Adjective and noun clauses In this lesson, we will learn how adjective clauses (for describing a noun using an adjective, like beautiful girl ) and noun clauses (for describing ownership relationships between nouns, like car's door ) are formed in Turkish. First, let's start with the adjective clauses which is simpler and then we'll look at noun clause construction.
Adjective clauses onstructing adjective clauses in Turkish is ver! simple and straightforward, almost the same as in "nglish. The onl! thing !ou need to do is to put the correct adjective before the noun. beautiful girl ##$ g%&el k& fast car ##$ h&l araba big house ##$ b%!%k ev thick book ##$ kaln kitap high building ##$ !%ksek bina hard lesson ##$ &or ders slow train ##$ !ava tren
If !ou don't add the adjective before the noun but use it as the main epression in the sentence, the word order changes in "nglish and it changes the same wa! in Turkish. This girl is beautiful. **$ +u k& g%&el This car is fast. **$ +u araba h&l. hmet is tall. **$ hmet u&un. I am tall. **$ +en u&unum. (-ote the use of verb to be with the adjective) ou are tall. **$ /en u&unsun.
0owever, note that when !ou want to sa! s a! a beautiful girl , the word for a (bir ) is placed between the adjective and the noun. a small piece ##$ k%1%k bir par1a a greed! man ##$ a1g2&l% bir adam a blue book ##$ mavi bir kitap a short tree ##$ ksa bir a3a1 a long movie ##$ u&un bir film
4et's now appl! what we've learned in the construction of a few sentences. This is a red rose. ##$ +u krm& bir g%l. 5oe is a 6uiet kid. ##$ 5oe sessi& bir 1ocuk. 5oe is a ver! 6uiet kid. ##$ 5oe 1ok sessi& bir 1ocuk. Noun clauses
Two nouns form a clause in three different wa!s in Turkish7 Case1: The first noun tells what the second noun is made of (i.e. metal bo, plastic plate...). In this case, !ou just write these nouns in the same order as !ou do in "nglish without adding an! suffies.
metal bo ##$ metal kutu plastic plate ##$ plastik tabak Case2: The first noun describes the second noun, wth an! relationship ecept for the made-of relationship we saw above and the specific ownership relationship. "amples to this case can be car key, book shelf , garden door , window glass... In this case, !ou write the nouns in the same order as "nglish, but add the suffi -i at the end of the second noun. If the noun to which !ou append suffi *i alread! ends with a vowel, !ou add the fusion consonant -s between these vowels to separate the two vowels. The third eample below demonstrates this case.
car ke! ##$ araba anahtar book shelf ##$ kitap raf garden door ##$ bah1e kaps (note the fusion consonant s here) window glass ##$ pencere cam Case 3: There is a specific ownership relationship between the two nouns (the ke! of the car, the door of the garden, 8emal's daughter, the door of the the car). In this case, !ou write the describing noun first and the described noun second as it was done in the preceding two cases. 0owever, !ou add the suffi -in to the first noun and the suffi -i to the second noun. If the noun to which !ou append the suffi -in alread! ends with a vowel, !ou add the fusion consonant n between the two vowels to separate them. For the suffi -i, the fusion consonant is same as told in the previous case. ou ou add the consonant s to separate the word ending with a vowel from the suffi -i.
the ke! of the car ##$ arabann anahtar (note the use of fusion consonant n here for the first noun, araba) the door of the garden ##$ bah1enin kaps 8emal's daughter ##$ 8emalin k& the door of the car ##$ arabann kaps (note the use of fusion consonant n for the first noun and the fusion consonant s for the second noun) exception 7 The word for water, su, is an eception for the fusion consonants in noun clauses. The
fusion consonant for water ( su su) is alwa!s 'y' . color of water **$ su*in renk*i **$ su!un rengi (not sunun rengi) water of 8emal **$ 8emal*in su*i **$ 8emal'in su!u. (not 8emal'in susu) (-ote that ' is used in Turkish to separate the suffies from private words that need to be alwa!s capitali&ed, like 8emal in this case)
Negatives 1. Negatives of nouns and adjectives
To make a noun or adjective negative, add the word değil at the end of the adjective or noun. Positive
Negative
+u bir araba. [This is a car.]
+u bir araba de3il. [This is not a car]
9 bir ev. [That is a house.]
9 bir ev de3il. [That is not a house]
9 1ok g%&el. [She is very beautiful.]
