False Friends Between English and Turkish

Quick Answer: English-Turkish false friends are words that look alike but mean different things. The most common are actual (real, while Turkish aktüel means current), sympathetic (caring, while sempatik means likeable), magazine (dergi, while magazin means celebrity news) and realize (to understand, while realize etmek means to carry out).

Key takeaways

• Actual means real. For aktüel, say current or up to date.
• Sympathetic means caring about someone's problem. For sempatik, say likeable or nice.
• A magazine is a dergi. Magazin haberleri is celebrity news or gossip.
• Kontrol etmek usually means check, not control. Say check my homework.
• Kondisyon is fitness, kot is jeans, ajanda is a planner, and a Turkish tost is a toasted sandwich.

Many of these words came into Turkish from French, so their meaning drifted away from the English one. The table and examples below show the difference for each pair.

The most common false friends

English word	What it means in English	Turkish look-alike	What the Turkish word means
actual	real, true	aktüel	current, topical
sympathetic	caring, showing understanding	sempatik	likeable, friendly
magazine	a periodical, dergi	magazin	celebrity news
realize	understand, notice	realize etmek	carry out, make real
college	university or school for adults	kolej	private school
agenda	list of topics for a meeting	ajanda	planner, diary
cot	a baby bed or camp bed	kot	jeans, denim
toast	toasted bread	tost	toasted sandwich
passage	corridor or piece of text	pasaj	shopping arcade
condition	state or requirement	kondisyon	physical fitness
speaker	person speaking, or loudspeaker	spiker	news presenter
jelly	a sweet food	jöle	hair gel or jelly
costume	special clothes for a play or party	kostüm	suit, outfit
campaign	organized effort, political campaign	kampanya	also a shop sale

Explanations with examples

Actual vs aktüel

English actual means real. Actually means in fact.

• The actual price was higher than the price online.
• Actually, I don't like coffee.

If you want to say something is current or topical, use current, latest or up to date.

• Wrong: This is an actual topic.
• Right: This is a current topic.

Sympathetic vs sempatik

In English, a sympathetic person shows care when you have a problem. If you mean someone is pleasant and easy to like, say likeable, nice or friendly.

• Wrong: Your brother is very sympathetic, everyone likes him.
• Right: Your brother is very likeable.
• Right: The doctor was very sympathetic when I told her about my problem.

Magazine vs magazin

A magazine is a publication like a fashion or science magazine, which is dergi in Turkish. Turkish magazin haberleri is celebrity news or gossip in English.

• I bought a cooking magazine.
• She loves reading celebrity gossip.

Realize vs realize etmek

In English, realize means to understand or become aware of something suddenly.

• I realized I had left my phone at home.

If you mean to carry out a plan, use carry out, complete or achieve.

• Wrong: We realized the project last year.
• Right: We completed the project last year.

College vs kolej

In Turkey, a kolej is often a private school. In American English, college usually means university. In British English, a college can be a place for students over 16 or part of a university.

Agenda vs ajanda

An agenda is a list of topics for a meeting. A Turkish ajanda is a planner or diary in English.

• What's on the agenda for today's meeting?
• I wrote the date in my planner.

Cot vs kot

This one surprises many learners. A cot in British English is a baby's bed, and in American English it is a narrow camp bed. Kot pantolon is jeans in English.

Toast vs tost

In English, toast is just toasted bread. A Turkish tost is usually a toasted sandwich or a grilled cheese sandwich.

Condition vs kondisyon

English condition means state, as in the car is in good condition, or a requirement, as in terms and conditions. Turkish kondisyon is fitness.

• Wrong: I play football to improve my condition.
• Right: I play football to improve my fitness.

Speaker vs spiker

A speaker is anyone who speaks, or a device that plays sound. A TV spiker is a newsreader, news anchor or presenter.

Words that are partly false friends

Some words share one meaning but not all of them.

• Control: In Turkish, kontrol etmek often means check. In English, control means to have power over something. Say Can you check my homework, not control my homework.
• Eventually: Learners sometimes use it to mean possibly. It means in the end. If you mean possibly, say possibly or perhaps.
• Pension: In English, a pension is money you receive after you retire. A pansiyon is a guesthouse or bed and breakfast.
• Discount: This is fine, but a Turkish shop's kampanya might be a sale or special offer in English.

Practice quiz

Choose the best English word.

1. I need to (control / check) my email.
2. She is very (sympathetic / likeable), everyone wants to be her friend.
3. I read an interesting article in a science (magazine / magazin).
4. Swimming is great for your (condition / fitness).
5. I suddenly (realized / carried out) that I was late.
6. Let's discuss this at the next meeting. Please add it to the (agenda / planner).

Answers: 1 check, 2 likeable, 3 magazine, 4 fitness, 5 realized, 6 agenda.

How to protect yourself from false friends

• When a word looks familiar, check it in an English learner's dictionary.
• Learn words in full sentences, not as single translations. Our guide to the best way to learn English vocabulary shows how.
• Keep a personal list of false friends and review it weekly.
• Read our wider list of English mistakes Turkish speakers make.

To build vocabulary with real example sentences, explore the LearnLingo vocabulary guides.

People Also Ask

What are false friends in language learning?

False friends are words in two languages that look or sound similar but have different meanings. They cause mistakes because learners assume the meaning is the same.

Does actual mean aktüel?

No. In English, actual means real or true. The Turkish aktüel means current or topical, which is closer to English current or up to date.

Is magazine the same as magazin in Turkish?

Not exactly. English magazine is any periodical publication, which is dergi in Turkish. Turkish magazin usually refers to celebrity news, which English calls gossip or celebrity news.

How can I avoid false friends?

Learn new words in full example sentences and check a learner's dictionary when a word looks familiar. Be most careful with words borrowed from French, which Turkish and English often use differently.

Related Reading

• English Mistakes Turkish Speakers Make
• Learning English as a Turkish Speaker
• The Best Way to Learn English Vocabulary
• 25 Common English Mistakes and How to Fix Them