Dil Declension: Turkish Cases of 'tongue'
dil means “tongue, language”. Its last vowel is i, so 2-way suffixes use e (diller) and 4-way suffixes use i (dilin). It is a regular noun: suffixes attach directly to dil, as in dili and dilde.
Quick facts
- Plural
- diller
- tongues
- Harmony
- Front unrounded
- suffix vowels e / i
- Ends in
- a consonant
- suffixes attach directly
- Object form
- dili
- accusative, “the tongue”
Rules this noun follows
- Linking vowel — A harmonised vowel is inserted after a consonant (kitab-ı-m).dilim, dilin
- Pronominal n — After a 3rd-person possessive, case suffixes take n (arabası-n-ı, evi-n-de).dilini, dilinde
Dil in all seven cases
The added suffix is highlighted. Plural forms put -ler before the case ending.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| NominativeYalın hâl · no ending | diltongue | dillertongues |
| AccusativeBelirtme hâli · -(y)I | dilithe tongue (object) | dillerithe tongues (object) |
| DativeYönelme hâli · -(y)A | dileto the tongue | dillereto the tongues |
| LocativeBulunma hâli · -DA | dildein / at the tongue | dillerdein / at the tongues |
| AblativeAyrılma hâli · -DAn | dildenfrom the tongue | dillerdenfrom the tongues |
| Genitiveİlgi hâli · -(n)In | dilinthe tongue's / of the tongue | dillerinthe tongues's / of the tongues |
| InstrumentalVasıta hâli · -(y)lA | dillewith the tongue | dillerlewith the tongues |
Possessive forms: “my tongue”, “your tongue”…
The possessive suffix comes first, then the case. After the 3rd-person forms a case ending takes an extra n (dilinde). See possessive suffixes.
| Owner | Nominative | Accusative | Dative | Locative | Ablative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| benimmy | dilimmy tongue | dilimimy tongue (object) | dilimeto my tongue | dilimdein / at my tongue | dilimdenfrom my tongue |
| seninyour | dilinyour tongue | diliniyour tongue (object) | dilineto your tongue | dilindein / at your tongue | dilindenfrom your tongue |
| onunhis/her/its | dilihis/her tongue | dilinihis/her tongue (object) | dilineto his/her tongue | dilindein / at his/her tongue | dilindenfrom his/her tongue |
| bizimour | dilimizour tongue | dilimiziour tongue (object) | dilimizeto our tongue | dilimizdein / at our tongue | dilimizdenfrom our tongue |
| sizinyour (pl.) | dilinizyour (pl.) tongue | diliniziyour (pl.) tongue (object) | dilinizeto your (pl.) tongue | dilinizdein / at your (pl.) tongue | dilinizdenfrom your (pl.) tongue |
| onlarıntheir | dilleritheir tongues | dillerinitheir tongues (object) | dillerineto their tongues | dillerindein / at their tongues | dillerindenfrom their tongues |
Plural + possessive: dillerim (my tongues) · dillerin (your tongues) · dilleri (his/her tongues) · dillerimiz (our tongues) · dilleriniz (your (pl.) tongues) · dilleri (their tongues)
Dil in example sentences
Watch out with dil
- Two meanings. dil means both "tongue" and "language": Kaç dil konuşuyorsun? "How many languages do you speak?"
- Two meanings of dilin. dilin is both "of the tongue" (genitive) and "your tongue" (possessive). dili is likewise both the object form and "his/her tongue". Rule →
Related nouns and resources
Related nouns: body
Other front-vowel A1 nouns
Questions about dil
What is the plural of dil?
The plural of dil ("tongue") is diller. The plural suffix follows 2-way vowel harmony: the last vowel of dil is i, a front vowel, so it takes -ler. The plural then takes case endings: dilleri, dillerde, dillerden.
How do you say "to the tongue" in Turkish?
"To the tongue" is dile, the dative case (-e). Similarly, "in / at the tongue" is dilde (locative) and "from the tongue" is dilden (ablative).
How do you say "my tongue" in Turkish?
"My tongue" is dilim (often with the pronoun: benim dilim). "Your tongue" is dilin, "his/her tongue" is dili and "my tongues" is dillerim.
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