9 1ok g%&el de3il. [She is not very beautiful.]
+u araba be!a&. [This car is white.]
+u araba be!a& de3il. [This car is not white]
2. Negatives of verbs To make a verb negative, add the suffi *me at the root of the verb. to come **$ gel*mek not to come **$ gel*me*mek (the negating suffi is alwa!s added at the verb root) -ote how the suffi is added at the root. This is alwa!s the case. verb ma! have man! suffies, but the negating suffi is alwa!s immediatel! after the verb root. ll the other suffies follow as if the! are being added to the positive of the verb. gel*di **$ geldi **$ he came gel*me*di **$ gelmedi **$ he did not come ol*mak !a da ol*ma*mak **$ olmak !a da olmamak **$ to be or not to be
3. There is, there is not
In Turkish, there are special words for there is and there is not. In particular7
there is **$ var there is not **$ !ok 4et's make sentences with these words7 There is a book on the table. **$ :asada bir kitap var. There isn't a table in this room. **$ +u odada (bir) masa !ok. The words 'var ' and 'yok ' are more important than this, since the! are used when !ou want to sa! ! have or ! don't have as well. In Turkish, to sa! ;I have something ;, !ou sa! ;There is m! something ;. 4et's give eamples7 I have a book. **$ (+enim) kitabm var. !lin has a car. **$ !lin'in arabas var. This woman has seven cats. **$ +u kadnn !edi kedisi var. (4ike sa!ing ;There is this woman's seven cats;) I don't have a car. **$ (+enim) arabam !ok. :! uncle does not have a daughter. **$ mcamn k& !ok. Noun states
In Turkish, a noun has < fundamental states, produced using suffies, that correspond to meanings of some prepositions in "nglish. It is not necessar! to learn these as the states of nouns, but learning these suffies is important since the! are ver! commonl! used. State
Meaning
Nothing state (no sufx)
Just the plain noun.
-i state
Marks the noun as the subject o an action.
-e state
!!s the "eaning o !irection (#er$ si"ilar to the proposition to)
-!e state
!!s the "eaning o position (%se! or the prepositions in, at , on)
-!en state
!!s the "eaning o from, use! or this preposition
n important thing to note here is the use of the *i form. It is used to denote the subject of an action, and adds the meaning of ;being known" specified ; just as the meaning given b! ;the;. This will be more clear after looking at the sentences below. (bir **$ one, kedi **$ cat, g2rd%m **$ I saw) +ir kedi g2rd%m. **$ I saw a cat. (-ote that although cat is the object of the action here, the *i form of kedi is not used since it is not known, i.e. it is a cat" not the cat ) 8edi!i g2rd%m. **$ I saw the cat. (-ote that kedi has the suffi *i, but the two *i's are separated b! the fusion consonant '!'.) -ow, eample sentences for all the cases. •
-othing state7 o
•
*i state7 o
•
I saw the house. **$ "vi g2rd%m.
*e state7 o
•
This is a house. **$ +u bir ev.
=o home. **$ "ve git. (0ouse and home are the same word in Turkish, 'ev' .)
*de state7 o
The pen is on the table. **$ 8alem masada.
o
5oe is at school. **$ 5oe okulda.
o
•
our mother is in that room. **$ nnen o odada.
*den state7 o
I came from home. **$ "vden geldim.
To be The verb to be (for the #is# in "nglish) is handled in a special wa!, it is different from the other verbs. This is also the case in Turkish, the use of the verb to be is ver! uni6ue. >nlike all the other verbs, to be is epressed with suffies. It can be in one of present tense or past tense. 4et ?s see it in present tense and past tense for different cases of personal pronouns.
English
Turkish
Suffix
Present tense to be
i am $$$
ben $$$*im
*im
!ou are $$$
sen $$$*sin
*sin
he @ she A is $$$
-(none)
o $$$
it B
or *dir
we are $$$
bi& $$$*i&
*i&
!ou are $$$
si& $$$*sini&
*sini&
onlar
none
the! are $$$
or
or
onlar $$$*ler
*ler
Past tense to be
i was $$$
ben $$$*dim
*dim
!ou were $$$
sen $$$*din
*din
o $$$-di
-di
we were $$$
bi& $$$*dik
*dik
!ou were $$$
si& $$$*dini&
*dini&
the! were $$$
onlar $$$%-y&*diler
(*!)* diler
he @ she A was $$$ it B
NOT 1
For the third person of the present tense to be, there are two cases. 9ne with no suffi and one with *dir . If !ou are making a personal statement or !ou are talking in a casual wa!, !ou use the no suffi case. 0owever, if !ou want to make a definitive or informative statement like one in an enc!clopedia, !ou use the suffi *dir . +oth have the same meaning, and sometimes can be used interchangeabl!. 4et?s see eamples to this.
