You will choose sayı, rakam or numara by asking what a number does in the sentence: express a quantity, form part of its written notation, or identify something.
The idea
Use sayı for a mathematical number or a count: öğrenci sayısı. In decimal notation, rakam is one of the digits 0–9: 42 is a sayı written with two digits. Even 7 is a sayı when treated as a value, and a rakam when discussed as a written symbol. Use numara for an identifying label: telefon numarası, oda numarası. Shoe size is also ayakkabı numarası.
| Word | Typical phrases |
|---|---|
| sayı | öğrenci sayısı; iki basamaklı sayı |
| rakam | son rakam; 4 ve 2 rakamları |
| numara | telefon numarası; oda numarası; ayakkabı numarası |
| sayı | derginin mart sayısı |
Examples
- Bugün katılımcı sayısı arttı.The number of participants increased today.
- Buraya telefon numaranı yaz.Write your phone number here.
- Ben bu rakamı okuyamıyorum.I cannot read this digit.
- 42 iki basamaklı bir sayıdır.42 is a two-digit number.
- 42 sayısında 4 ve 2 rakamları var.The number 42 contains the digits 4 and 2.
- Oda numaramız 42, ama otelde 60 oda var.Our room number is 42, but there are 60 rooms in the hotel.
- Derginin bu sayısı çok ilginç.This issue of the magazine is very interesting.
- Ayakkabı numaran kaç?What is your shoe size?
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Watch out
Do not decide by how many digits you see: oda sayısı counts rooms, while oda numarası identifies one room. A magazine issue is sayı: derginin bu sayısı. In everyday talk about amounts you may also hear rakam; the precise number–digit distinction here is the mathematical one.
Try it yourself
Complete the Turkish sentence about a class of 18 students: Öğrenci ___ 18. Choose sayısı or numarası.
Show answer or example answer
sayısı
sayısı: 18 counts all the students in the class. Öğrenci numarası would identify an individual student instead.
Let me give you my phone number so you can call me: Beni arayabilmen için telefon ___ vereyim. Choose sayımı or numaramı.
Show answer or example answer
numaramı
numaramı: you give the digits someone must dial, not a count of phones. This form means “my number” as the object of giving.
In mathematics, 58 is a number; 5 and 8 are each a digit: Matematikte 58 bir sayı; 5 ve 8 ise birer ___. Choose rakam or numara.
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rakam
rakam: 5 and 8 are being considered separately as the two symbols used to write 58, not as assigned labels.
The March issue of this magazine is out: Bu derginin mart ___ çıktı. Choose sayısı or rakamı.
Show answer or example answer
sayısı
sayısı: March identifies an issue of the magazine. Nothing here refers to a single written digit, so rakamı does not fit.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Complete the Turkish sentence about a class of 18 students: Öğrenci ___ 18. Choose sayısı or numarası.
Let me give you my phone number so you can call me: Beni arayabilmen için telefon ___ vereyim. Choose sayımı or numaramı.
In mathematics, 58 is a number; 5 and 8 are each a digit: Matematikte 58 bir sayı; 5 ve 8 ise birer ___. Choose rakam or numara.
The March issue of this magazine is out: Bu derginin mart ___ çıktı. Choose sayısı or rakamı.
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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Describe a hotel with 60 rooms and your room numbered 42. Write one sentence with sayı, one with numara, and one about the digits of 42 using rakam. Then follow the linked possessive-suffix lesson for the forms.