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The Plain English Meanings of Turkish Idioms 'Z' Related Pages: The Turkish Idioms A-Z, Index Turkish Acronyms/Abbreviations The Idiomatic M-Doublets Idioms Origin Stories, Index Idioms Illustrated by Cartoons #1 Fearful that we might never finish a complete on-line book of The A to Z(ed) Meanings of Turkish Idioms in our lifetime (yikes, that's a lot of HTML code, folks!) we decided to cheat... and skip to the back of the pack. But we'll continue to add samplings from our print-edition for each of the letter groups, as time permits... I'm disappointed, Mabel. I was preparing to commit the whole damn thing to memory. You had that look in yer eye, Marv... Site visitors may navigate to other Turkish Idioms pages using the House-Favorite Idioms Page Index. Turkish Idioms beginning with the letter Z The Turkish The Literal English Meaning The 'Plain' English Meaning Comments and Examples Za zam gelmek (for a) price increase to occur (for a) price increase to occur... Note: Due to the high rate of Turkish inflation, price increases (in Turkish Lira) are a common occurrence on whole categories of products such as: drugs, oil and gasoline, and imported products of all kinds - any thing 'pegged' to the US Dollar or the Euro. Update 2003: reduced inflation this year has moderated some (though certainly not all) Turkish Lira price increases. for a salary increase to be earned Ekmeğe zam geldi! There's been an increase in the price of bread! zaman bırakmak to leave time to set time aside (for sb/sth) Konuşmaya zaman bıraksaydın seni suçlamadığımı görürdün. If you'd given me time to speak, you'd have seen that I didn't accuse you. zaman kazanmak (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) to earn time to save time, to gain time Kısa yoldan giderek zaman kazanabiliriz. (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) We can save time by going the shorter way. zaman kollamak to watch out for time to be on the lookout for a suitable opportunity, to bide one's time. Zaman kollayıp uygun ortamın doğmasını bekleyeceksin. You should bide your time and wait for a better opportunity (...for the birth of a convenient environment). zaman öldürmek Also see vakit öldürmek. to kill time to spend time on inconsequential things Seni bilmem ama benim zaman öldürecek durumum yok. I don't know about you, but I'm in no position to just kill time. Benimkisi zaman öldürmek, iş değil. This isn't work, I'm killing time. (birisine) zaman vermek to give time to set time aside for someone (for some purpose). Eğer zaman verirseniz başaracaktır. He'll succeed if you'll give him time. Sana burayı terketmen için bir dakikalık zaman veriyorum! I'm giving you one minute's time to get outta here! zaman zaman (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) time time from time to time, occasionally Ünlü İnternet sitesi DeansPlanet zaman zaman düzenlediği ilginç anketler ve yayınladığı fotoğraflarla ilgi çekiyor. Famous Internet website DeansPlanet attracts attention with the photos that it publishes and the interesting polls that it arranges from time to time. Gözcü Gazetesi, 11 September 2003 Bize gelir zaman zaman, eski günleri anarız. (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) He visits us now and then, we remind him of the old days. zamanı geçmek to pass time to be out of date, be outmoded (for something) to expire, become void (due to time passage) (for a fruit of vegetable) to no longer be in season. Bu ilacı kullanmamalısın. Zamanı geçmiş. You mustn't use this medicine. It has expired. (The expiry date has passed.) zamanlı zamansız with time without time (doing something) without considering whether it's suitable Zamanlı zamansız bana uğrar. He drops into see me, any old time he feels like it. zamkinos etmek/ çekmek (This idiom is quite colloquial -- not often seen.) to do/pull