yaşındayım

Talking About Age

Level 1

To say how old you are in Turkish, you don't 'have' years; you are 'at' an age. The formula is: [Number] + yaşında + [Personal Ending].

How It Works

In Turkish, stating age is treated as a location or state. Instead of saying 'I am 20 years old,' you literally say 'I am at the age of 20.'

1. The Structure
The word for age is yaş. When combined with a number, it forms a compound: yirmi yaşı (the age of twenty). To say you are at that age, we add the locative case (-da). Because we are adding a case suffix after a 3rd person possessive, we must use the buffer consonant -n-.

2. The Conjugation
To complete the sentence, add the appropriate personal ending:

  • Yaşındayım: I am ... years old
  • Yaşındasın: You are ... years old
  • Yaşında: He/She/It is ... years old
  • Yaşındayız: We are ... years old
  • Yaşındasınız: You (plural/formal) are ... years old
  • Yaşındalar: They are ... years old

3. Asking the Question
To ask someone's age, use the word kaç (how many): Kaç yaşındasın? (How old are you?)

Examples (4)

  1. Yirmi beş yaşındayım.

    I am twenty-five years old.

    Word by Word: Twenty five at-his/her-age-I-am.

    This is the standard way to state your own age.

  2. Kardeşim on yaşında.

    My sibling is ten years old.

    Word by Word: My-sibling ten at-his/her-age.

    For the third person (he/she/it), no personal suffix is added after the locative '-da'.

  3. Siz kaç yaşındasınız?

    How old are you?

    Word by Word: You how-many at-his/her-age-you-are?

    This is the polite or plural way to ask someone's age.

  4. Biz aynı yaşındayız.

    We are the same age.

    Word by Word: We same at-his/her-age-we-are.

    Using the first person plural ending to show shared age.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'var' (to have) to state age.

    Yirmi yaşım var.
    Yirmi yaşındayım.

    Learners often translate literally from English or Romance languages. In Turkish, you don't 'have' years; you are 'at' an age.

  • Using 'yıl' (year) instead of 'yaş' (age).

    Yirmi yılındayım.
    Yirmi yaşındayım.

    'Yıl' refers to a calendar year or a duration of time. 'Yaş' is specifically used for biological age.

How It Connects

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

yaşındayımLevel 1Talking About Age

Learn This First

Talking about age in Turkish involves combining numbers with the possessive and locative forms of the word 'yaş' (age), followed by the personal ending for 'I am'.

Words in This Pattern

yaşyaşında-yım