Asking how someone is (Nasılsın?)

The idea

To ask how someone is, put the person ending on nasıl (how): nasılsın for a friend, a relative or a child, nasılsınız for someone older, someone you have just met, or several people. To answer, add the ending for ben to an adjective: iyiyim, yorgunum, üzgünüm. The ending has four vowel shapes (-ım -im -um -üm) chosen by the last vowel, and after a vowel a y comes first: iyiyim, hastayım.

Examples

• Bugün nasılsın, Ayşe?How are you today, Ayşe?Nasılsın is the informal question, for a friend, a relative or a child. The word sen (you) is understood, so it is left out.
• Teşekkürler, ben iyiyim.Thanks, I'm fine.İyiyim is iyi (good) plus the ending for ben (I), with a y between the two vowels. Ben can be left out: Teşekkürler, iyiyim.
• Nasılsınız, Fatma Hanım?How are you, Fatma Hanım?Nasılsınız is the polite question to one person who is older or new to you, and also the plural question. Hanım (Mrs) follows the first name; for a man it is Bey.
• Ben de iyiyim, sen nasılsın?I'm fine too, how are you?De (also, too) is a separate word and is not joined to ben. After a back vowel it becomes da: Murat da.
• Biraz yorgunum ama iyiyim.I'm a bit tired, but I'm fine.
• Annem hasta, ben de üzgünüm.My mother is ill, and I am sad too.With annem (my mother) the adjective stands alone: hasta, with no ending. Only ben gets one here: üzgünüm.
• iyiyimI am fineiyi·yim-im / -sin / -iz / -siniz: I am, you are, we are
• hastayımI am illhasta·yım-im / -sin / -iz / -siniz: I am, you are, we are
• yorgunumI am tiredyorgun·um-im / -sin / -iz / -siniz: I am, you are, we are
• nasılsınızhow are you (polite)nasıl·sınız-im / -sin / -iz / -siniz: I am, you are, we are

Watch out

Do not leave out the y after a vowel: iyim and hastaım are wrong, the forms are iyiyim and hastayım. And do not use nasılsın with a stranger just because it is the first form you learnt: with someone older, say nasılsınız and add Bey (Mr) or Hanım (Mrs) after the first name.

Try it yourself

1. Say 'I am fine': add the ending for ben to iyi (good).

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   iyiyim

   iyiyim: iyi ends in a vowel, so a y comes before the ending, and the vowel i gives -im.

2. Say 'I am ill': add the ending for ben to hasta (ill).

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   hastayım

   hastayım: hasta ends in the vowel a, so the ending is -yım, with ı because a is a back vowel.

3. Say 'I am tired': add the ending for ben to yorgun (tired).

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   yorgunum

   yorgunum: yorgun ends in the consonant n, so no y is needed, and the last vowel u gives -um.

4. Ask Mehmet Bey, an older man you have just met, how he is.

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   nasılsınız

   nasılsınız: Mehmet Bey is older and new to you, so you use the polite form with -sınız.

Use it today

Write a short exchange between you and a friend, and a second one between you and an older neighbour. Check the ending of each reply.