Turkish Idioms
A curated set of 12 idioms in Turkish — literal translations, real meanings, and where each one comes from.
- Ayıkla pirincin taşını — Deal with it yourself; it's your mess. Literally: Pick the stones out of the rice.
- Nazar değmesin — Knock on wood; hope nothing ruins this good thing. Literally: May the evil eye not touch it.
- Armut piş, ağzıma düş — Wanting everything handed to you without effort. Literally: Cook, pear, and fall into my mouth.
- Bir fincan kahvenin kırk yıl hatırı vardır — Sharing coffee creates lasting bonds and social connections that endure for decades. Literally: A cup of coffee has forty years of memory.
- Etekleri zil çalıyor — To be visibly bursting with joy. Literally: Their skirts are ringing bells.
- Pabucu dama atılmak — To fall out of favor and be cast aside. Literally: To have one's shoe thrown on the roof.
- İğneyle kuyu kazmak — To undertake a painfully slow, laborious task. Literally: To dig a well with a needle.
- Havadan sudan konuşmak — To make idle small talk. Literally: To talk of weather and water.
- Pireyi deve yapmak — To blow something tiny out of all proportion. Literally: To make a camel out of a flea.
- Armudun sapı var, üzümün çöpü var — To find fault with absolutely everything. Literally: The pear has a stalk, the grape has a seed.
- Pabuç pahalı — Things are getting dangerous; time to be careful. Literally: The shoe is expensive.
- İki ayağını bir pabuca sokmak — To rush and pressure someone relentlessly. Literally: To stuff someone's two feet into one shoe.
Loading the full interactive collection…