English "each other" is a single frozen phrase: we love each other, help each other, talk to each other — the words never change shape. Turkish birbiri "each other / one another" is the opposite: it is fully inflected, and it stacks two layers of ending — a possessive that agrees with the subject, then a case that marks its role in the clause. So "we love each other" is one tightly built word: birbirimizi seviyoruz. This is the reflexive kendi's twin — kendi is "self," birbiri is "each other" — and like kendi, it is built on a possessed stem. This page shows how the stacking works.
The build: birbir- + possessive + case
The stem is birbir- (a reduplication of bir "one" — literally "one-its-one"). Onto it go, in order:
- a possessive suffix that matches the subject's person (we → -imiz, you-plural → -iniz, they/default 3rd → -i), then
- a case suffix for the role the reciprocal plays (accusative for a direct object, dative for "to each other," instrumental -yle for "with each other," and so on).
Because the subject of a reciprocal must be plural ("each other" needs at least two), the everyday possessives are first-plural, second-plural, and third (which covers "they" and is also the default form).
| Subject | Possessive stem | Accusative (object) | Dative (to each other) |
|---|---|---|---|
| biz (we) | birbirimiz | birbirimizi | birbirimize |
| siz (you pl.) | birbiriniz | birbirinizi | birbirinize |
| onlar (they) | birbiri | birbirini / birbirlerini | birbirine / birbirlerine |
So the case ending is the same in every row — what changes is the possessive in the middle, agreeing with who the "each other" refers back to. English never marks this: "each other" is "each other" whether the subject is we, you, or they.
Birbirimizi çok seviyoruz, on yıldır beraberiz.
We love each other very much, we've been together for ten years.
Lütfen birbirinize yardım edin, tek başınıza zor olur.
Please help each other, it'll be hard on your own.
The accusative: birbirimizi seviyoruz
When "each other" is the direct object of a transitive verb — love, see, understand, miss — it takes the accusative, and (since it is a definite, specific object) the accusative is obligatory.
Yıllardır görüşmüyoruz ama hâlâ birbirimizi özlüyoruz.
We haven't met for years, but we still miss each other.
İkiz kardeşler birbirlerini çok iyi anlıyor.
The twin siblings understand each other very well.
The dative: birbirine bakmak, birbirine güvenmek
Many Turkish verbs take a dative complement — bakmak "to look at," güvenmek "to trust," yardım etmek "to help," âşık olmak "to fall in love." With these, "each other" takes the dative.
Tartışmadan sonra birbirimize küstük.
After the argument we stopped speaking to each other.
Onlar birbirine hiç güvenmiyor.
They don't trust each other at all.
The instrumental: birbiriyle konuşmak
For "with each other," use the instrumental — historically -ile, today the suffix -yle/-yla. So "they talked with one another" is birbiriyle / birbirleriyle konuştular, and "we get along with each other" is birbirimizle geçiniyoruz.
Komşular birbiriyle hiç konuşmuyor, garip bir durum.
The neighbours don't talk to each other at all, it's a strange situation.
Çocuklar birbirleriyle çok iyi oynuyor.
The children play together really well.
The genitive and chained possession
In an izafet ("each other's X"), birbiri takes the genitive and the possessed noun takes its own possessive: birbirimizin evi "each other's house," birbirinin gözünün içine bakmak "to look into each other's eyes."
Birbirimizin sırlarını biliriz, çocukluktan beri arkadaşız.
We know each other's secrets, we've been friends since childhood.
birbiri vs. the reciprocal -iş voice: do you even need it?
Turkish also has a verbal way to express reciprocity — the reciprocal voice in -ş/-iş: görüşmek "to see each other / meet," öpüşmek "to kiss each other," bakışmak "to exchange glances." Where a clean -iş verb exists, Turkish often prefers it and you do not add birbirini:
Yarın saat üçte buluşalım.
Let's meet (each other) at three tomorrow.
You reach for birbiri when no reciprocal verb is available, or to be explicit — birbirimizi görüyoruz foregrounds "each other" more than the bare görüşüyoruz. The two strategies overlap but are not interchangeable in every verb. As a rule: if the verb already has the -iş reciprocal built in, you usually skip birbiri; otherwise, birbiri + the right case does the job.
Common mistakes
❌ Birbir seviyoruz.
Incorrect — birbir must be inflected: possessive + case → birbirimizi seviyoruz.
✅ Birbirimizi seviyoruz.
We love each other.
❌ Birbirimizi yardım edin.
With a 'you' subject this has two errors — yardım etmek takes the dative, and the possessive must match siz: birbirinize yardım edin.
✅ Birbirinize yardım edin.
Help each other.
❌ Birbirinizi seviyoruz.
Person mismatch — with the subject 'we' the possessive must agree: birbirimizi seviyoruz.
✅ Birbirimizi seviyoruz.
We love each other.
❌ Birbiri ile konuştular.
Stilted — for 'with each other' the instrumental fuses: birbiriyle konuştular.
✅ Birbiriyle konuştular.
They talked with each other.
Two errors dominate. First, leaving birbir bare — it must always carry possessive + case; birbir alone is not a word. Second, mismatching the person: the possessive has to agree with the subject, so "we…" needs birbir*imiz- and "you (pl.)…" needs birbir**iniz-*. Build it slowly: subject → possessive → then the case the verb demands (accusative, dative, instrumental…), applying vowel harmony and buffer consonants as normal.
Key takeaways
- birbiri "each other / one another" is fully inflected: birbir- + possessive (matching the subject) + case.
- The possessive agrees with the subject: biz → birbirimiz-, siz → birbiriniz-, onlar → birbir(ler)i-. The case marks the role.
- Object → accusative (birbirimizi), "to each other" → dative (birbirinize), "with each other" → instrumental (birbiriyle), "each other's" → genitive (birbirimizin).
- English's invariant "each other" never shows this stacking — getting the person of the possessive right is the key skill.
- Where a reciprocal -iş verb exists (görüşmek, buluşmak), Turkish often uses it instead of birbiri.
- birbiri is the "each other" partner of the reflexive kendi "self."
Now practice Turkish
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Start learning Turkish→Related Topics
- The Reflexive kendiA2 — kendi 'self' takes possessive suffixes to give the reflexive pronouns kendim, kendin, kendisi, kendimiz, kendiniz, kendileri — used reflexively, emphatically, and (as kendisi) as a polite he/she.
- The Reciprocal -IşB2 — How the suffix -Iş builds verbs meaning 'do to each other' or 'do together' (görüşmek, mektuplaşmak, dövüşmek), and how it differs from the productive birbiri pronoun.
- The Six Cases: OverviewA1 — A map of the Turkish case system — six harmonising suffixes that do the work English splits between prepositions and word order, all in one fixed slot after plural and possessive.