· 3 min read

Memorize Turkish Proverbs: What to Keep and Fix in 79 Idiom Cards

How to memorize Turkish proverbs (atasözleri) with the XW2253 deck: the authentic sayings to learn, mismatched cards to rewrite and calques to replace.

Camel, watermelon, crow and grapes among floating flashcards

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Turkish proverbs (atasözleri) are full of camels, crows, watermelons and caravans, and Turks use them all the time. The Turkish Idioms & Proverbs deck on Flip It (deck code XW2253, 79 cards) puts an English saying on the front and a Turkish one on the back. Around half of the cards are excellent. The rest need a careful look first, because in many of them the Turkish back does not translate the English front.

Study this deck: Turkish Idioms & Proverbs

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Question

Don't put vinegar to the honey you'll eat

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Tap the card for the answer · swipe right if you knew it, left if not

Cards worth learning as they are

English frontTurkish back
Drop by drop makes a lakeDamlaya damlaya göl olur
A hungry bear doesn't danceAç ayı oynamaz
The fish rots from the headBalık baştan kokar
The dog barks, the caravan passesİt ürür, kervan yürür
Don't count your chickens before they hatchDereyi görmeden paçaları sıvama
Two watermelons don't fit under one armBir koltuğa iki karpuz sığmaz
Measure nine times, cut onceDokuz kere ölç bir kere kes
A friend in need is a friend indeedDost kara günde belli olur

These cards are also worth your time: Üzüm üzüme baka baka kararır, Ağaç yaşken eğilir, Görünen köy kılavuz istemez, Sütten ağzı yanan yoğurdu üfleyerek yer, Denize düşen yılana sarılır, Duvarların kulağı var, Sabrın sonu selamettir, Vakit nakittir, Üzümünü ye, bağını sorma, Dikensiz gül olmaz, Demir tavında dövülür, Armut dibine düşer, Bir çiçekle bahar olmaz, Geç olsun, güç olmasın, Tencere dibin kara.

Mismatched cards: fix the front

Some backs are real Turkish proverbs, but they sit under the wrong English front. Rewrite the front so it matches the Turkish:

  • Card 10: the cat proverb is Aceleci kedinin yavrusu kör doğar. The back given, Acele işe şeytan karışır, means "the devil meddles in hasty work".
  • Card 28: "every sheep hangs by its own leg" is a real Turkish proverb: Her koyun kendi bacağından asılır. Use it in place of the generic back.
  • Card 30: Horozu çok olan köyde sabah geç olur means "in a village with many roosters, morning comes late". It has nothing to do with music and dance.
  • Card 18: Az tamah çok ziyan is about greed, not "many a little makes a mickle".
  • Card 61: İş başa düşer means "the job falls to you", not "work is worship".
  • Card 77: Hem nalına hem mıhına means playing both sides, not having your cake and eating it.
  • Cards 21, 26, 49 and 55 do not match either. Rewrite the front from the Turkish or suspend the card.

Calques: replace them with the real saying

Cards 71-76 and 79 translate English proverbs word for word: Atlamadan önce bak, Pratik mükemmelleştirir, İki kafa bir kafadan iyidir, Roma'dayken Romalılar gibi yap. Turks would understand them, but they are not proverbs. Use these instead:

  • Two heads are better than one: Akıl akıldan üstündür
  • Every cloud has a silver lining: Her işte bir hayır vardır
  • Blood is thicker than water (card 47): Kan sudan koyudur

Study tip

Learn the literal image first. Picture two watermelons slipping from under one arm and Bir koltuğa iki karpuz sığmaz sticks. Put a word-for-word gloss in each hint (karpuz = watermelon, kervan = caravan, paça = trouser leg), so every proverb also teaches vocabulary.

For the case endings that keep showing up here (-den, -e, -in), see the Turkish verb system guide.

Find XW2253 in the library on Flip It.

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