This house is ver! big. **$ +u ev 1ok b%!%k. That is m! house. **$ 9 benim evim. 0e is a student. **$ 9 bir 23renci. /pider is an animal. **$ Cr%mcek bir ha!vandr. (The *dir case is used since this is an informative statement) /un is larger than earth. **$ =%ne d%n!adan daha b%!%kt%r. (gain, this is an informative statement)
NOT 2
&hen constructing the thir! person plural past tense or" o to be, the sufx -ler can be o""itte! in so"e cases. These are explaine! belo' a. u"ans or objects that ha#e no in!i#i!ualit$ take singular conjugation or thir! person plural. *ut i the speaker 'ants to gi#e objects in!i#i!ualit$ then he can use plural. This 'oul! be a poetic sentence. b. u"ans an! other things that ha#e in!i#i!ualit$ (or instance ani"als that ha#e na"es) can take either singular or plural conjugation. %suall$ i the subject is !e+ne! (i 'e kno'n the") then 'e use plural conjugation. the subject is un!e+ne! then 'e use singular conjugation.
NOT !
/ince the verb to be is different for each personal pronoun, personal pronouns can be omitted in
speech or writing. The meaning of person is given with this verb. To sa! ; ! am beautiful.; !ou can use one of7 ; en g()elim.; ;*()elim.;. >sing the personal pronoun adds the meaning of stressing person. De will use the personal pronoun in parenthesis to indicate that it is optional.
-ow, let?s see where to be is used7 E. To construct a sentence with a noun or adjective instead of a verb, like in "nglish. The verb to be is the implicit verb here. o
ou are beautiful. **$ (/en) g%&elsin.
o
ou were beautiful. **$ (/en) g%&eldin.
o
This is a house. **$ +u bir ev.
o
That was a house. **$ 9 bir evdi.
. To construct verbs in different tenses, the suffi for each tense is used with either present tense of to be or past tense of to be. ctuall!, it is present tense of to be in all cases ecept the regular past tense. n+niti#es an! lurals
1. Infnitives Gerbs in Turkish, when used alone, have the imperative meaning as in "nglish. do **$ !ap come **$ gel go **$ git drink **$ i1 sleep **$ u!u
In order to make a verb infinitive, the suffi -mek is used. to do **$ !apmak (changes to -mak since yap[do] is a hard word) to come **$ gelmek to go **$ gitmek to drink **$ i1mek to sleep **$ u!umak
The following are eamples to the use of infinitives in Turkish7 It is good to sleep. **$ >!umak i!i(dir). It is difficult to stud!. **$ Halmak &or(dur). I want to go. **$ =itmek isti!orum. I want to walk. **$ %r%mek isti!orum.
2. Plurals To make plurals of nouns, the suffi *ler is used. +elow are some eamples, note how the suffi *ler becomes 'sometimes *ler , sometimes *lar' obe!ing the rules of vowel harmon!. road(s) **$ !ol **$ !ollar tree(s) **$ a3a1 **$ a3a1lar rose(s) **$ g%l **$ g%ller room(s) **$ oda **$ odalar house(s) **$ ev **$ evler job(s) **$ meslek **$ meslekler onsonant ar"on$
+esides the vowel harmon! rules, there are other basic rules that affect the wa! suffies are used. vowel following another is never allowed in Turkish, and there are rules to avoid these situations when the! occur as a result of other rules. There are also rules about consonant harmon!, that make some consonants change in certain cases.
/. onsonant ar"on$
Gowel harmon! rules cause the vowels of suffies to be modified when the! are added to some words. There are similar rules about consonants. 0owever, !ou ma! feel that all these rules are too man! just for a simple start. Then, I advice !ou to omit the consonant harmon! rules when !ou want to sa! or write something, just for the beginning. ou will still be understood. onsonant harmon! is mainl! for making speech more fluent, it does not have a major effect on understandabilit!. ou will eventuall! learn these if !ou decide to continue learning Turkish, as !ou read sentences or listen to Turkish speakers.
