A research-based reference to Kurmanji (Northern Kurdish) grammatical terminology, with English equivalents. The list distinguishes commonly attested terms (A), descriptive translations whose wording may vary (D), and international linguistic terms (I). These labels are editorial guidance, not official standardization.
Kurmanji has grammatical gender, direct and oblique case, ezafe linking, and split ergativity. Its grammatical concepts do not always match English categories one-to-one. For example, tense, aspect and mood should be distinguished rather than treated as interchangeable.
Sounds and writing
Kurmanji
English
alfabe
alphabet
tîp
letter
deng
sound
dengdêr
vowel
bêdeng
consonant
bilêvkirin
pronunciation
nivîsîn
writing
rastnivîs
orthography / spelling
kîte
syllable
tekez / tekezî
stress / emphasis
Words and classes
Kurmanji
English
peyv / peyiv
word
rêziman
grammar
navdêr
noun
cînav
pronoun
rengdêr
adjective
hoker
adverb
lêker
verb
daçek
preposition / adposition
girêdek
conjunction
baneşan
interjection
hejmar
number / numeral
diyarker
determiner
navê taybet
proper noun
navê giştî
common noun
lêkera alîkar
auxiliary verb
lêkera pêkhatî
compound verb
lêkera veguhêz
transitive verb
lêkera negerguhêz
intransitive verb
Nouns and pronouns
Kurmanji
English
zayenda rêzimanî
grammatical gender
nêr
masculine
mê
feminine
yekjimar
singular
pirjimar
plural
navdêra nediyar
indefinite noun
navdêra diyar
definite noun
cînavên kesane
personal pronouns
cînavên xwerû
direct-case pronouns
cînavên tewandî
oblique pronouns
cînavên xwe
reflexive pronouns
cînavên pirsî
interrogative pronouns
cînavên nîşanî
demonstrative pronouns
xwedîbûn
possession
rêza ezafeyê
ezafe construction
ezafe
ezafe linker
rewşa rasterast
direct case
rewşa tewandî
oblique case
rewşa bangkirinê
vocative case
lihevhatin
agreement
Verbs, tense, aspect and mood
Kurmanji
English
rehê lêkerê
verb stem
rehê dema niha
present stem
rehê dema borî
past stem
dema niha
present tense
dema borî
past tense
dema bê / pêşeroj
future time reference
raboriya hêsan
simple past
raboriya berdewam
past imperfective
kirde
subject / agent (context-dependent)
bireser
object
tewandin
inflection / declension
veguherandin
conjugation / change
ferman
imperative
qedexe
prohibition
neyînîkirin
negation
erênî
affirmative / positive
merc
condition
hevokên mercî
conditional clauses
awayê daxwazî
subjunctive mood
awayê ragihandinê
indicative mood
awayê fermanî
imperative mood
aliyê kiryarê
voice
kiryarî
active voice
neyarkiryarî
passive voice
sedemkarî
causative
ergatîvîtîya parçebûyî
split ergativity
aspekt
aspect
perfekt
perfect construction
kopula
copula
Sentence and discourse
Kurmanji
English
hevok
sentence
riste
clause
hevoka sereke
main clause
hevoka girêdayî
subordinate clause
hevoka pirsî
interrogative sentence
hevoka neyînî
negative sentence
hevoka şertî
conditional sentence
hevoka pêkhatî
complex sentence
rêza peyvan
word order
kirde–bireser–lêker
subject–object–verb (SOV)
girêdana ku
ku-clause linking
hevoka pêwendîdar
relative clause
pirs
question
bersiv
answer
ravekirin
explanation
berawirdkirin
comparison
zêdetir / -tir
comparative
herî
superlative marker
girêdana peyvan
coordination
girêdana binhevokî
subordination
agahdariya nû
focus / new information
mijar
topic
pêşxistin
fronting
vegotina nerasterast
reported speech
rasterast vegotin
direct speech
Word formation and linguistics
Kurmanji
English
pêşgir
prefix
paşgir
suffix
qertaf
affix
morfem
morpheme
morfolojî
morphology
sentaks
syntax
fonolojî
phonology
fonetîk
phonetics
semantîk
semantics
pragmatîk
pragmatics
zimannasî
linguistics
zarava
dialect
standardkirin
standardization
navdêrkirin
nominalization
rengdêrkirin
adjectivization
dubarekirin
reduplication
Examples in Kurmanji
Ez diçim. — I go / I am going.
Ez hatim. — I came.
Min ew dît. — I saw him/her/it.
kitêba min — my book.
Ez dixwazim ku ew were. — I want him/her to come.
Editorial note
Not all Kurmanji technical expressions are standardized across dictionaries, regions, and academic traditions. Some entries above are explanatory renderings rather than independently verified dictionary headwords. Do not mix Sorani and Kurmanji terms without labelling the variety. A qualified Kurmanji linguist should review technical and dialect-sensitive entries before they are treated as a normative standard.
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