Turkish is not an easy language. It is agglutinative (words are built by stacking suffixes), uses vowel harmony, and shares almost no vocabulary with European languages. You will not become functional in Turkish during a holiday.

What you can do is learn 20 to 30 phrases that will be genuinely useful and that Turkish people will genuinely appreciate. Making any effort with Turkish is noticed and warmly received.

Do People Speak English in Turkey?

In Istanbul, the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts, and Cappadocia, English is widely spoken in tourist areas, hotels, restaurants, and shops. In smaller cities and rural areas, English becomes less common. In eastern Turkey, very little English is spoken outside of tourist facilities.

Google Translate’s camera function (point it at text) works remarkably well for menus and signs. The app’s voice translation is increasingly good for basic conversation.

Pronunciation Notes

Turkish is almost perfectly phonetic; once you know the rules, you pronounce exactly what you see. Key points:

c = “j” sound (like jam) – Cami (mosque) is pronounced “JA-mee”
ç = “ch” sound – Çay (tea) is “CHAY”
ş = “sh” sound – Şehir (city) is “sheh-HEER”
ğ = silent, lengthens the preceding vowel – Dağ (mountain) is “DAA”
ı (dotless i) = a sound between “i” and “u”, like the “e” in “the”
ö = like the German ö or French eu
ü = like the German ü or French u

Stress in Turkish usually falls on the last syllable.

Essential Phrases

Greetings

Hello – Merhaba (mer-HA-ba)
Good morning – Günaydın (gew-NAY-dun)
Good evening -İyi akşamlar (EE-yee ak-SHAM-lar)
Goodbye – Güle güle / Hoşça kalın (gew-LEH gew-LEH / HOSH-cha ka-LUN)
How are you? – Nasılsınız? (na-SUL-su-nuz)
Fine, thank you – İyiyim, teşekkür ederim (EE-yee-yim, teh-shek-KUR eh-deh-REEM)
Please – Lütfen (LOOT-fen)
Thank you – Teşekkür ederim (teh-shek-KUR eh-deh-REEM)
Thank you (informal) – Sağ ol (SAA-ol)
You’re welcome – Rica ederim (ree-JAH eh-deh-REEM)
Yes – Evet (EH-vet)
No – Hayır (HA-yur)
Excuse me / Sorry – Pardon / Özür dilerim (PAR-don / er-ZUR dee-leh-REEM)

Practicalities

Do you speak English? – İngilizce biliyor musunuz? (een-gee-LEEZ-jeh bee-lee-YOR moo-soo-NOOZ)
I don’t understand – Anlamıyorum (an-la-MU-yo-room)
I don’t speak Turkish – Türkçe bilmiyorum (TURK-cheh bil-mee-YO-room)
How much does it cost? – Ne kadar? (NEH ka-DAR)
It’s too expensive – Çok pahalı (CHOK pa-HA-luh)
Where is…? – …nerede? (…neh-REH-deh)
Where is the toilet? – Tuvalet nerede? (too-va-LET neh-REH-deh)
Help! – İmdat! (eem-DAT)
I need a doctor – Doktora ihtiyacım var (dok-TO-ra eeh-tee-ya-JUM var)
Call the police – Polis çağırın (po-LEES cha-UH-run)

Getting Around

Where is the metro? – Metro nerede? (MET-ro neh-REH-deh)
One ticket, please – Bir bilet lütfen (BEER bee-LET LOOT-fen)
To the airport – Havalimanına (ha-va-lee-ma-NUH-na)
Stop here, please – Burada durun lütfen (boo-RA-da doo-ROON LOOT-fen)
How far is it? – Ne kadar uzak? (NEH ka-DAR oo-ZAK)
Left – Sol (SOL)
Right – Sağ (SAA)
Straight ahead – Düz gidin (DOOZ gee-DEEN)

Eating and Drinking

A table for two, please – İki kişilik masa lütfen (EE-kee kee-SHEE-leek MA-sa LOOT-fen)
The menu, please – Menüyü getirir misiniz? (meh-NEW-yew geh-tee-REER mee-see-NEEZ)
What do you recommend? – Ne tavsiye edersiniz? (NEH tav-SEE-yeh eh-dehr-SEE-neez)
I am vegetarian – Ben vejetaryenim (BEN veh-zheh-tar-YEH-neem)
I am allergic to… – …alerjim var (…ah-LEHR-zheem var)
Delicious! – Çok lezzetli! (CHOK leh-ZEHT-lee)
The bill, please – Hesabı alabilir miyim? (heh-SA-buh a-la-bee-LEER mee-YEEM)
Water – Su (SOO)
Tea – Çay (CHAY)
Coffee – Kahve (KAH-veh)
Beer – Bira (BEE-ra)
Without meat – Etsiz (ET-seez)

Shopping and Bargaining

I’m just looking — Sadece bakıyorum (sa-DEH-jeh ba-KU-yo-room)
No thank you — Hayır, teşekkürler (HA-yur, teh-shek-KUR-lehr) — the single most useful phrase in the Grand Bazaar
Can you lower the price? — İndirim yapabilir misiniz? (een-dee-REEM ya-pa-bee-LEER mee-see-NEEZ)
I’ll take it — Alıyorum (a-LU-yo-room)

Cultural and Mosque Situations

May I take a photo? – Fotoğraf çekebilir miyim? (fo-TOW-raf cheh-keh-bee-LEER mee-YEEM)
Is this mosque open? – Bu cami açık mı? (BOO ja-MEE a-CHUK muh)

Numbers 1-10

Bir (BEER)
İki (EE-kee)
Üç (OOOCH)
Dört (DERT)
Beş (BESH)
Altı (al-TUH)
Yedi (yeh-DEE)
Sekiz (seh-KEEZ)
Dokuz (do-KOOZ)
On (ON)

Two Phrases Worth Learning Perfectly

These two phrases, delivered confidently and with a smile, handle approximately 70% of social situations in Turkish tourist areas:

“Teşekkür ederim” (teh-shek-KUR eh-deh-REEM) – Thank you. Use it constantly. Turkish people genuinely appreciate the effort.

“Hayır, teşekkürler” (HA-yur, teh-shek-KUR-lehr) – No, thank you. Said firmly but with a smile, it ends any persistent sales approach without offence.