a 'thing-a-ma-jig'/ 'whatcha-ma-call-it' slang -- to run away, beat it, make tracks Adam polisi görünce zamkinos etti. When the man saw the police, he ran away. zamzum etmek (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) to hem and haw, stammer to talk nonsense same meaning Zam zum etmeyi bırak da doğruyu söyle. (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) Stop talking nonsense and tell the truth. zan altında bulmak/bırakmak to find/be left under supposition to be under suspicion Televizyonda adımı o hırsızın adıyla birlikte andınız ve beni zan altında bıraktınız. You mentioned my name together with that thief's name and you left me under suspicion. Sözlerinizden dolayı zan altındayım. I am under suspicion because of what (the things) you said. zangır zangır (titremek) (shaking) with a rattle, rattling violently, (sb's) shaking/trembling same meaning Zavallı kız! Kocaman köpeği aniden bahçede gördü ve şimdi korkudan zangır zangır titriyor. Poor girl! She saw the huge dog in the garden suddenly and she is trembling violently with fear now. zapartaya yemek (Rarely used.) to get a dressing down be scolded same meaning   zar atmak to throw membrane, to throw a die to gamble   zar zor unwillingly, reluctantly with difficulty, forcibly, at the last minute same Otobüse zar zor yetiştik. We made the bus (departure) with difficulty (at the last minute). zarar etmek to do damage to lose money make a wrong move to damage, injure, harm Şirket zarar ediyor. The company is losing money. zarar gelmek (for) damage to come (for someone) to suffer at the hands of, to be wronged by, to be treated unjustly Ayşe iyi kızdır. Ondan zarar gelmez. Ayşe's a nice girl. She's not out to get anyone. (Damage will not come from Ayşe.) zarar görmek to see damage to be damaged/injured/harmed by (something or someone) to suffer loss Ev depremden zarar gördü. The house was damaged by the earthquake. zarar vermek to give damage to damage, injure, harm Fırtına bahçedeki ağaçlara zarar verdi. The storm damaged the trees in the garden. zarara sokmak to cause (someone or place of business) to suffer loss/damage same meaning Oğlum arabamla kaza yaptı ve beni pek çok zarara soktu. My son had an accident with my car and cost me a 'bundle'. zararı dokunmak (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) to be touched by harm/damage to harm, be harmful to, have a harmful effect on Bize yardım etmek için gelmişti ama, maalesef, çok zararı dokundu. (Speaker from Turkey's southeast) He had come here to help us but, unfortunately, he harmed us a lot. Zararı yok. There is no damage. It doesn't matter. Never mind. That's OK. Forget it. Ayşe: Ay! Çok özür dilerim. Dondurmayı kağıdın üstüne düşürdüm. Ali: Zararı yok. Başka bir kağıt kullanırım. Ayşe: Oh! I am very sorry. I've dropped the ice-cream on your paper. Ali: Never mind. I'll use another piece (of paper). zararına satmak to sell to damage to sell (something) at a loss İş değişikliği nedeniyle bütün malları zararına sattılar. Because of the change in business, they sold all the goods at a loss. zararlı çıkmak to go out with damage to come out a loser Benimle uğraşmayı bırak! Yoksa zararlı çıkacaksın. Stop picking on me! Or else you'll be sorry. (Or else you'll come out a loser.) zart zurt etmek to make bluster to bluster Bırak bu zart zurt etmeyi, biz senin kim olduğunu bilmiyor muyuz? Leave off with that blustering, don't you think we know who you are? zarta atmak This is an off-color idiom. to throw fart, poop to praise yourself in an exaggerated manner to speak haughtily to fart, poop, break wind Durmadan orda burda zarta atar durur ama korkağın biridir. He shows off continuously around these parts, but (in fact) he's a coward. zartayı çekmek This is an off-color idiom. to pull fart/poop to fart, poop, break wind coll. -- to die, kick the bucket Bela biriydi ama sonunda zartayı çekti. He