Turkish/Contents/Pronunciation and Alphabet/Lesson One - A-I

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The alphabet in Turkish is based on the Latin alphabet. However, the pronunciations of the letters are a little different from English, and there are also some perhaps unfamiliar letters included, too. So, let's start learning the Turkish alphabet!

Contents 1 A 2 B 3 C 4 Ç 5 D 6 E 7 F 8 G 9 Ğ 10 H 11 I

[edit] A

Pronounced like the a in arm, but shorter.

For example:

• akvaryum - aquarium
• akşam - evening
• aile - family

[edit] B

Or be. Pronounced like the b in 'big.

For example:

• büyük - big
• baba - father
• bardak - cup

[edit] C

For audio file, click here.

Or ce. Now things have started to go different, here! Be careful, in Turkish, c is pronounced sort of like the j in jelly.

For example:

• can - life
• cami - mosque
• cep - pocket

[edit] Ç

No audio file available at the moment, sorry!

Or çe. This is pronounced like the ch in chocolate

For example:

• çene - chin
• çay - tea
• çocuk - child

[edit] D

Or de. This is pronounced like the d in 'delight.

For example:

• dergi - magazine
• dün - yesterday
• deniz - sea

[edit] E

Pronounced like the e in bread

For example:

• ev - house
• ekmek - bread
• elma - apple

[edit] F

Or fe. This is pronounced like the f in forget.

For example:

• fare - mouse
• fakir - poor
• fikir - idea

[edit] G

Or ge. This is pronounced like the g in go.

For example:

• gazete - newspaper
• gece - night
• göz - eye

[edit] Ğ

In Turkish, this is referred to as yumuşak "g" (soft "g"), because technically that's what it is! It can never be used at the beginning of a word, but simply lengthens the previous vowel. Think of it as the Turkish equivalent of the gh in through.

For example:

• dağ - mountain
• ağaç - tree
• doğum - birth

[edit] H

Or ha. This is pronounced like the h in heaven.

For example:

• hafta - week
• hayır - no
• hata - mistake

[edit] I

This is another one to watch out for! It's not pronounced like an i! As a matter of fact, the lowercase version of this is a dotless i (ı). It has no exact English equivalent, but is pronounced like the e in legend. The exact pronunciation is made by shaping your lips to say e (as in bread), but trying to say u (as in you) instead. It's hard, but no harm in trying!

For example:

• ılık - warm

Try and learn those off by heart, particularly c, ç, ğ and ı!

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