I can ask the price per kilo and per piece at the market and the store, buy by weight and by the piece, ask for something cheaper, bargain, answer the cashier, and get my change.
At the market and the store: price, weight, change
At the market and the store: price, weight, change
Walking up to a seller, people say Kolay gelsin — “may your work be easy”. The price: Kaç lira? or Ne kadar? Per kilo: Kilosu kaç lira? Per piece: Tanesi kaç lira? Watch out: the Turkish word market means a grocery store or supermarket; an open-air market is pazar.
By weight: bir kilo, yarım kilo, bir buçuk kilo. By the piece, with tane: üç tane limon. English says “two kilos of apples”; Turkish has no “of” and no -lar after a number, a measure word, or çok: iki kilo elma, çok sebze. On packages: gram, litre, paket “pack”, kutu “box”. A shopping bag is poşet.
Expensive is pahalı. Ask: Daha ucuzu var mı? “Is there a cheaper one?” At the market people bargain: Biraz indirim olur mu? The answer is Olur or Olmaz. In a store the price is fixed.
At the checkout you'll hear: Poşet istiyor musunuz? and Nakit mi, kart mı? Change is para üstü; small change (coins) is bozuk para. The total: Hepsi ne kadar?
Common mistakes:
• NOT “iki kilo elmalar” → iki kilo elma
• NOT “Kilo kaç lira?” → Kilosu kaç lira?
• NOT “Ben poşet lazım” → Bana poşet lazım (“I need” is bana … lazım, “to me”)
How much to get
After a number and a measure word, the word stays singular.
| In Turkish | In English |
|---|---|
| bir kilo domates | a kilo of tomatoes |
| yarım kilo | half a kilo |
| üç tane limon | three lemons (by the piece) |
| iki yüz gram zeytin | two hundred grams of olives |
| bir litre süt | a liter of milk |
| bir paket çay | a pack of tea |
| bir kutu meyve suyu | a carton of juice |
Lesson notes
At the market and the store: price, weight, change
Walking up to a seller, people say Kolay gelsin — “may your work be easy”. The price: Kaç lira? or Ne kadar? Per kilo: Kilosu kaç lira? Per piece: Tanesi kaç lira? Watch out: the Turkish word market means a grocery store or supermarket; an open-air market is pazar.
By weight: bir kilo, yarım kilo, bir buçuk kilo. By the piece, with tane: üç tane limon. English says “two kilos of apples”; Turkish has no “of” and no -lar after a number, a measure word, or çok: iki kilo elma, çok sebze. On packages: gram, litre, paket “pack”, kutu “box”. A shopping bag is poşet.
Expensive is pahalı. Ask: Daha ucuzu var mı? “Is there a cheaper one?” At the market people bargain: Biraz indirim olur mu? The answer is Olur or Olmaz. In a store the price is fixed.
At the checkout you'll hear: Poşet istiyor musunuz? and Nakit mi, kart mı? Change is para üstü; small change (coins) is bozuk para. The total: Hepsi ne kadar?
Common mistakes:
• NOT “iki kilo elmalar” → iki kilo elma
• NOT “Kilo kaç lira?” → Kilosu kaç lira?
• NOT “Ben poşet lazım” → Bana poşet lazım (“I need” is bana … lazım, “to me”)