One question that often comes up when talking about learning Turkish is: Is Turkish hard to learn? The truth is, it depends largely on your native language. For those who speak English or other Indo-European languages, Turkish can be quite tricky, while for speakers of other Turkic languages (like Kazakh or Tatar), it’s generally much easier—kind of like how a Spanish speaker might find Portuguese easier to learn, or a Polish speaker might find Czech more approachable. This is because languages within the same family share similar structures, vocabulary, and sounds.
However, for most people who speak Indo-European languages, such as English, French, Russian, or Spanish, the challenge comes from how different Turkish grammar is. If you’re coming from a language that’s structurally very different, you might find it harder to get used to the syntax, verb forms, and overall structure.
The struggle for learning Turkish is real, especially if you don't have exposure to live Turkish conversations.
The Challenge of Nominalization in Turkish
One of the key difficulties for English speakers, in particular, is Turkish's use of nominalization—the process of turning verbs into nouns, in an infinitival function. This doesn’t happen often in Indo-European languages but is a common feature of Turkish. To give you a clearer idea, let’s break down an example:
“Eve gitmemiz lazım” – this literally translates to “We need to go home,” but the structure in Turkish is quite different. A direct translation would be: “To the house, our going is needed.”
Here’s a breakdown:
Ev = house
E = to
Git = the verb stem for "to go"
Me = a suffix that nominalizes the verb
Miz = the possessive suffix indicating “we”
Lazım = needed
This kind of construction may seem unusual at first, but it’s a very common way of expressing ideas in Turkish. Notice how the verb “to go” becomes “going” (a noun), and the subject “we” is indicated with the possessive suffix “-miz.”
Here is a slightly more complex example of the same phenomenon:
“İzlediğin komedi filmini sevdim” – "I liked the comedy movie that you watched." In Turkish, this becomes something like: “Watched by you comedy film I liked.”
It’s a way of thinking and speaking that’s not common for those of us who speak Indo-European languages, but once you get the hang of it, it can feel natural and even rewarding. Here are a few examples commonly used by Turkish speakers:
Çay isteyen var mı? – Does anyone want tea?(Literally: "Tea wanters there are?")
Gitmem lazım – I need to go. (Literally: “My going is needed.”)
Imbedded phrases
Fluency in Turkish is more attainable than it may seem at first, with the right language learning appraoch.
Another tricky feature of Turkish is the tendency for phrases to be embedded within each other. While English relies on relativisers like 'that' to string concepts together, Turkish uses embedding combined with nominalization to do this (along with cases). For example, take this sentence:
“Bizim gittiğimizi bilmediğini dün öğrendim”This translates to “I found out yesterday that you didn’t know that we went,” but its structure in Turkish is quite different. A more literal translation would be: “Our going your not knowing yesterday I learned.”
Breaking it down:
Bizim = our (possessive form)
Gittiğimizi = our going (nominalized verb using the -DIK suffix with the possessive and accusative suffixes)
Bilmediğini = that you didn’t know (nominalized verb with the -DIK suffix and accusative suffix)
Dün = yesterday
Öğrendim = I learned
At first glance, this might seem overwhelming. How will you ever be able to think and speak in such a different way? By exposing yourself to Turkish speech and practicing speaking. Start small with simpler constructions, and over time, you’ll become more comfortable with these kinds of sentences. Here are a few simple examples:
Çay isteyeni gördün mü? – Did you see the people who wanted tea? (Literally: "Tea wanters you saw?")
Söylediğim şeyi dinledin mi? – Did you hear what I said? (Literally: "Said by me thing you heard?")
The more you hear and practice these constructions, the easier it will become to understand and use them in your own speech. Before you know it, you’ll be forming complex sentences with embedded clauses like a native Turkish speaker.
Asymmetry of Turkish verb Tense-Aspect-Mood’s with those of English
Most Turkish mood-aspect-tense markers don't have exact equivalents in most Indo-European languages.
Another challenge for English speakers is the way Turkish handles verb tenses, aspects, and moods (TAM) markers. In fact, many of the Turkish verb forms don’t have a perfectly equivalent form in English, which can make learning them challenging. Take the aorist marker, for instance, which is used frequently in Turkish but has no direct counterpart in English.
To demonstrate this asymmetry, we will try to describe the Aorist marker, although it isn’t fully possible to explain it with words, and really just needs to be felt through hearing it in Turkish speech. That being said, the Aorist is used to express general actions, habitual behaviors, or hypothetical situations, and doesn’t indicate when the action occurs—whether in the past, present, or future. For example, the word giderim (from the verb gitmek, “to go”) might be translated as “I go,” but its meaning is more nuanced. It could mean “I generally go,” “I would go,” or “I may go,” depending on context. This can be confusing, especially when you first encounter it. To make matters more complicated, Duolingo and other language apps sometimes present giderim as and equivalent for “I go” in the present tense, which is not always correct. The best way to grasp the aorist is not by looking for an exact translation in English, but by listening to native speakers and observing when they use this form.
Don’t be intimidated! It’s natural to shy away from more unfamiliar verb forms at first, like the aorist or verbs with the evidential marker mış (which indicates hearsay, something that is known indirectly, or ‘apparently’, among other meanings). But using these forms is crucial if you want to sound more fluent. Start by listening to how native speakers use them, then try incorporating them into your own speech. Over time, you’ll start to feel the meanings of these tenses intuitively, rather than having to think through their translations. Here are a few common uses of both the aorist and the evidential markers:
Bir şey istermisin (Would you like anything?)
Çay içerim (I would drink some tea)
O gelmış! (He/She came apparently!)
Final Thoughts: Embrace the Challenge
Learning Turkish can certainly be challenging, especially if you come from an Indo-European language background. However, as you familiarize yourself with the unique structures of Turkish—like nominalization, embedded clauses, and new verb forms—you’ll begin to see how the language opens up a whole new way of thinking and expressing yourself. Don’t be discouraged by the differences. With patience, practice, and exposure to native speakers, you’ll soon be able to navigate these challenges and enjoy the rewarding experience of speaking Turkish fluently.
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