kusur

Kusur is a Turkish noun meaning fault, defect, flaw, or shortcoming. It can refer to imperfections in objects, performances, or behavior, as well as to moral or legal blame.

The term is native to Turkish with Persian influence; cognate forms exist in Urdu and Persian, where it similarly denotes fault or guilt. Etymologically, kusur is believed to have entered Turkish through Persian, and Turkish derivatives include kusursuz (flawless) and kusurlu (defective).

Common usages include kusur bulmak, meaning “to find fault,” and the polite formula kusura bakmayın, meaning “please don’t blame me” or “sorry.” In everyday and formal language, kusur can describe defects in goods, faults in arguments, or questions of responsibility and accountability. It is often contrasted with hata, which more directly means a simple mistake or error.

In Turkish, kusur carries a connotation that may imply blame or moral shortcoming, whereas kusursuz and kusurlu are antonymous forms that describe quality states (perfect vs. defective). The term also appears in legal, administrative, and consumer contexts to denote defects or deficiencies that may require repair, replacement, or compensation.

See also: hata, kusursuzluk, kusurluluk, kusurlu.