If Mandarin phrases such as 七本书 (seven books) are familiar, use them as a comparison. Reading Simplified Chinese does not mean Mandarin is your first language; the Turkish examples also work on their own.
The idea
In ordinary counting, Turkish puts the number before a noun without a plural suffix: yedi kitap. There is no required equivalent of 本 here. When buying books, yedi tane kitap is also possible: tane counts individual items. To explicitly name several books without a number, use kitaplar, as in Bu rafta kitaplar var. This lesson applies the contrast; the linked plural lesson explains the suffix forms.
Examples
- Bugün yedi kitap alıyorum.I am buying seven books today.
- Sepette dört elma var.There are four apples in the basket.
- Şimdi iki bardak su istiyorum.I want two glasses of water now.
- Bu rafta kitaplar var.There are books on this shelf.
- Kutuda beş tane kalem var.There are five pens in the box.
- Kalemler bugün çok ucuz.The pens are very cheap today.
- Sürahide üç bardak su var.There are three glassfuls of water in the jug.
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Watch out
Do not turn every Chinese measure word into tane. In iki bardak su, bardak names the measure: a glassful. A café order such as iki su may rely on an understood serving, but does not specify glasses. Adding tane also does not license a plural suffix after the number.
Try it yourself
Write “seven books” without tane.
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yedi kitap
yedi kitap: yedi supplies the exact count. The noun stays in its unmarked form even though seven books are meant; no word corresponding to 本 is required.
You want to buy five pens. Write the noun phrase; tane is optional here.
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beş kalem / beş tane kalem
beş kalem / beş tane kalem: both can name the five pens you want to buy. The longer version counts them as individual items; neither makes kalem plural.
Complete with the plural of kitap: there are books on this shelf, with no exact count.
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kitaplar
kitaplar: the sentence presents several books without counting them. The last vowel in kitap is a, so this plural takes -lar.
Choose the word that explicitly means two glasses of water, not an unspecified serving.
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bardak
bardak: the requested amount is two glassfuls. tane alone would count context-dependent servings without telling us they are glasses.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Write “seven books” without tane.
You want to buy five pens. Write the noun phrase; tane is optional here.
beş kalem / beş tane kalem
Complete with the plural of kitap: there are books on this shelf, with no exact count.
Choose the word that explicitly means two glasses of water, not an unspecified serving.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Keep your progress
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Describe a shelf with a number, then with a plural and no number. Add a request for water that names its container. Compare your choices with the linked numbers and plural lessons.