Tip
+onsonant harmony is mainly for making speech more fluent" it does not have a ma,or effect on understandability.
There are two different cases of consonant harmon! * either the last consonant of the main word changes, or the first consonant of the suffi changes. The trouble making consonants in this case are p" " t and k . 4et?s call the words that end with one of p" " t or k the trouble words.
CASE A - Word mutation. Two conditions must be satisfied for word mutation to occur7
E. ou have a word ending with one of ? p" " t" k ?. . ou want to add this word a suffi that starts with a vowel. If the word has onl! one s!llable, like sa1, !ou are safe. The word usually does not change. sa1* **$ sa"# (hisBherBits hair) sap*a **$ sapa (to the handle)
0owever, if the word has more than one s!llable, than the consonant at the end usually changes. •
p beco"es b
•
0 beco"es c
•
t beco"es !
•
k beco"es 1
nd here are some eamples to this7
a3a1*a **$ a3aca (to the tree) arap*n **$ arab#n (of the wine) ka3t*a **$ ka3da (to the paper) ge!ik*e **$ ge!i$e (to the deer)
Tip
There are eceptions to both the single s!llable and multiple s!llable cases mentioned above. For eample7 kap*a **$ kaba (to the container) saat*in **$ saatin (the clock?s)
ou should still learn and appl! the rules though, there are not too man! of these eceptions.
CASE B - Su! mutation. Two conditions must be satisfied for suffi mutation to occur7 2. ou ha#e a 'or! en!ing 'ith one o p, ç, t, k, f, h, s, ş. /. ou 'ant to a!! this 'or! a sufx that starts 'ith c or d.
In this case, the first letter of the consonant changes. •
c beco"es 0
•
! beco"es t
"amples7 4eh **$ olish (people) 4eh*ce **$ 4eh1e **$ olish (language)
T%rk **$ Turkish (people) T%rk*ce **$ T%rk1e **$ Turkish (lanuage)
!ap **$ do !ap*di **$ !apt **$ he did 4o'el 5ules
+esides the vowel harmon! rules, there are other basic rules that affect the wa! suffies are used. vowel following another is never allowed in Turkish, and there are rules to avoid these situations when the! occur as a result of other rules. There are also rules about consonant harmon!, that make some consonants change in certain cases.
2. &hen t'o #o'els co"e together
In Turkish, two vowels can never come together (note that there are a few eceptions to this rule). /o, what do we do when we need to add a suffi that starts with a vowel at the end of a word that ends with a vowelJ There are two cases here7
1.1. "ro##ing a vo$el To sa! m! house, !ou append the suffi meaning m! (*im) to the word meaning house (ev). /imple enough, ?m! house? **$ evim.
ou want to sa! ?m! car?. ar is araba and the suffi that gives the meaning m! is *im. hange the suffi according to
vowel harmon! rules so that is can be appended to araba (a hard and flat word) and *im becomes *m. /o, to put it together, m! car becomes ?araba-m / arabam?. 0owever, two vowels can not come together in Turkish. Trouble... To avoid this, we drop one of the vowels in this case. i. If both of the vowels are in the group -i" -" -u" -( than these two vowels have to be the
same (look at the vowel harmon! rules to understand wh!). /ince the two vowels are the same, it does not matter which one we drop in this case. ii. 0owever, if one of the vowels is in the group -i" -" -u" -( but the other is not (meaning that
it is one of a" e" o" 0 ) then generall! the vowel in the group ;*i, *, *u, *%; is dropped. There are some eceptions to this, however, and these eceptions will be noted when necessar!. ppl!ing these rules, #my car# becomes #arabam# .
1.2. Adding a %u&er 'onsonant in %et$een ou are asked where !ou are going. ou want to sa! %to& home . 0ence, !ou append the suffi giving the direction meaning (*e) to the word meaning home (ev) and !our repl! becomes ;eve;.
0owever, if !ou are going to the car and !ou want to tell this to !our friend, things are not that simple for !ou7 •
•
6irst, change the sufx - e accor!ing to #o'el har"on$ rules accor!ing to araba an! it beco"es - a. No', a!! this sufx - a at the en! o our 'or! araba, an! get arabaa.