was an evil one but he finally 'kicked the bucket'. zat işleri Also seen as özlük işleri. person works matters pertaining to personnel   zatı eşya person things personal effects Zatı eşyanı bekleme odasında bırakma. Don't leave your personal effects in the waiting room. zayıf almak to take weak for a student to get a failing grade Sınavdan önce daha sıkı çalışsaydın zayıf almazdın. You wouldn't have gotten such a lousy grade if you had studied harder before the exam. zayıf düşmek to fall weak to lose weight, get thin to get weak Zavallı çocuk! Hastalıktan zayıf düştü. Poor child! He's been left weak by the disease. zayıf nahif weak gaunt frail and thin Kapıyı açınca karşımda zayıf nahif bir çocuk gördüm. When I opened the door, I saw a child, frail and thin, in front of me. Ze zehabına kapılmak to be snatched to the mistaken belief to get the mistaken impression (that) Fadime'nin Ercan'ı sevdiği zehabına kapıldı. He got the mistaken idea that Fadime loved Ercan. zehir gibi like poison very hot (spicy) very bitter sharp, biting very clever extremely "cool" or "hip" Üff! Bu biber zehir gibi. Onu nasıl yiyebiliyorsun?!!! Uggh! This pepper is like poison (too spicy hot). How can you eat it?!!! Maşallah, zehir gibi çocuk. Eminim çok başarılı olacak. May God preserve him from evil, he is a very clever child. I am sure he will be very successful. (Click here to see where we've addressed the Maşallah 'requirement' (for children) before...) zehir zemberek (also zehir zakkum, zehir zıkkım) poison mainspring very hurtful (words) deep and rueful (sigh) very bitter (tears) O akşam geç kalmıştı, babası öfkelenmiş, zehir zemberek sözler söylemişti ona. That evening he came home late, his father was angry and said some very hurtful words to him. Zehir zıkkım olsun! Let it be poison poison [sic]! May he/she/it/you choke to death on it! Beni bırakıp gitti. Onun için yaptığım kekler zehir zıkkım olsun! He left me and went away. May he choke to death on the cakes I made for him! zembereği boşalmak for the mainspring to be emptied to be seized by a fit of laughter Beni çamurun içinde görünce zembereği boşaldı. When he saw me in the mud, he was seized by a fit of laughter. zerre kadar until an atom the least little bit, the slightest degree Benim ona zerre kadar güvenim yoktur, babasını bile aldatır. I don't trust her the least little bit, she even cheats her father. zeval vermek to give decline to harm, destroy Usually seen in sentences like: Allah devlete zeval vermesin. May god not allow the state to be destroyed. zevale yüz tutmak for the face to hold to the decline to begin to decline İmparatorluğun zevale yüz tuttuğu açıkça görülüyordu. It was obvious (clearly seen) that the empire had begun to decline. zevkine bakmak (also, keyfine bakmak) to look at pleasure to enjoy oneself Bütün o problemleri unut da zevkine bak. Forget your troubles and just be happy! (Forget about all those problems and enjoy yourself.) zevkine gitmek Note: hoşuna gitmek is used more frequently. to go to pleasure to give someone pleasure Gömlek hoşuma gitti. Onu satın alacağım. I like the shirt. I'll buy it. zevkine varmak to arrive to pleasure to discover pleasure (in a piece of music or art or other thing), to start to feel enjoyment (in something) Bu parçayı dinledikçe daha çok zevkine varıyordu şimdi... Now, each time he listens to the piece, he derives more pleasure [from it]. zevkini bozmak to break pleasure to spoil (someone's) pleasure or fun, to prevent someone from enjoying (something) properly. Defol git! Zevkimizi bozma. Get out and don't spoil our fun. zevkini çıkarmak to extract pleasure to enjoy (sth) to the hilt Sabahları erkenden kalkıyor, çevrede dolaşmaya çıkıyordu. Doğadaki dinginliğin, canlılığın zevkini çıkarıyordu bir başına. He would get up early in the morning and go out in the environment and wander about. And by himself, he'd get tremendous