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Politeness & courtesy

How to Say “Excuse Me” in Turkish

The usual way to say “Excuse me” in Turkish is Affedersiniz. It is formal: polite: for strangers, elders, customers and officials. Below are 4 alternatives (neutral, informal), how to reply, an example dialogue and the grammar behind it.

In Turkish

Affedersiniz

Literally
“you forgive (me)”
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Formalpolite: for strangers, elders, customers and officials

How Affedersiniz is built

  1. affed-forgive (affet-; t → d before a vowel)
  2. -er-aorist
  3. -sinizyou (polite)
Grammar guideThe Turkish Aorist Tense (-r / -er / -ir): Habits, Promises & Polite Requests →Grammar guideTurkish Consonant Mutation: The 'Ketçap' (K-T-Ç-P) Suffix Rule Explained →Grammar guideTurkish Verb Person Suffixes: The Z-Type (-ım, -sın, -ız) and K-Type (-m, -n, -k) Sets →Conjugate the verbaffetmek (to forgive) →

Other ways to say “Excuse me”

  • PardonNeutral

    “pardon”

    Quick and casual, e.g. when you bump into someone.

  • Bakar mısınız?Neutral

    “would you look?”

    The usual way to call a waiter or shop assistant.

  • MüsaadenizleFormal

    “with your permission”

    To get past someone or to leave a room.

  • AffedersinInformal

    “excuse me (informal)”

    To a friend.

How to reply

  • Buyurun?

    Yes? How can I help?

  • Efendim?

    Yes?

Example dialogue

  1. A

    Affedersiniz, metro istasyonu nerede?

    Excuse me, where is the metro station?

  2. B

    Düz gidin, sağda.

    Go straight, it’s on the right.

Related phrases

All phrases →
I’m sorryÖzür dilerimNeutralCan you help me?Bana yardım edebilir misiniz?FormalWhere is the toilet?Tuvalet nerede?NeutralCan you repeat that?Tekrar eder misiniz?Formal

More politeness & courtesy

Go deeper

GuideHow to Say Thank You, Please and Sorry in Turkish (Teşekkürler, Lütfen, Özür Dilerim)

“Excuse me” in Turkish: FAQ

How do you say “Excuse me” in Turkish?

The most common way is Affedersiniz (literally “you forgive (me)”), which is formal: polite: for strangers, elders, customers and officials. You will also hear Pardon (“pardon”): quick and casual, e.g. when you bump into someone.

How do you reply to Affedersiniz?

Typical replies are Buyurun? (“Yes? How can I help?”) and Efendim? (“Yes?”).

What does each part of Affedersiniz mean?

affed- = forgive (affet-; t → d before a vowel); -er- = aorist; -siniz = you (polite). Affedersiniz both gets attention and apologises.

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