A1 is the first level of Turkish: you can greet people, introduce yourself, and say simple things about where you are and what you are doing. The good news is that Turkish is regular. A few suffixes, used the same way every time, carry most of A1. This guide is practice; a university will ask for a recognised certificate at a higher level, usually B2 or C1.
Everyday phrases
- Merhaba: Hello. Günaydın: Good morning.
- Nasılsın?: How are you? İyiyim, teşekkür ederim: I'm fine, thank you.
- Benim adım Ali: My name is Ali. Senin adın ne?: What is your name?
- Lütfen: please. Evet / Hayır: yes / no. Görüşürüz: see you.
Numbers and days
1-10: bir, iki, üç, dört, beş, altı, yedi, sekiz, dokuz, on. Days: Pazartesi (Monday), Salı, Çarşamba, Perşembe, Cuma, Cumartesi, Pazar (Sunday).
Three suffixes that do most of the work
- Plural -lar / -ler: the vowel follows the last vowel of the word (vowel harmony). kitap → kitaplar (books), ev → evler (houses).
- Location -da / -de ('in, at'): okulda (at school), evde (at home). After f, s, t, k, ç, ş, h, p it becomes -ta / -te: kitapta (in the book).
- Present tense -iyor + person: geliyorum (I am coming), okuyorum (I am reading). Negative with -m-: gelmiyorum (I am not coming).
A short dialogue
- A: Merhaba, nasılsın?
- B: İyiyim, teşekkür ederim. Sen nasılsın?
- A: Ben de iyiyim. Nerede oturuyorsun?
- B: İstanbul'da oturuyorum. Sen?
- A: Ben Ankara'da oturuyorum.
Learn each new word inside a short sentence you can use. 'Evdeyim' (I am at home) is easier to remember than 'ev' alone.
How to practise A1
- Ten minutes a day beats an hour once a week.
- Say your sentences aloud; Turkish is read as it is written.
- When you get a suffix wrong, write the correct form in a sentence of your own.
How EXAMEV helps
The EXAMEV Türkçe A1 bank has 385 practice questions on everyday phrases, numbers, days and months, the plural, case suffixes and the present tense, each with an explanation. When you are ready, move to A2 and up. To see which level universities ask for, read our Turkish proficiency exam guide.