pleasure from the vigor and the passivity of nature. zevkini okşamak to caress pleasure to give someone pleasure Bu müzik her zaman zevkimi okşamıştır. This music has always given me pleasure. zevkten dört köşe olmak to have/be four corners from enjoyment to jump for joy, be overjoyed, be very happy Babası, ağabeyisine kızdıkça evin küçüğü zevkten dört köşe oluyordu. The little one of the house was overjoyed each time his father got angry with his older brother. Click here for the Rest of the Idiom Story! zeytinyağı gibi [üste] (suyun yüzüne) çıkmak to come out [in addition] like olive oil, to emerge (to the water's face) like olive oil (for a guilty person) to outwit accusers and come out smelling like a rose Her seferinde aynı şey, suçu kendi işler, kolayca kardeşinin üstüne yıkıp zeytinyağı gibi üste çıkardı. It's the same thing every time, he's the guilty one, but he dumps it on his brother and comes out smelling like a rose. zıddına basmak Also see zıt gitmek. to press opposite to do exactly the opposite of what others want you do Note: "zıddına basmak" is rarely used. "zıt gitmek" has the same meaning and is used more frequently. zıddına gitmek Also see zıt gitmek. to go opposite (for something) to rile someone, to be too much (for someone) to take   zınk diye (stopping) with a sudden, noisy jolt; with a jolt same meaning Zınk diye durdu. He stopped with a sudden jolt. zıp diye Similar to: pat diye; şıp diye. all of a sudden same meaning Adam zıp diye karşıma çıktı. All of a sudden, the guy appeared in front of me. zır zır Also seen as: zırzır. a sound that continues in an incessant, nerve-racking way in an extreme way; extremely in an incessant, nerve-racking way "Bu padişah oğlu zır deli, hatta zır zır deli."99 "This sultan's son is quite mad, even more... he's extremely crazy." zırıl zırıl ağlamak Also seen as: zır zır ağlamak to cry incessantly and unpleasantly to weep a flood of tears to cry like a baby Bütün gün zır zır ağlamaktan başka bir şey yapmadın. Besides incessantly weeping all day, you haven't done anything. Zır zır ağlamayı bırak da git bir sonraki sınava daha iyi çalış. Stop crying like a baby and prepare yourself better for the next exam. zırıl zırıl terlemek to sweat 'zırıl zırıl' to sweat buckets Hava o kadar sıcak ki millet zırıl zırıl terliyor. The weather is so hot that people are sweating buckets. zırnık (bile) vermemek to not (even) give arsenic to not give (even) the smallest valueless thing (to someone) Siz onun söylediklerine kanmayın, o ne bana, ne de öteki yeğenine zırnık bile vermez; sözünü eder sadece. Don't be fooled by what he says, he doesn't give even the slightest little thing to me or his other nephew; he just talks. Zırva tevil götürmez. It doesn't take nonsense, willful mis-understanding/ interpretation. It's no use trying to make sense out of a statement that is nonsense. May be used as shown... zıt gitmek to go opposite to persist in doing the opposite of what others want you to do Müdürle sürekli zıt gidersen kovulursun. If you always disagree with the director, you'll be fired. zıvanadan çıkmak to go out of a short tube (called a 'zıvana') (for sb) to blow his stack, get in a towering rage, to go insane Bu kez de başarısız olursam, babam zıvanadan çıkar, bana yapmadığını bırakmaz. And if I don't succeed this time, my father will blow his top, he'll do everything in the book to me. Zi ziftlenmek to be caulked, to be pitched to stuff one's face with food (said scornfully) 'Ziftlenmek', yemek yemek anlamında, olumsuz yönde küfür yerine kullanılan argo bir deyimdir.115 'Ziftlenmek' is idiomatic slang that is used instead of a negative off-color term, to denote (excessive) eating. zihni açılmak (for) mental to be opened to feel mentally alert Geçen yıl böyle değildi, bu yıl zihni açıldı, sınıfın en iyi öğrencilerinden biri oldu. He wasn't like that last year, this year he became