-e rağmen
Despite
Use -e rağmen to express contrast or unexpected results. It attaches to nouns or nominalized verbs in the dative case.
How It Works
The postposition rağmen always follows a word in the dative case (-(y)A).
1. Usage with Nouns and Pronouns:
Simply add the dative suffix to the noun before rağmen. Note that personal pronouns use their irregular dative forms: bana, sana, ona, bize, size, onlara.
- Yağmura rağmen (Despite the rain)
- Sana rağmen (Despite you / Against your wishes)
2. Usage with Verbs (Nominalization):
To use this with an action, you can turn the verb into a noun using the -me/-ma infinitive (or the -dik form), add a possessive suffix, and then the dative case.
- Formula: [Verb Stem] + -mA + [Possessive] + -(n)A rağmen
- Gitmesine rağmen (Despite his/her going)
- Çalışmamıza rağmen (Despite our working)
- Yağmur yağdığına rağmen (Even though it rained, using the -dik form)
3. Nuance and Synonyms:
While -e rağmen is the standard choice, you may encounter -e karşın in formal writing. They are interchangeable, but rağmen is much more frequent in daily speech. Note that while sana rağmen means 'against your wishes', if you want to specifically express 'to spite you' (with intent to annoy), Turkish speakers prefer the word inat (e.g., sana inat).
Examples (5)
- Tüm çabalarımıza rağmen maçı kaybettik.
Despite all our efforts, we lost the match.
Word by Word: All our-efforts-to despite match-the we-lost.
Here, 'çabalarımız' (our efforts) takes the dative suffix '-a' to connect with 'rağmen'.
- Çok hasta olmasına rağmen işe gitti.
Despite being very ill, he went to work.
Word by Word: Very sick his-being-to despite work-to he-went.
The verb 'olmak' is nominalized (olma), given a possessive (olması), and then the dative (olmasına) to work with 'rağmen'.
- Buna rağmen hâlâ gülümsüyor.
Despite this, he is still smiling.
Word by Word: This-to despite still he-is-smiling.
The demonstrative pronoun 'bu' becomes 'buna' in the dative case before 'rağmen'.
- Sana rağmen oraya gideceğim.
I will go there despite you (against your wishes).
Word by Word: You-to despite there-to I-will-go.
Using a personal pronoun in the dative case with 'rağmen' implies acting against someone's wishes or despite their presence/opposition.
- Havanın soğuk olmasına rağmen dışarı çıktık.
Despite the weather being cold, we went out.
Word by Word: Weather-genitive cold its-being-to despite outside we-went-out.
This shows a full nominalized clause acting as the object of the postposition.
Common Mistakes
Using the nominative (plain) case instead of the dative case.
Yağmur rağmen dışarı çıktım.Yağmura rağmen dışarı çıktım.The word 'rağmen' is a postposition that governs the dative case. You must add -(y)a/-(y)e to the preceding noun.
Trying to use 'rağmen' like the English 'although' with a full finite verb.
Rağmen o hastaydı, işe gitti.Hasta olmasına rağmen işe gitti.Turkish postpositions cannot start a clause like English conjunctions. You must nominalize the verb and place 'rağmen' after it.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To use '-e rağmen' (despite), you must first understand how to apply the dative case suffix (-(y)e/-(y)a) to nouns and pronouns, as this postposition specifically governs the dative case.
Related Patterns
- -(y)e (yönelme hâli)Dative Case
This is the case ending required by the postposition 'rağmen'.
Level 1 - -me (ad-fiil)Turning a Verb into a Noun with -me
This suffix is used to nominalize verbs so they can be used with 'rağmen'.
Level 5 - -se bile / -se deEven if
A verbal alternative meaning 'even if' or 'even though', used with finite verb stems.
Level 5 - -e karşıAgainst and Towards
While '-e karşı' means 'against', its formal variant '-e karşın' is a direct synonym for 'rağmen'.
Level 3 - ama / fakatBut
Basic conjunctions used to show contrast between two independent clauses.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice -e rağmen in Bubblegum
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