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The Plain English Meanings of Turkish Idioms 'E' Related Pages: The Turkish Idioms A-Z, Index The Idiomatic M-Doublets Idioms Origin Stories, Index Idioms Illustrated by Cartoons #1 We know you've seen reference books written for English speakers about English and American Idioms. And you may have seen books for Turkish speakers on the same subject. You may even have seen books for Turkish speakers about Turkish Idioms -- all in Turkish. But have you ever seen a reference for English speakers about Turkish Idioms? Well, when we couldn't find one after looking for seven years, we decided to do-it-ourselves. Observe our sampling just for Turkish idioms that begin with the letter E. Site visitors may navigate to other Turkish Idioms pages using the House-Favorite Idioms Page Index. Turkish Idioms beginning with the letter E The Turkish The Literal English Meaning The 'Plain' English Meaning Comments and Examples Ec   ecel teri dökmek to sweat one's appointed time to die to fear for one's life 316 yolcu havada ecel terleri döktü. 316 (airline) passengers feared for their lives in mid-air. A headline from Gözcü Gazetesi, 5 August 2003 eciş bücüş ... ... (Neither word has meaning except in this phrase.) out of shape, crooked, distorted, ruined, ugly See Category 3 and 7, Turkish doublets. Ed   eden bulmak/çekmek See also ettiğini bulmak. to find/pull what one does/did to get one's just desserts Sen bilmez misin ki, eden bulur. Don't you know one gets his just desserts? The Illustrated Story of Barbarossa -- book 3, plate 46 Ef   efendim Also seen/heard as efenim -- in special situations. my master efendim has multiple Plain English uses/meanings See complete definition and explanation on the Tips on Turkish page. Eğ   eğilip bükülmek to be bent and to be twisted to fidget, squirm to fawn See Category 1 and 8, Turkish doublets. Ek   ekmeğine yağ sürmek to drive oil to bread to help (sb) inadvertently Yerel Yönetimler Yasısı PKK'nın ekmeğine yağ sürecek! Newspaper Headline...The 'Local Government Law' will inadvertently help the PKK! Gözcü Gazetesi, 16 January 2004 ekmeğini taştan çıkarmak to remove (extract) bread from stone to make a living the hard way, to struggle to make a living Çok çalıştı, ekmeğini taştan çıkardı. She worked hard and made her living the hard way. eksik olma don't be missing (something) Thank you! Frequently used in polite conversation instead of teşekkür ederim or sağ ol. El   el ayak hand foot has many situational meanings, see examples in right panel... El ayak çekilince bekçi düdüğü duyuldu. When no one's around, the watchman blows his whistle. eli ayağı bağlı not free to act as you want, having your hands tied eli ayağı buz kesilmek to be extremely cold el bebek (gül bebek) hand baby (rose baby) to treat someone with great respect and honor coddled, petted, spoiled See Category 1 and 9, Turkish doublets. el çabukluğu ile with hand fastness to do a trick with such speed that it goes unnoticed, to finish a job very quickly Yankesici, el çabukluğuyla adamın cüzdanını aşırmış. The pickpocket speedily made off with the man's wallet. el çekmek to pull a hand to withdraw from, relinquish, give up See example sentence at: haline gelmek. ele geçir(il)mek to pass (sb/sth) through a hand to catch, capture to get, get hold of to take possession of Libyalı Tarehanad Elhaddad'ın bagajında yapılan aramada, 8 ayrı külçe halinde tam 30 kilogram altın ele geçirildi. In the search [the police] made of Libyan-citizen Tarehanad Elhaddad's luggage, they took possession of 30 kilograms of gold in 8 separate bars. Gözcü Gazetesi, 18 July 2003 Also see example sentence at sona erdirmek. el ele vermek Note: This not the same as: ele vermek. for hand to give hand to join forces, cooperate El ele verince her işi kolayca başarırız; birlikten kuvvet doğar. When you cooperate you succeed at every job