mentally alert, and he's become one of the best students in the class. zihni bulanmak for mental to become muddy to get confused, get muddled up Hep C vitamininin zararsız olduğunu düşünürdüm ama bilim adamlarının son açıklamaları zihnimi bulandırdı. I always thought vitamin C was harmless but recent statements of scientists have confused me. zihnini kurcalamak to try to pry open the mental (for something) to keep popping into one's mind; to think hard; try hard to remember or understand something Bu soru nice geceler zihnimi kurcalayıp durmuştu. This problem pops into my head so many nights and stays there. Zihni kurcalayan sorun, beni bütün gece uykusuz bıraktı. The problem that kept popping into his head, left him sleepless. zil gibi like a bell completely drunk, looped, soused Her gece içip eve zil gibi geliyorsun! You are drinking every night and coming home completely drunk. zil takıp oynamak to connect a bell and play to jump for joy, dance a jig Haber o kadar güzeldi ki zil takıp oynayacaktım neredeyse... The news was so good that I nearly jumped for joy... zilliği kırmak (a rarely used idiom...) to break the bell to be rescued from poverty to eat   zilsiz oynamak to play without a bell to jump for joy O kadar neşeli ki zilsiz oynuyor. She is so happy that she is jumping for joy. zilzurna sarhoş blind drunk, plowed, completely drunk same meaning Eve her cumartesi gecesi zilzurna sarhoş gelirdi. He used to come home plowed every Saturday night. -e/-a zincir vurmak -e/-a zincir vurulmak to hit a chain to be hit by a chain to be enslaved, to be put in chains Newspaper Headline: 1 Nisan'da basına zincir vuruluyor! As of 1 April the press will be muzzled! The headline was in reference to the new Turkish Punishment Statute (Türk Ceza Kanunu) -- effective 1 April 2005. In the eyes of the press, the new law is undemocratic. The press feels that the new law will curtail its ability to criticise governments in power. Gözcü Gazetesi, 21 February 2005 Zo zokaya gelmek/zokayı yutmak to swallow bait to fall for a trick, take the bait Adam zokayı yuttu. Sonu yakındır. The man has fallen for the trick. His end is nigh. Zokayı yutmayacak kadar akıllıyım. I'm smart enough not to take the bait. zokayı yutturmak to make someone swallow bait to get someone else to fall for a trick, take the bait Çok uğraştılar ama zokayı yutturamadılar. They tried hard but they couldn't make him fall for their scam. zom olmak to be exceedingly drunk same meaning Ben sen gibi değilim. Öyle iki bardak viskiyle zom olmam. I am not like you. I don't get that drunk on just two glasses of whiskey. zonk zonk used to intensify zonklamak (throb with pain) same Burnum zonk zonk zonkluyordu. My nose was throbbing like hell with pain. Zor alırsın/gidersin/yaparsın! You're going to have some trouble (doing that)! [often said tauntingly] same meaning Sen o parayı benden zor alırsın. It'll be difficult for you to get that money from me. (You are going to take that money from me with difficulty.) zor bela trouble calamity with great difficulty just barely Evi boyamayı zor bela bitirip hemen taşındı. He just barely finished painting the house and then moved in immediately. zor gelmek to come trouble (for something) to be difficult for (someone) Türkçe başlarda size biraz zor gelebilir ama farkına varınca düşündüğünüzden daha zordur! At first, you may find the Turkish language a little difficult -- but then you realize that it's harder than you thought! zor kullanmak to use trouble to use force Gerçeği söyletmek için zor kullanmak insanlıkla bağdaşır mıydı? Does humanity have to use force in order to speak the truth? zor zar See zar zor.       zora gelmemek to not come to worry to not be able to stand stress/pressure/difficulty Tembel herif! Hiç zora gelmezsin. Ancak domuzlar gibi yemeyi bilirsin. You lazy man! You can't stand any difficulty. But you sure know how to eat! (...eat