Prepositions are key building blocks in any language and Turkish is not the exception! They help connect ideas, indicate relationships, and clarify the context of a sentence.
In Turkish, prepositions (often referred to as edatlar or ilgeçler) can be standalone words or postpositions that follow the noun they modify. Many are used with specific case markers, making it essential for learners to understand both their function and their grammatical behavior.
In this guide, I have listed 55 essential Turkish prepositions ordered by category. Each table includes the Turkish preposition, its English equivalent, and a sample sentence to illustrate its use in context. I also added grammar notes to help you understand which case comes with which preposition. İyi okumaları!
Table of Contents
Cause / Reason
These prepositions indicate motivation, reason, or justification. They often answer “Why?” or “Because of what?”
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| üzere | in order to/about to, with the intention of | Toplantı başlamak üzere. (The meeting is about to start.) |
| uğruna | for the sake of | Vatan uğruna savaştı. (He fought for the sake of the homeland.) |
| vasıtasıyla | through/by means of | Bu haberi gazeteden vasıtasıyla öğrendim. (I learned this news through the newspaper.) |
| ile ilgili | about/concerning | Film ile ilgili yorumlar olumluydu. (The comments about the movie were positive.) |
| hususunda | about/concerning | Bu konu hususunda dikkatli olun. (Be careful about this matter.) |
| dolayı | because of | Hastalıktan dolayı gelemedi. (He couldn’t come because of illness.) |
| mukabil | in return for | Yardımına mukabil teşekkür etti. (He thanked in return for the help.) |
Grammar Note:
- Many of these prepositions, such as ile ilgili or hususunda, are actually postpositional phrases and require the noun to be in the genitive case (with ending -ın/in/un/ün).
- Dolayı requires the ablative case (-den, -dan).
Comparison / Exception
These prepositions help you express contrast, difference, or exclusion.
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| hariç | except | Sen hariç herkes geldi. (Everyone came except you.) |
| nazaran | compared to | Geçen yıla nazaran daha başarılıyız. (We are more successful compared to last year.) |
| göre | according to | Planlara göre hareket ettik. (We acted according to the plans.) |
| dışında | except | Bu konu dışında her şeyi konuşabiliriz. (We can talk about everything except this topic.) |
| gibi | like/as | O da senin gibi düşünüyordu. (He was thinking like you.) |
| karşın | despite | Yağmura karşın dışarı çıktık. (Despite the rain, we went outside.) |
| başka | other/except | Senden başka kimse gelmedi. (No one else came except you.) |
| yerine | instead of | Çay yerine kahve içti. (He drank coffee instead of tea.) |
| kadar | as…as/up to | Senin kadar zeki kimse yok. (No one is as smart as you.) |
| rağmen | despite | Yorgunluğa rağmen çalıştı. (He worked despite being tired.) |
Grammar Note: Nazaran, göre and rağmen require the dative case (‑a/e/ya/ye) in the noun they follow.
Direction / Goal
These prepositions indicate movement or orientation toward a place or goal.
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| doğru | toward | Eve doğru yürüdüm. (I walked toward the house.) |
| kadar | up to/as far as | Sabaha kadar çalıştım. (I worked until morning.) |
| karşı | against/towards | Duvarda karşı durdu. (He stood facing the wall.) |
Grammar Note: These prepositions require the dative case on the noun preceding them. They are commonly used with verbs of motion or direction (yürümek, koşmak etc.).
Location
These are used to describe where something is in relation to something else. Those prepositions are among the most common in Turkish.
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| içinde | inside | Çanta içinde kalem var. (There is a pen inside the bag.) |
| üzerinde | on/above | Kitap masanın üzerinde. (The book is on the table.) |
| üzerine | onto | Kitabı masanın üzerine koydum. (I put the book onto the table.) |
| altında | under/below | Kedi masanın altında uyuyor. (The cat is sleeping under the table.) |
| arasında | between | İki şehir arasında yolculuk ettik. (We traveled between two cities.) |
| arkasında | behind | Arabanın arkasında bisiklet var. (There is a bicycle behind the car.) |
| önünde | in front of | Okulun önünde buluştuk. (We met in front of the school.) |
| üstünde | on/over | Kitap rafta üstünde duruyor. (The book is on the shelf.) |
| yanında | next to | Köpek sahibinin yanında duruyor. (The dog is standing next to its owner.) |
| etrafında | around | Masa etrafında toplandık. (We gathered around the table.) |
| dışında | outside | Çocuklar okul dışında oynuyor. (The children are playing outside the school.) |
Grammar Note: These prepositions usually require the noun to be in the genitive case and are typically followed by the locative case for the location noun.
