Personal Pronouns (Kişi Zamirleri) are essential words used to replace nouns. In Turkish, these pronouns change their form significantly based on the six noun cases (Grammatical Cases).
💡 Important Note
Do not rely solely on literal English translations. Turkish is an agglutinative language, meaning it relies on suffixes. The meaning of a pronoun can shift slightly based on the sentence context; therefore, it is best to study them within sentences.
1. Subjective Case (The Nominative)
These are used when the pronoun is the "doer" or subject of the sentence.
Pronoun | Meaning | Pronoun | Meaning |
Ben | I | Biz | We |
Sen | You (Singular/Informal) | Siz | You (Plural/Formal) |
O | He / She / It | Onlar | They |
2. Pronoun Declensions (Case Changes)
The base pronoun changes when we add suffixes for direction, location, or possession:
Case | Ben (I) | Sen (You) | O (He/She/It) | Biz (We) | Siz (You) | Onlar (They) |
Accusative (Me/You) | Beni | Seni | Onu | Bizi | Sizi | Onları |
Dative (To me/To you) | Bana | Sana | Ona | Bize | Size | Onlara |
Locative (At/In/With me) | Bende | Sende | Onda | Bizde | Sizde | Onlarda |
Ablative (From me) | Benden | Senden | Ondan | Bizden | Sizden | Onlardan |
Genitive (My/Mine) | Benim | Senin | Onun | Bizim | Sizin | Onların |
Instrumental (With me) | Benimle | Seninle | Onunla | Bizimle | Sizinle | Onlarla |
⚠️ Take Note: Observe the irregular vowel change in the Dative case for "I" and "You." Instead of "Bene," it becomes Bana, and instead of "Sene," it becomes Sana.
Practical Examples (Örnekler)
Use these examples to see how the pronouns function in real-life sentences:
Bana para ver (Give to me money).
Benden kitap mı istiyorsun? (Do you want a book from me?).
Benim evim çok küçük (My house is very small).
Seni çok seviyorum (I love you very much).
Sen okula gidiyor musun? (Are you going to school?).
Sende para var mı? (Is there money with you? / Do you have money?).
Ona mektup yazdım (I wrote a letter to him/her).
O bize geliyor (He/She is coming to us).
Onun gözleri çok güzel (His/Her eyes are very beautiful).