You will choose between istemek and lazım and say whether you want something or need it.
The idea
İstemek is a verb that says what you want, and the person is its subject and ending: Su istiyorum, Ali telefon istiyor. Lazım says what is needed and takes no ending for whoever needs it. That person is in the dative, bana, sana, ona, bize, and the thing needed stays plain: Bana su lazım. Before another verb, istemek takes the -mek form (gitmek istiyorum), while lazım wants the person on the verb noun (gitmem lazım).
| Wanting | Needing |
|---|---|
| Su istiyorum. | Bana su lazım. |
| Ali telefon istiyor. | Ali'ye telefon lazım. |
| Şeker istemiyorum. | Bana şeker lazım değil. |
| Eve gitmek istiyorum. | Eve gitmem lazım. |
| Ne istiyorsun? | Sana ne lazım? |
Examples
- Bana su lazım.I need water.The one who needs is in the dative: bana, sana, ona, bize. Lazım itself never changes for the person. Word for word: “to me, water is needed”.
- Ben su istiyorum.I want water.Here ben is the subject, and the ending -um on istiyorum already says it, so ben may be dropped: Su istiyorum.
- Ali'ye yeni bir telefon lazım.Ali needs a new phone.
- Ali yeni bir telefon istiyor.Ali wants a new phone.
- Şeker istemiyorum.I don't want sugar.
- Bana şeker lazım değil.I don't need sugar.Lazım is not a verb, so it is denied with değil. Not wanting and not needing differ: you may want sugar and not need it.
- Eve gitmek istiyorum.I want to go home.After istemek, the other verb stays in the -mek form and only istiyorum carries the person.
- Eve gitmem lazım.I need to go home.Outside this level: with lazım the other verb becomes a noun with -me and the person ending, git-me-m. The full pattern is on the gerek and lazım page.
- Sana ne lazım?What do you need?
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Watch out
Do not make the one who needs the subject: Ben su lazım is wrong, say Bana su lazım. Keep the two denials apart as well: Şeker istemiyorum means you refuse sugar, but Bana şeker lazım değil only means it is not necessary.
Try it yourself
I need water. Fill in the word for “to me”.
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bana
bana: lazım cannot take the one who needs as its subject, so the person who needs water appears in the dative: bana, “to me”.
I want tea. Use istemek in the present continuous.
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istiyorum
istiyorum: istemek is a verb, so the speaker ben is the subject; after -iyor the ending -um means “I”.
We need bread. Fill in the missing word.
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lazım / gerek
lazım: bize is already the dative of the people who need, which is the pattern of lazım; a verb would make biz the subject.
I don't need milk. Fill in the missing word.
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değil
değil: lazım is not a verb, so değil denies it; istemiyorum would say that you refuse milk, not that it is unnecessary.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
I need water. Fill in the word for “to me”.
I want tea. Use istemek in the present continuous.
We need bread. Fill in the missing word.
I don't need milk. Fill in the missing word.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
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Write four sentences about your day: two with istemek about what you want and two with lazım about what you need. Put bana or sana in front of each lazım.