De have two vowels together. Krop oneJ >nfortunatel!, not this time. In this case we need to add a buffer consonant between the two vowels. There is not a simple rule to tell wh!. /ometimes one of the two vowels is dropped, sometimes one buffer consonant is added in between. 0owever, what !ou do is consistent for a given suffi. If !ou are adding the suffi -e to a word
that ends with a vowel (like araba), !ou alwa!s add the fusion consonant y in between. /a!ing to the car then becomes arabaya. Too much effort spent to sa! a ver! simple wordJ :ore to come. 4et?s practice on a few other words7 oast **$ 8! A To the coast **$ 8!*e **$ 8!%a Loom **$ 9da A To the room **$ 9da*e **$ 9da%a /hip **$ =emi A To the ship **$ =emi*e **$ =emi%e
This ma! take some time to get used to, definitel! doable. >nfortunatel!, that?s not ever!thing. The buffer consonant is not y ever! time. y is the most common one, so !ou can put y whenever !ou don?t remember which one to put, chances are high !ou?ll be right. The other consonants that are sometimes used as fusion consonants are s and n.
4et?s see different cases where these fusion consonants are used7
a. The suffix -i
If the suffi -i is used as the -i form of a noun, making it a direct object (like the in "nglish), then the fusion consonant y is used. araba*i sat *$ araba*!* sat *$ araba%# sat (sell the car) !a&*i oku *$ !a&*!* oku *$ !a&%# oku (read the tet) If the suffi -i is used as the third person posessive (his*her*its), then the fusion consonant s is used. araba*i *$ araba*s* *$ arabas# (his*her*its car) para*i *$ para*s* *$ paras# (his*her*its mone!) kedi*i *$ kedi*s*i *$ kedisi (his*her*its cat)
M -ote that the word for water ( su) is an eception for this case, the fusion consonant y is used with the word su (water). su*i *$ su*!*u *$ su%u (his*her*its water) b. The suffix -e (direction suffi, adds the meaning of preposition to)
Dhen the direction suffi -e is added to a word that ends with a vowel, the fusion consonant y is added in between. araba*e *$ araba*!*a *$ araba%a (to the car) konu*e *$ konu*!*a *$ konu%a (to the topic) pencere*e *$ pencere*!*e *$ pencere%e (to the window) c. The suffix -in (gives the genitive meaning, like nd!?s)
Dhen the suffi -in is added to a word that ends with a vowel, the fusion consonant n is added in between. araba*in *$ araba*n*n *$ araban#n (of the car, the car?s) konu*in *$ konu*n*un *$ konunun (of the topic) pencere*in *$ pencere*n*in *$ pencerenin (of the window) & -ote that the suffi -in is also used with the second person posessive meaning.
If the suffi -in used as second person possessive is added to a word that ends with a vowel, than the letter i of the suffi is dropped. The same is true for the first person possessive suffi, -im, first person plural possessive suffi, -imi) and second person plural possessive suffi, -ini). araba*im *$ araba*m *$ araba' (m! car) kedi*in *$ kedi*n *$ kedin (!our cat) kap*imi& *$ kap*m& *$ kap'#( (our door)
para*ini& *$ para*n& *$ paran#( (!our (plural) mone!) pencere*im *$ pencere*m *$ pencere' (m! window) There are also other uses of fusion consonants besides separating two vowels.
d. The suffix -le (with, b!)
Dhen the suffi -le is added to a word that ends with a vowel, the fusion consonant y is added in between. araba*le git *$ araba*!*la git *$ araba%la git (go b! car) kedi*le o!na *$ kedi*!*le o!na *$ kedi%le o!na (pla! with the cat) gemi*le gel *$ gemi*!*le gel *$ gemi%le gel (come b! ship)
e. The suffix -de (location, like propositions at" in" on) and the suffi *den (proposition from)
Dhen the suffi -de or -den is added to a word as the first suffi, no fusion consonant is used. +ut when one of -de or -den1 is added to a word that alread! has a suffi or a series of suffies that end with a vowel, the fusion consonant n is added in between. araba*de *$ araba*da *$ arabada (in the car) kedi*den *$ kediden (from the cat) araba*si*de *$ araba*s*n*da *$ arabas#nda (in his*her*its car) kedi*in*ki*den *$ kedi*n*in*ki*n*den *$ kedininkinden (from the cat?s) gemi*leri*den *$ gemi*leri*n*den *$ gemilerinden (from their ship) Notes on 4o'el ar"on$
Gowel harmon! is one of the most fundamental and important aspects of Turkish grammar. Turkish words generall! obe! two vowel harmon! rules, called the ma,or vowel harmony and
the minor vowel harmony.
