-e nazaran

Compared to (Formal)

Level 6

-e nazaran is a formal way to say 'compared to' or 'in comparison with.' It is used to establish a baseline when evaluating changes in quantity, quality, or state.

How It Works

The postposition -e nazaran is derived from Arabic and is a staple of formal Turkish writing, such as news reports, academic papers, and business documents.

1. Usage and Meaning:
It is used to compare two things, often highlighting a significant difference or a trend. Unlike the neutral -e göre, which can also mean 'in my opinion,' -e nazaran is almost exclusively used for comparison. For example, bana nazaran means 'compared to me,' not 'in my opinion.'

2. Grammatical Structure:
It always follows a noun or pronoun in the dative case:

  • Nouns: Geçen yıla nazaran (Compared to last year)
  • Pronouns: Buna nazaran (Compared to this)
  • Verbal Nouns: Beklenene nazaran (Compared to what was expected)

3. Register:
While not archaic, it is high-register. You will see it in BBC Türkçe or academic journals. In casual daily speech, speakers usually prefer -den daha or -e göre.

Examples (4)

  1. Şirketin bu yılki kârı, geçen yıla nazaran %20 oranında artış göstermiştir.

    The company's profit this year has shown an increase of 20% compared to last year.

    Word by Word: Company's this year-belonging profit, last year-to compared-to %20 rate-in increase has-shown.

    This is a classic example of the pattern used in a formal business report to compare two time periods.

  2. Eski haline nazaran çok daha sağlıklı görünüyorsun.

    You look much healthier compared to your former self.

    Word by Word: Old state-your-to compared-to very more healthy you-are-appearing.

    Here, the pattern compares a person's current state to a previous one.

  3. Tunceli coğrafyasında pek çok eski geleneğin izleri, diğer coğrafyalara nazaran daha belirgindir.

    In the geography of Tunceli, traces of many old traditions are more prominent compared to other geographies.

    Word by Word: Tunceli geography-in many old tradition-of traces, other geographies-to compared-to more prominent-is.

    This academic sentence uses the pattern to compare different regions.

  4. Beklenene nazaran sonuçlar oldukça olumluydu.

    Compared to what was expected, the results were quite positive.

    Word by Word: Expected-thing-to compared-to results quite positive-was.

    The pattern is attached to a substantivized participle (beklenene) to compare reality with expectations.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the ablative case (-den/-dan) instead of the dative case.

    Geçen yıldan nazaran daha iyiyiz.
    Geçen yıla nazaran daha iyiyiz.

    Learners often use the ablative because the basic comparison pattern '-den daha' uses it. However, 'nazaran' strictly requires the dative (-e/-a).

  • Using it to express a personal opinion.

    Bana nazaran bu film çok sıkıcı.
    Bana göre bu film çok sıkıcı.

    While '-e göre' can mean 'in my opinion,' '-e nazaran' is almost always used for comparison. 'Bana nazaran' sounds like 'compared to me,' which is odd when you give an opinion about a movie.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-e nazaranLevel 6Compared to (Formal)

Learn This First

To use '-e nazaran' correctly, you must first learn the dative case suffix (-(y)e), as this postposition specifically governs that case. It is also helpful to understand how personal pronouns change in the dative and to be familiar with standard comparison ('-den daha') to understand how this formal alternative functions in context.

Words in This Pattern

nazaran