Learn Turkish · A1
Vowel Harmony Ünlü uyumu
The most important rule of Turkish: the vowel in a suffix changes to match the last vowel of the word. -lar or -ler? -da or -de?
The rule
- Turkish builds words by adding suffixes. The vowel of the suffix "harmonizes" with the last vowel of the word.
- Two-way suffixes (a / e): after a, ı, o, u → a; after e, i, ö, ü → e. Examples: plural -lar/-ler, location -da/-de.
- Four-way suffixes (ı / i / u / ü): a, ı → ı; e, i → i; o, u → u; ö, ü → ü. Examples: -ım/-im/-um/-üm, the question word mı/mi/mu/mü.
- Back vowels: a, ı, o, u. Front vowels: e, i, ö, ü. Suffixes stay on the same side as the word.
Overview
| a, ı, o, u → a | kitaplar, kızlar, okulda |
|---|---|
| e, i, ö, ü → e | evler, gözler, köyde |
| a, ı → ı · e, i → i | kızım, evim |
| o, u → u · ö, ü → ü | okulum, gözüm |
Examples
- kitap → kitaplarbook → books
- ev → evlerhouse → houses
- okul → okuldaschool → at school
- köy → köydevillage → in the village