like a pig!) zora koşmak to run to difficulty to make things difficult (for sb) Bizi zora koşmayın da yardımcı olun. Be a help and don't make things difficult for us. zoralıma çarpmak This idiom used infrequently. to hit seizure to confiscate, seize   Zorun ne? What is your difficulty/trouble? What's making you do...? Zorun ne ki beni öyle sorguya çekiyorsun? What's making you give me the third degree like this? zorunda bırakmak to leave in trouble to leave someone no choice but to do something Kızım beni elli milyon lira ödemek zorunda bıraktı. I had no choice but to pay my daughter the fifty million lira. (My daughter left me no choice...) zorunda (olmak) (to be) in trouble to have to to be obliged to a way of saying must Yarın erken kalkmak zorundayım. I must get up early tomorrow. zorunlu koşul obligatory condition sine qua non, an indispensable condition   Zu zula etmek to put/hide in a secret place, to give secretly, in an undercover way same meaning Sigara paketini bahçede bir yere zula ettim. Babam asla onu orada bulamaz. I secretly hid the packet of cigarettes somewhere in the garden. My father can never find it there. zulaya atmak to throw in a secret place to put/hide in a secret place Korkma. Parayı zulaya attım. Artık kimse bulamaz. Don't worry. I put the money in a secret place. No one can find it now. Zü züğürt (züğür) tesellisi penniless consolation an unimportant trifle that a person pretends is important in order to console himself about a major loss or failure Bakma sen, benim söylediklerim züğürt tesellisi, bunu ben de biliyorum. Don't look at me, the things I said are no more than a self-deceiving consolation, and I know it... Example of zügürt tesellisi Thanks to Mümtaz ARIKAN of Gözcu Gazetesi for this excellent illustrative example of the idiom above... Apri 3, 2000 Figurative traslation: The Sultan says: Every sunset brings me great sadness... His Chief Astrologer replies: Ahh, but you mustn't forget the romance that awaits you at night, my dear Sultan... The magical telescope interjects: The Sultan is distracting attention from his failures in the Harem (by complaining about his 'sundown sadness')... zülfü yare dokunmak to touch (the) beloved's tress (of hair) Note: One of our guest language consultants, DS adds, "This idiom is originally Persian or Arabic. 'Zülf-ü yar' or 'Zülf-i yar' meaning 'Hair of the loved/lover/fiancé/etc'. And if someone were to try to touch the hair of someone else's lover (i.e. make a sexual advance), then they'd be in big trouble!" to offend the powers that be, step on a bigwig's toes Zülfü yare dokunmak isteyen, sonucuna katlanmasını da bilmelidir. Anyone who wants to step on a bigwig's toes, must know how to endure the result. Zümrüdüanka gibi like Simurgh (a mythical bird of enormous size) wonderful (but imaginary) Söylediğin şey Zümrüdüanka gibi. Onu nasıl bulayım ki? The thing you have mentioned is wonderful, like Simurgh the mythical bird. How can I find it? Related Pages: The Turkish Idioms A-Z, Index Turkish Acronyms/Abbreviations The Idiomatic M-Doublets Idioms Origin Stories, Index Idioms Illustrated by Cartoons #1 Unrelated fun: Frequently asked questions about Turkey and the Turkish language Frequently asked questions about Turkey and the Turkish language 'Erotik' Movies -- The Short Unhappy Life of Mine Mutlu Deep-inside Dilber Ay Figen Han -- Fire down below... Arzu Okay -- brainy 'erotik' bombshell The Feri Cansel Story -- an erotik 'Beauty and the Beast' Zerrin Egeliler - (most of) everything you always wanted to know The Seyyal Taner Center The Seher Şeniz Center 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 Why Off-Color Turkish is important too Gossipy Turkish Who's Who Turkish Conventional and 'Erotik' Movies, Index Post your comment...» 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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