Turkish Phrases Blog

Let’s focus on a few especially useful Turkish phrases.  These are words and phrases I hear all the time in Turkey.

1.  Çok yaşa (Choke-ya-sha)  It literally means, “Live long” and is the same as German “Gesundheit” or English “Bless you,” said after someone sneezes.  The response is Sen de gör (sehn-deh-gour) meaning, “and you too.”

2.  Bakar mısınız (ba-kar mi-si-niz)  This means, “Excuse me!”  Use it to get the attention of a waiter.

3.  Geçmiş olsun! (gech-mish ohl-sun)  Said to someone who is ill.  It means “Get well soon!”

4.  Buyurun (booy-uroon)  Shopkeepers and sellers at the pazar (market) will always say this to you when you walk up to them.  It basically means, “At your service,” or “Can I help you?”

5.  Efendim (ehf-ehn-dim)  This is how a phone is answered–”Hello!”  It is used to respond to someone politely, like saying “pardon?”  Efendim also means “sir/madam.”  In this way it is tacked on the end of a sentence like, “blah blah blah, efendim.”

Technorati Tags: turkish phrases, useful turkish phrases