Which one should you use?
While kız means girl, do not confuse it with kızıl, which refers to the color red. The two words are not etymologically related in modern usage.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some regions, Güzelim is used to mean "beautiful girl" or "my beauty". In certain rural areas, Gelin (which literally means "bride") is sometimes used informally to refer to a married woman or girl. Additionally, the slang term Çıtır is used in some regions to refer to an attractive young girl.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word kız can change based on its role in a sentence. To say "girls", use the plural form kızlar. To say "to the girl", add the dative suffix to get kıza. To indicate possession, such as "the girl's" or "of the girl", use the genitive suffix to form kızın.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /kɯz/. The [k] sound is like the [c] in "core", the [ɯ] sound is somewhat like the [o] in "ribbon" and the [z] sound is like the [z] in "zone".
When do people say it?
Turkish speakers use different terms depending on context: Kız arkadaş specifically refers to a "girlfriend" (a female friend), while Kız kardeş refers to a "sister" in a familial context.
Did you know?
- Turkish uses the word kız in the phrase kızmak to mean 'to get angry', though the meaning is entirely different from the noun for 'girl'.
- The slang term Çıtır is often used to describe an attractive young girl, though its literal meaning is 'crispy' or 'crunchy'.
- The word kız descends from the Proto-Turkic root *kï̄ŕ, which was used thousands of years ago to describe women and girls across the Eurasian steppe.
Examples in context
- O kız Mary mi?Is that girl Mary?This sentence is useful for identifying a specific person using kız.Tatoeba #12070257 by deyta, translation #12069616 by CK
- İyi bir kız ol.Be a good girl.This sentence is useful for giving an instruction or command using kız.Tatoeba #2003209 by duran, translation #1649020 by Spamster
- O hâlâ bir kız.She is still a girl.This sentence is useful for describing a state of being using kız.Tatoeba #2067428 by duran, translation #885221 by MarijnKp
- Bu kız yeni arkadaşım.This girl is my new friend.
- 1535 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elif and Can are watching children in a playground.
- ElifŞuradaki kız çok hızlı koşuyor.That girl over there is running very fast.
- CanEvet, çok enerjik bir kız.Yes, she is a very energetic girl.
- ElifAnnesi de orada bekliyor.Her mother is waiting there too.
- CanKız annesine doğru gidiyor.The girl is going towards her mother.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “girl” translations and entries kız, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries kız, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