easily, strength is born from unity. El ele verip kızcağızı süsleyip püsledik. We joined forces and dolled up our dear daughter [so that she was] 'fit to kill'! el kesesinden sultanım, develer olsun kurbanım I am the sultan taking from the money-bags [of others], so let camels be the sacrifice. Note: In Ottoman times, the bigger the sacrificial animal the more 'tax' money the sultan could collect. I'm someone who spends other people's money to live an ostentatious life. Parası yok, onuru yok; el kesesinden sultanım, develer olsun kurbanım, diyor. He doesn't have any money or honor. He says that he likes living ostentatiously -- off other people's money. -a/-e el koymak for the hand to be put to take over the investigation (of an unlawful act) to confiscate; to sequester Uzan ailesinin bazı üyeleri hakkında yakalama emri çıkarılmasından sonra, ailenin malvarlığına yönelik operasyonlar da sürüyor. Dün Uzan Ailesi'nin iki lüks yatına el koydu. After the siezure order was made regarding certain members of the Uzan Family, operations are continuing to be directed toward the family's assets. Yesterday two of the Uzan Family's luxury yachts were confiscated. Gözcü Gazetesi, 23 August 2003 el sikiyle/yarağıyla gerdeğe girmek [Be careful with whom you use this, as it is an Off-Color Idiom] [for a man] to enter the wedding boudoir with a borrowed penis to set up an enterprise with another person's money to be arrogant in the use of someone else's money, success, home job, etc. the idiom refers to a man who is likely to fail, because he depends too much on the help of others Elin sikiyle gerdeğe girersen böyle olursun işte. If you depend too much on the help of others, you'll end up like that [a failure], you see... el sürmemek to not hand drive not to touch not to do; not to lift a finger (to do sth) to show no interest in (sth) See example sentence at: kılını (bile) kıpırdatmamak. el üstünde tutulmak to be held on top of the hand to be treated with great respect, honor, admiration to be very 'popular' Ayyıldız'ın 2003 mayo koleksiyonu için objektif karşısına geçen Brezilyalı manken Bruna Magagna, ülkesinde el üstünde tutuluyor. Brazilian model Bruna Magagna who posed for the 2003 Ayyıldız [brand] swimsuit collection is very popular in her country. Gözcü Gazetesi, 26 August 2003 elde etmek to do/make in hand to get to win sb over; to get sb to one's own side Piknik yerlerinde devriye gezen jandarma ekipleri ateş yakanları uyarmalar- ına rağmen bir sonuç elde edemedi. In spite of the warnings of the Turkish Gendarme teams (who stroll around the picnic grounds) to picnickers who burn fires, no one pays attention (...they don't get a result). Gözcü Gazetesi, 29 July 2003 See another example sentence at: turnayı gözünden vurmak. [-ın/-in] elde/elinde kalmak to remain in [the] hand to be at the mercy of (sb) to be under the control of (sb) (for sth) to remain unsold Çapsız politikacılar elinde kaldık! We were at the mercy of maladroit politicians! Click following to learn the story behind this headline, which appeared in Gözcü Gazetesi, 16 Aug 2005. [-ı/-i] elden bırakmak to leave from hand to give up (sth) Ancak Bush itidali elden bırakmayarak, "Saddam'ın yakalanması şiddetin sonu demek değildir.' şeklinde konuştu. But [President] Bush (in a tone of moderation [not giving up moderation]) said, "Saddam's capture does not mean the end of violence." Zaman Gazetesi, 15 December 2003 elden çıkmak to go out from hand to go out of one's possession to be out of one's hands (control) to be out of one's power (to control) See example sentence at: haline gelmek. elden gelmek to come from hand to be within one's capabilities See example sentence at: -diğince. ele avuca sığmaz he/she/it doesn't fit to palm to hand out of control, uncontrollable, very mischievious, wayward Türkan Şoray, ele avuca sığmayan kızını artık serbest bıraktı! From now on, Türkan Şoray (a former Turkish beauty