öğleden sonra |
| at the moment | şu anda |
| early | erken |
| evening | akşam |
| last week | geçen hafta |
| late | geç |
| later | sonra |
| morning | sabah |
| next week | gelecek hafta |
| night | gece |
| now | şimdi |
| soon | yakında |
| this evening | bu akşam |
| this morning | bu sabah |
| today | bugün |
| tomorrow | yarın |
| yesterday | dün |
Frank says
I really liked your article on how to pronounce Turkish words (‘Turkish Language and Pronunciation Rules (for Tourists)”). The best was the sound bits so that you understood that you have got it right. It would be great if you could do the same with this article.
Erlend says
Hi Frank,
Glad you liked the effort. There really is no need for this, since Turkish is a phonetic language. Once you know all the sounds, you can’t go wrong really.
Shabreen says
Selam,these words are very helpful for enhancing my new language learning skills Teşekürler.
Maryam says
Thank you so much it’s very helpful I love it 💖💖💖💖
Prasanta Borah says
This was very helpful Sir…
Thank you so much ❤️
Nilufar Abdulkhaeva. says
Really amazing )))
Thanks in advance. It was very useful.
Linda N says
lütfen aşkım o karta ihtiyacım var…
What does this sentence say?
Erlend says
I means: Please my dear, I need that card.
Linda says
Thank you do much
Mein says
Hello there!
Would you mind telling what to say in Turkish when I want to recharge my mobile? I am always having a hard time telling them what I wanted. i just say “paket” and the amount but I wanted to say it properly. Can you please help me in this?
Thanks a lot!
Erlend says
Hi Mein,
x lira için paketimi yenilemek istiyorum.
meaning:
I would like to renew my ‘paket’ for x amount of liras.
I hope this is helpful.
Zubair says
Thank you very much it really helped me 😊
Hassan says
Can you please make an audio of this vocabulary if possible ?
Erlend says
Hi Hassan,
Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll look into it, but I’m afraid it will take some time.