iyi
/iˈji/
The Turkish word for "good" is iyi.
As a noun, it refers to the forces of good. It is also used in the common greeting İyi günler, which translates to "Good day" or "Have a good day".
Meaning: pleasant, enjoyable (adj)
Which one should you use?
While iyi refers to quality or morality, if you want to describe something as being pleasant or aesthetically pleasing, you would often use güzel. For expressing that something is specifically pleasant, delightful or enjoyable, you can use Hoş. If you want to emphasize that something is amazing or terrific, use müthiş.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
To refer to "the good ones" in a plural sense, you add the suffix -ler to the word to get iyiler. The noun form for "goodness" or "kindness" is iyilik.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /iˈji/. The first sound is like the [ee] in cr[ee]k and the second sound is like the [y] in [y]es.
Did you know?
- The etymology of iyi traces back to the Proto-Turkic word *ed-, which originally meant a 'thing' or 'goods'.
- In Turkish, if someone says iyi in response to a question about their health or mood, they might be subtly signaling that things are merely 'okay' rather than great.
- The noun iyilik can mean both 'goodness' and 'a favor', as in asking someone for a kind act.
Examples in context
- Bu ev çok iyi.This house is very good.This sentence demonstrates the use of iyi to describe a house.Tatoeba #1086049 by maydoo, translation #60158 by CK
- Bu iyi bir ev.This is a good house.This sentence shows how iyi functions as an adjective describing a house.Tatoeba #2100656 by duran, translation #1098024 by cntrational
- O çok çok iyi.That's very, very good.This sentence shows how to use iyi for emphasis.Tatoeba #4076346 by duran, translation #3591038 by CK
- İyi akşamlar!Good evening!
- Şehirdeki parklar çok güzel.The parks in the city are very nice.
- Bugün hava güzel.The weather is good today.
- Bu film müthiş!This movie is amazing!
- Öğlen yemeği gerçekten müthişti.Lunch was truly fantastic.
- Bu parti gerçekten harika oldu!This party was truly awesome!
- Yaptığın tablo harika görünüyor.The painting you made looks amazing.
- Yeni sahneye bakman gerek. Çok süper.You need to check out the new stage. It's really cool.
- Bugünün sonucu süper oldu!The outcome today was great!
- 8293 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Zeynep and Emre are discussing a movie they just watched.
- ZeynepFilm gerçekten çok iyiydi, değil mi?The movie was really good, wasn't it?
- EmreEvet, müzikleri de çok iyi.Yes, the music was also very good.
- ZeynepBence hikayesi çok iyiydi.I think the story was very good.
- EmreHaklısın, çok iyi bir filmdi.You are right, it was a very good movie.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “good” translations and entries iyi, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries iyi, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