These rules change the vowels in the suffies added to words. good understanding of these rules is necessar! to be able to use suffies, hence to be able to make correct and meaningful sentences.
3. ractical notes about #o'el har"on$ rules
s far as vowel harmon! is concerned, we can separate all the suffies in Turkish into two main groups. Thinking in terms of these two cases simplifies these seemingl! complicated rules. These are7
)ase 17
The suffies with first vowel *i (the suffies *i, *di, *i!or, *im, *in ...)
)ase 27
suffies with first vowel *e (the suffies *e, *de, *den, *erek, ...)
ll suffies with first vowel *i, *, *u, *( fall into the first group, and the! are different forms of this case modified according to vowel harmon! rules. bal*m **$ bal#' (m! hone!) ev*im **$ evi' (m! home) snf*im **$ snf #' (m! class) dil*im **$ dil i' (m! tongue) sol*im **$ solu' (m! left)
g2&*im **$ g2&*' (m! e!e) okul*im **$ okulu' (m! school) %&%m*im **$ %&%m*' (m! grape)
ll suffies with first vowel *e, *a fall into the second group, and the! are different forms of this case modified according to vowel harmon! rules. araba*den **$ arabadan (from the car) ev*den **$ evden (from home) kap*den **$ kapdan (from the door) deni&*den **$ deni&den (from the sea) sol*den **$ soldan (from the left) g2&*den **$ g2&den (from the e!e) okul*den **$ okuldan (from school) kap*den **$ kapdan (from the door)
-ote that no suffi has *o or *0 as the first vowel. ctuall!, no suffi has the letter *2 in it and there is onl! one suffi that has the vowel *o (this is the suffi for present continuous tense, *iyor and this *o does not change according to an! vowel harmon! rules). bak*i!or **$ bak #%or (heBsheBit is looking) gel*i!or **$ geli%or (heBsheBit is coming) sk*i!or **$ sk #%or (heBsheBit is s6uee&ing) bil*i!or **$ bili%or (heBsheBit knows)
ko*i!or **$ kou%or (heBsheBit is running) g2r*i!or **$ g2r *%or (heBsheBit is seeing) bul*u!or **$ bulu%or (heBsheBit is finding) g%l*i!or **$ g%l*%or (heBsheBit is laughing)
The suffies in case E are affected from both the major vowel harmon! and the minor vowel harmon!. For eample, the suffi *di can become *di, *d, *du or *d( depending on the word at which it is appended. ara*di **$ arad# gel*di **$ geldi kr*di **$ kr d# bil*di **$ bildi sol*di **$ soldu g2r*di **$ g2r d* bul*du **$ buldu %%*di **$ %%d*
The suffies in case are affected b! onl! the major vowel harmon! rule. For eample, the suffi *erek can become *erek or *arak depending on the word at which it is appended. bak*erek **$ bak arak (with looking) sev*erek **$ severek (with loving) sk*erek **$ sk arak (with s6uee&ing)
bil*erek **$ bilerek (with knowing, knowingl!) ko*erek **$ koarak (with running) g2r*erek ** g2r erek (with seeing) vur*erek ** vur arak (with hitting) b%k*erek ** b%k erek (with bending)
+inor ,o-el ar'on% Gowel harmon! is one of the most fundamental and important aspects of Turkish grammar. Turkish words generall! obe! two vowel harmon! rules, called the ma,or vowel harmony and the minor vowel harmony. :ore important than the words obe!ing these rules, there are wa!s these rules change the vowels in the suffies added to words. good understanding of these rules is necessar! to be able to use suffies, hence to be able to make correct and meaningful sentences.
2. +inor ,o-el ar'on% De saw that the N vowels in the Turkish alphabet are divided into two groups as hard and soft vowels. +esides this grouping, the N vowels are divided into two groups as round vowels and flat vowels. There are O flat and O round vowels. vowel?s being round or flat is actuall! determined from the shape of the mouth when pronouncing that vowel, but it can also be seen in the shape of the capital characters. /lat vo-els7
, ", I, P
0ound vo-els 7
9, C, >, Q
Turkish word is either a round word or a flat word depending on its last vowel. ev[home] is a flat word since its last and onl! vowel, e, is a flat vowel.
okul[school] is a round word since its last vowel, u, is a round vowel. kahve[coffee] is a flat word since its last vowel, e, is a flat vowel.