queen and now Turkey's grande dame of film and TV) has set her wayward daughter free! Gözcü Gazetesi, 30 July 2003 ele vermek Note: this is not the same as: el ele vermek. to give to hand to inform on (sb); to tell on (sb) Yükledikten sonra bu yazılım kendisini farkettirmeden çalışıp, gizlice chat ve e-mail kayıtlarını belleğinde tutuyor ve çapkını kısa sürede ele veriyor. After this software is installed, it works by itself in the background, capturing secret e-chat and e-mail entries in its memory, and in a short while it informs on the womanizing 'Casanova'. Gözcü Gazetesi, 4 August 2003 elekten geçirmek to pass through a fine sieve to sift, to examine very closely, minutely İstedi ki denizi elekten geçirip onu bulsunlar. He wanted that they examine the sea minutely and that they find him. The Illustrated Story of Barbarossa -- book 1, plate 31 eli açık [also eli bol] open hand [plentiful hand] generous Bu senin kardeşin çok eli açık birisi, neyi var neyi yoksa veriyor. This your brother is a very generous person, whatever he has he shares (gives). eli boş empty hand empty handed, penniless, broke Hırsızlar cüzdanını çaldıktan sonra eve eli boş döndü. After thieves stole his wallet, he returned home empty handed. eli çabuk fast hand fast (worker), efficient eli çabuk olanlar ones with fast hands... Coming soon, The Rest of the Idiom Story... [e/a] eli değmek (ermek, erişmek) to touch (attain, reach) the hand to find the time to do (sth) Sitem etmekte haklısınız, bir elim değip de uğrayamadım. You are right in reproaching [me], I wasn't able to find time to stop by [to see you]. eli kulağında in the ear's hand within an ace of, on the brink of, on the verge of, about to happen, just around the corner Havaya baktı, "Eli kulağında, belki bu gece kar yağar', dedi.100 He looked at the sky and said, "We're perhaps on the verge of a snow storm tonight." eli sıkı tight hand to be stingy, niggardly   [-ın/-in] elinde kalmak See elde/elinde kalmak.     elinden gelmek to come from the hand to be able to do Elinden geldiğince herkese iyilik eder; yardımını esirgemez. He'll try when he can to do a favor for anybody; he doesn't withhold his help. Ali Uslu elinden geleni yapmak to make the coming from one's hand to do the best one can do, do one's level best, do all one can do Ben McGewen, kardeşinin intikamını almak için elinden geleni yapmaya niyetlidir. Ben McGewen is someone who intends to do everthing he can in order to avenge his brother. From a synopsis of the film 'Stark Raving Mad' -- which appeared in DigiTurk Magazine, February 2005 Elimden geleni yapacağım. I'll do the best I can. elinden tutmak to hold from one's hand to own, possess to hold in reserve   eline su (bile) dökemez he/she can't (even) pour water to his/her hand he/she is much inferior to sb; he/she can't hold a candle to sb Tavlada kimse babamın eline su dökemez.116 My father is very expert at playing backgammon (no one can pour water to my father's hand). O senin eline su bile dökemez.105 She can't hold a candle to you (she can't even pour water to your hand). Bobby kay kayda Jimmy'nin eline su dökemez.103 Jimmy is a far better skate-boarder than Bobby. (Bobby can't pour water to Jimmy's hand, at skate-boarding). See a newspaper example at: gününü gün etmek. elinin hamuruyle/hamuruyla erkek işlerine karışmak Note: this 'politically incorrect' sexist idiom is only used for women, normally. to mix in man's works with hand's dough for a woman to try to do a man's job (which is believed to be beyond her capability or skill) 'Elinin hamuruyla erkek işine karışma' sözü artık tarih oldu. Büyük şehirlerde erkek rakipleriyle yarışan kadınlar işçiler aç kalmamak için inşaatlarda harç, boya, kalıp işi yapıyor. The words, "Don't mix in men's work" will have to be relegated to history from now on. [Turkish] women workers (who compete with their male rivals in the big cities) are plastering, painting, and pouring molds at construction sites in order to avoid being hungry and poor. Adapted from an article in Gözcü Gazetesi, 8 September 2003 Musluğu ben tamir ederim, sen neden uğraşıyorsun? Elinin hamuruyla erkek işine karışma! 