The genitive case (ilgi hâli or tamlayan hâli) marks the owner in a possessive phrase. It does the job of English ’s and of: Ali’nin evi (Ali’s house), arabanın anahtarı (the key of the car).
Turkish possession is marked on both nouns: the owner takes the genitive, and the thing owned takes a possessive ending. This page focuses on the genitive and the owner–owned structure. The full set of possessive endings is in possessive suffixes, and compounds such as Türk kahvesi are covered in compound nouns (isim tamlamaları). For all six cases, see the noun cases overview.
Forming the genitive
The suffix is -(n)In: four-way vowel harmony, with the buffer letter n after a vowel.
| Last vowel | After a consonant | After a vowel |
|---|---|---|
| a, ı | -ın | -nın |
| e, i | -in | -nin |
| o, u | -un | -nun |
| ö, ü | -ün | -nün |
| Noun | Genitive | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ev | evin | of the house |
| okul | okulun | of the school |
| göz | gözün | of the eye |
| araba | arabanın | of the car |
| kapı | kapının | of the door |
| Ali | Ali’nin | Ali’s |
| İstanbul | İstanbul’un | of Istanbul |
| öğrenciler | öğrencilerin | of the students |
Softening and vowel loss
Because the suffix starts with a vowel, many nouns ending in p, ç, t, k soften (consonant mutation), and a few lose the vowel of their last syllable:
| Noun | Genitive | Note |
|---|---|---|
| kitap | kitabın | p → b |
| ağaç | ağacın | ç → c |
| çocuk | çocuğun | k → ğ |
| şehir | şehrin | i drops |
| oğul | oğlun | u drops |
| burun | burnun | u drops |
Pronouns and other special forms
| Base | Genitive | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ben | benim | irregular |
| sen | senin | |
| o | onun | |
| biz | bizim | irregular |
| siz | sizin | |
| onlar | onların | |
| kim? | kimin? | whose? |
| bu / şu | bunun / şunun | |
| su (water) | suyun | y, not n |
| annem (my mother) | annemin | my mother’s |
| kardeşi (his brother) | kardeşinin | his brother’s |
The owner–owned structure
The basic pattern is:
owner + genitive → owned + possessive (agreeing with the owner)
| Owner | Owned | Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ali’nin | evi | Ali’nin evi | Ali’s house |
| evin | kapısı | evin kapısı | the door of the house |
| arabanın | anahtarı | arabanın anahtarı | the car key (of that car) |
| şehrin | merkezi | şehrin merkezi | the city centre |
| benim | evim | benim evim | my house |
| senin | evin | senin evin | your house |
| bizim | evimiz | bizim evimiz | our house |
When the owner is a noun, the owned item takes the third-person ending -(s)ı/-(s)i/-(s)u/-(s)ü. When the owner is a pronoun, the ending matches the person: benim → -im, senin → -in, and so on. Pronoun owners are often dropped, since the ending already shows the person: evim = my house; benim evim = my house (emphasis).
Examples in sentences
- Ali’nin evi çok büyük. — Ali’s house is very big.
- Evin kapısı açık. — The front door of the house is open.
- Arabanın anahtarı nerede? — Where’s the car key?
- Türkiye’nin başkenti Ankara’dır. — The capital of Türkiye is Ankara.
- Öğretmenin adı ne? — What’s the teacher’s name?
- Çocukların odası çok dağınık. — The children’s room is very messy.
- Kedinin maması bitti. — The cat’s food has run out.
Chains
Genitive phrases can be stacked. Each owned noun can become the owner of the next:
- Ali’nin annesinin arabası — Ali’s mother’s car
- Annemin arkadaşının kızı — my mother’s friend’s daughter
- Apartmanın kapısının şifresi — the code for the building’s door
The middle noun carries both a possessive and a genitive: anne-si-nin.
Genitive or bare compound?
Not every “noun + noun” phrase uses the genitive. Compare:
| With genitive (specific owner) | Without genitive (type or name) |
|---|---|
| okulun kapısı — the door of the school (this school) | okul kapısı — a school gate |
| Türkiye’nin başkenti — the capital of Türkiye | Türk kahvesi — Turkish coffee |
| çocuğun kitabı — the child’s book | çocuk kitabı — a children’s book |
The second type is explained in compound nouns.
“Whose?” and “mine”
The genitive can be the predicate of a sentence:
- Bu çanta kimin? — Whose bag is this?
- Ayşe’nin. — Ayşe’s.
- Bu kitap benim. — This book is mine.
Add -ki to make a pronoun (“mine, yours”):
- Benim telefonum burada, seninki nerede? — My phone’s here; where’s yours?
- Bizimki daha eski. — Ours is older.
The genitive in other structures
- Possession with var/yok: Ali’nin iki kardeşi var. — Ali has two siblings. See existential sentences.
- Pronouns with postpositions: benim için (for me), senin gibi (like you), onun kadar (as much as him). Nouns stay bare: Ali için. See postpositions.
- Relative clauses: the subject takes the genitive: Ali’nin okuduğu kitap — the book Ali read. See relative clauses.
Useful genitive patterns
Position words: önünde, arkasında, içinde
Turkish expresses many positions with “the front of”, “the inside of” and so on, using the genitive, a possessive and the locative:
| Turkish | English |
|---|---|
| evin önünde | in front of the house |
| okulun arkasında | behind the school |
| kutunun içinde | inside the box |
| masanın üstünde | on the table |
| bankanın yanında | next to the bank |
| benim yanımda | next to me |
Superlatives and parts
- Türkiye’nin en büyük şehri — the biggest city in Türkiye
- sınıfın en uzun öğrencisi — the tallest student in the class
- ayın beşi — the fifth of the month
- sokağın sonu — the end of the street
Short dialogue
- Elif: Bu şemsiye kimin? — Whose umbrella is this?
- Murat: Bilmiyorum, benimki değil. Belki Ayşe’nindir. — I don’t know, it’s not mine. Maybe it’s Ayşe’s.
- Elif: Ayşe’nin şemsiyesi kırmızı. Bu, öğretmenin olabilir. — Ayşe’s umbrella is red. This could be the teacher’s.
- Murat: O zaman masasının üstüne bırakalım. — Then let’s leave it on her desk.
Common mistakes
- Regular genitive for ben/biz: benin, bizin → benim, bizim.
- Missing buffer n: Ali’in, arabaın → Ali’nin, arabanın.
- Missing possessive on the owned noun: Ali’nin ev → Ali’nin evi.
- Missing genitive on the owner: Ali evi → Ali’nin evi.
- No softening: kitapın, çocukun → kitabın, çocuğun.
- Genitive on a type compound: Türk’ün kahvesi → Türk kahvesi.
Mini-exercise
Build the phrase.
- Ayşe + kitap (Ayşe’s book) → ?
- ben + araba (my car) → ?
- öğretmen + çanta (the teacher’s bag) → ?
- çocuk + oyuncak (the child’s toy) → ?
- biz + ev (our house) → ?
- Ali + anne + telefon (Ali’s mother’s phone) → ?
Answers: 1. Ayşe’nin kitabı 2. benim arabam 3. öğretmenin çantası 4. çocuğun oyuncağı 5. bizim evimiz 6. Ali’nin annesinin telefonu
Next steps
Split chains like annemin arkadaşının into their parts with the suffix deconstructor, then learn all six possessive endings in possessive suffixes.