Manner / Mean
The following Turkish prepositions express how something is done or by what means an action is accomplished. In Turkish, they often translate to “by,” “with,” or “thanks to” in English.
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| ile | with / by | Otobüs ile geldik. (We came by bus.) |
| sayesinde | thanks to | Senin sayende başardım. (I succeeded thanks to you.) |
| aracılığıyla | via / through | E-posta aracılığıyla iletişim kurduk. (We communicated via email.) |
| yoluyla | by way of / through | Arkadaşımın yoluyla işi buldum. (I found the job through my friend.) |
| üzerinden | through / over (figuratively) | Site üzerinden ödeme yaptım. (I made the payment through the site.) |
| namına | on behalf of, in the name of | Şirket namına konuştu. (He spoke on behalf of the company.) |
| şerefine | in honor of | Onun şerefine kadeh kaldırdık. (We raised a glass in his honor.) |
Grammar Note: ile can sometimes be attached to the preceding word as a suffix (e.g., otobüsle), especially in informal speech or writing.
Purpose
These prepositions indicate the reason or objective behind an action. They often answer “What for?” or “For what purpose?”
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| için | for / in order to | Bu hediye senin için. (This gift is for you.) |
| maksadıyla | with the aim of | Eğitim maksadıyla yurtdışına gitti. (He went abroad for the purpose of education.) |
| amacıyla | with the purpose of | Proje amacıyla araştırma yaptık. (We did research for the purpose of the project.) |
| niyetiyle | with the intention of | Yardım etme niyetiyle geldi. (He came with the intention of helping.) |
Grammar Notes:
- amacıyla, niyetiyle, and maksadıyla all come from nouns (amaç = purpose, niyet = intention, maksat = aim) + the suffix -ı + ile = with. These constructions usually follow a noun in the genitive case (e.g., projenin amacıyla, yardım etme niyetiyle).
- için is the most versatile and can be used with nouns, verbs (gitmek için – in order to go), and pronouns (senin için – for you). It requires the noun or verb stem to precede it.
Reference
The Turkish prepositions below indicate what something is about, concerning, or in relation to. They’re often used when discussing topics, ideas, rules, or entities.
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| hakkında | about | Film hakkında konuştuk. (We talked about the movie.) |
| ilişkin | regarding / related to | Yeni kurallara ilişkin bilgi verildi. (Information was given regarding the new rules.) |
| dair | regarding / about | Projeye dair detaylar açıklandı. (The details about the project were announced.) |
| konusunda | about / on the subject of | Sağlık konusunda dikkatli olmalısın. (You should be careful about your health.) |
| bağlantılı | related to / connected with | Stres, sağlık sorunlarıyla bağlantılı olabilir. (Stress may be connected with health problems.) |
| yaklaşık | about/approximately | Yaklaşık on kişi vardı. (There were about ten people.) |
| dahil | including | Herkes, Ahmet dahil geldi. (Everyone came, including Ahmet.) |
Grammar Note: These prepositions are postpositions and usually follow nouns in the genitive case.
- hakkında, dair, konusunda, and bağlantılı follow the noun they modify and usually imply a genitive relationship (filmin hakkında, konunun dair), though in practice, genitive suffixes are often dropped when a demonstrative (e.g., bu, şu) is used.
- bağlantılı functions more like an adjective and is often used with -la / -le (the instrumental suffix) to express connection (bir şeyle bağlantılı = related to something).
- ilişkin is also adjective-like and agrees with the noun it modifies (ilişkin bilgi = related information).
Time
These help define the temporal relationship between events.
| Turkish Preposition | English Translation | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| önce | before | Yemekten önce yürüyüş yaptık. (We took a walk before dinner.) |
| sonra | after | Ders sonra buluşalım. (Let’s meet after the class.) |
| itibaren | from/since | Pazartesiden itibaren çalışacağım. (I will start working from Monday.) |
| süresince | during | Toplantı süresince sessiz olun. (Be quiet during the meeting.) |
| esnasında | during/while | Yemek esnasında konuşmadı. (He didn’t speak during the meal.) |
| boyunca | along, throughout | Nehir boyunca yürüdük. (We walked along the river.) Yıl boyunca çok çalıştı. (He worked hard throughout the year.) |
Grammar Note: İtibaren, süresince, and esnasında often require the noun to be in the ablative case (-den).
Conclusion
Mastering Turkish prepositions is not just about memorizing vocabulary—it’s about understanding how they connect ideas and signal grammatical relationships. Most prepositions come with specific case requirements, and many act more like postpositions, following the noun they refer to. Try to spot which case is used with each preposition when reading something in Turkish!
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