Turk
noun
a native or inhabitant of Turkey.
Turk
1 American
[turk]
/ tɜrk /
noun
-
Turks
plural
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a native or inhabitant of Turkey.
-
(formerly) a native or inhabitant of the Ottoman Empire.
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a Muslim, especially a subject of the Sultan of Turkey.
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a member of any of the peoples speaking Turkic languages.
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one of a breed of Turkish horses closely related to the Arabian horse.
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any Turkish horse.
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Archaic. a cruel, brutal, and domineering man.
Turk
1
British
/ tɜːk /
noun
-
a native, inhabitant, or citizen of Turkey
-
a native speaker of any Turkic language, such as an inhabitant of Turkmenistan or Kyrgyzstan
-
obsolete a violent, brutal, or domineering person
Turk.
2
British
abbreviation
-
Turkey
-
Turkish
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of Turk
First recorded in 1400–50; from Old French Turc, Middle English Turke, Turque, ultimately from Turkish Türk; compare Medieval Latin Turcus, Medieval Greek Toûrkos, Middle French turc, Italian turco, Persian turk
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Turk has criticised Russia's war in Ukraine and Israel's conduct in Gaza.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
However, French Ambassador Jerome Bonnafont described Turk on Friday as " a voice of conscience" who demonstrated "rigor and impartiality" during his first term.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
As Selim, the visiting Turk who catches Fiorilla’s eye, bass Vincent Graña had pitch and rhythm issues, and the grating timbre of Kresley Figueroa’s big, agile soprano undercut her depiction of Fiorilla.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
UN rights chief Volker Turk issues a "red alert" Friday on the unfolding "catastrophe" in the Sudanese city of El-Obeid, where the United Nations fears an imminent paramilitary assault.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
“I’ll never improve,” the Turk answered, but his arms began to move faster than before.
From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman
A spokesman for the Duchess of York said: "The duchess was completely unaware of the allegations that have since emerged against Mr Turk. She is naturally concerned by what has been alleged against him."
From BBC ● Apr. 8, 2022
A spokesman for the Duchess of York said: "The Duchess was completely unaware of the allegations that have since emerged against Mr Turk. She is naturally concerned by what has been alleged against him."
From BBC ● Apr. 2, 2022
The growth of iMerit and similar companies represents a shift away from crowdsourcing services like Mechanical Turk. iMerit and its clients have greater control over how workers are trained and how the work is done.
From New York Times ● Aug. 16, 2019
“Cousin Turk. He delivers fertilizer to folks all over the county.”
From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool
In old Turk. it means, a Prince of the blood; in mod. times a gentleman, Greek or European.
From The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 15 by Sir Richard Francis Burton
Piker initially came to fame a few years prior while making YouTube videos for his uncle’s media company The Young Turks.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
"Getting a Schengen visa is becoming increasingly difficult for Turks, but this new system makes it easy and fast for us to visit the Greek islands," said Emirhan Gurses, a 21-year-old student from Manisa.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
Istanbul's jailed and suspended mayor, Ekrem Imamoğlu, posted a message on social media calling on Turks to "stand together for their country".
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
The Iraqi Kurds have good relations with Turkey, and the talk of a broader Kurdish state in the region would alarm the Turks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026
For one thing—as he’d been telling his wife all week—the European powers would never let the Turks enter the city.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