102 I'll repair the faucet/tap, why are you struggling with it? Don't try to do a man's job! En   engel çıkarmak (Note how the literal and plain-English meanings of this two-word idiom are the opposite of what one might think, upon first encountering it.) to remove barrier, difficulty to raise or create difficulties, barriers, or problems Also see güçlük çıkarmak and işi yokuşa sürmek. Er   er geç early late one of these days, when it will be Er geç bir ev alacağım. One of these days I'll buy a house. Es   eski çamlar bardak oldu old pines became drinking glass Times have changed. Things aren't what they used to be. Artık birbirimizle anlaşamıyoruz, eski çamlar bardak oldu.102 We don't agree with each other anymore, things aren't what they used to be. eski hamam eski tas old Turkish bath, old metal bowl Nothing has changed; it's business as usual. History repeats itself; there's nothing new under the sun. It's the same ol' same ol'. Bizim büro eski hamam, eski tas. Şube müdürü değişti, ama yönetim sistemi yine aynı.102 Nothing has changed at our office, it's business as usual. The branch manager was replaced, but the management system is still the same. eski püskü old ... rather old; old and battered looking; shabby See Category 2 and 9, Turkish doublets. eski toprak old earth a healthy, well preserved older person a 'good old son-of-a-gun!' Ey oğul! Biz eski toprağız ölünceye kadar çalışırız. Hey sonny boy. We're old (well persevered) guys, we'll work until we die. The Illustrated Story of Barbarossa -- book 1, plate 6 estağfurullah don't mention it; don't say so; not at all estağfurullah has multiple Plain English uses/meanings See complete definition and explanation on the Tips on Turkish page. Eş   eş dost mate friend friends and acquaintances See example sentence at olsa olsa. eşek sudan gelinceye kadar dövmek to beat until the donkey comes from the water to beat the hell out of sb; to tan sb's hide; to beat sb to a pulp; to give sb a good thrashing Dükkan sahipleri hırsızlık yapan çocuğu eşek sudan gelinceye kadar dövdüler. The store owners beat the hell out of the thieving kid. Et   ettiğini bulmak/çekmek See also eden bulmak. to find/pull what one does/did to get one's just desserts See example sentence at eden bulmak. etekleri zil çalmak for skirts to ring bell(s) to be overjoyed (about sth); to be extremely glad/happy/pleased (about sth) Ağabeyim askerden dönünce annemin etekleri zil çaldı.100 When my big brother returned from doing his military service my mother was overjoyed (my mother's skirts rang bells). Şanghay'a gideceği için etekleri zil çalıyor.109 He/she is extremely happy because he/she is going to Shanghai (his/her skirts rang bells). Related Pages: The Turkish Idioms A-Z, Index The Idiomatic M-Doublets Idioms Origin Stories, Index Idioms Illustrated by Cartoons #1 Unrelated fun: Zerrin Egeliler - (most of) everything you always wanted to know Tarkan's Metamorphosis Album -- Christmas Day Release Turkish Music -- Tarkan Real-Life Weight Loss a la turc (with booklet) Habibullah and the Great Cannon Caper A simple Turkish 'thing'... Turkish Music -- Kayahan Turkish Belly Dancers Turkish Food and Beverage Turkish Terms Of Endearment Turkish Personal Names Politically Incorrect Turkish Humor Off-Color Turkish Gossipy Turkish Who's Who Turkish Conventional and 'Erotik' Movies, Index We wish to extend thanks to Emin Özdemir, Osman Çizmeciler, Ömer Asım Aksoy, H. Fethi Gözler, Ferit Devellioğlu, Nermin and Muammer Yüzbaşıoğlu, Halil Uysal, Ali Püsküllüoğlu, and Ali Uslu for their Turkish Idioms source material -- on which some of this page is based.

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