-ow, tr! to guess if the following words are round or flat. :ove the mouse over the right table cell of the word to see the answer.
ord
0ound or /lat
meslek [,ob]
J
araba[car]
J
g%&el[beautiful]
J
!emek [food]
J
g%l%mse[smile]
J
1abuk [2uick]
J
g%l[rose]
J
g2l[lake]
J
gidelim[let#s go]
J
telefon[telephone]
?
(orrect answers7 flat, flat, flat, flat, flat, round, round, round, flat, round)
:inor vowel harmon! states that7 If a suffi starting with -i is appended to a round word, the -i in the suffi becomes -u or -(. This depends on whether the word is hard or soft. The major vowel harmon! and the minor
vowel harmon! appl! to words simultaneousl!. This means7
•
If a suffi starting with -i is added to a hard and round word, the -i in the suffi becomes -u. o
okul **$ school Ra hard vowelS
o
suffi we will add is -im (gives the meaning my)
o
•
m! school **$ okulum Rthe suffi -im changes according to vowel harmonies and becomes -umS
If a suffi starting with -i is added to a soft and round word, the -i in the suffi becomes -(. o
g%l **$ rose
o
suffi we will add is -im (gives the meaning my)
o
m! rose **$ g%l%m Rthe suffi -im changes according to vowel harmonies and becomes -(mS
m! telephone **$ telefonum m! beautiful **$ g%&elim m! lake **$ g2l%m
+ajor ,o-el ar'on%
Gowel harmon! is one of the most fundamental and important aspects of Turkish grammar. Turkish words generall! obe! two vowel harmon! rules, called the ma,or vowel harmony and the minor vowel harmony. :ore important than the words obe!ing these rules, there are wa!s these rules change the vowels in the suffies added to words. good understanding of these rules is necessar! to be able to use suffies, hence to be able to make correct and meaningful sentences.
1. +ajor ,o-el ar'on% The N vowels in the Turkish alphabet are separated into two groups called hard vowels and soft vowels. There are O hard vowels and O soft vowels. ard vo-els 7
a, , o, u
Soft vo-els 7
e, i, 2, %
Dords of Turkish origin generall! (not alwa!s) have all hard or all soft vowels. This is just a generali&ation that !ou won?t use for constructing Turkish words and sentences. Dords that have hard and soft vowels together are said to violate the major vowel harmon!. word that violates the major vowel harmon! probabl! has been adopted from another language or has been changed in the lifetime of the Turkish language.
"ach of the hard vowels are the hard counterparts of one soft vowel (and vice versa). Following this rule, vowels can be paired with their counterparts as follows7 ard
Soft
a
e
i
o
2
u
%
Turkish word is either a hard word or a soft word depending on its last vowel.
ev[home] is a soft word since its last and onl! vowel, e, is a soft vowel. okul[school] is a hard word since its last vowel, u, is a hard vowel. kahve[coffee] is a soft word since its last vowel, e, is a soft vowel.
-ow, tr! to guess if the following words are hard or soft. The correct answers are below the table. ord
ard or Soft
meslek [,ob]
J
araba[car]
J
g%&el[beautiful]
J
!emek [food]
J
g%l%mse[smile]
J
1abuk [2uick]
J
g%l[rose]
J
g2l[lake]
J
gidelim[let#s go]
J
telefon[telephone]
J
(orrect answers7 soft, hard, soft, soft, soft, hard, soft, soft, soft, hard)
:ajor vowel harmon! states that7 •
n! suffi appended to a hard word must have hard vowels
•
n! suffi appended to a soft word must have soft vowels
s an eample to this rule let?s consider the suffi -de. Dhen added to a noun, this suffi gives the meaning of ;at1in the location e$pressed by that noun;. Dhen added to a soft word like ev[home], this suffi is -de. 0owever, when added to a hard word like okul[school], the soft vowels in this suffi are replaced b! their hard counterparts and the suffi becomes -da. 0ence7
at home **$ evde at school **$ okulda in the car **$ arabada at the lake **$ g2lde
llness nglish
Turkish
Sicknesses
sick
hasta, rahats&
headache
ba a3rs
to catch a cold
so3uk almak
flu
grip
measles
ne&le
tootache
di a3rs
stomach ache
karn a3rs
contagious
bulac
ulcer
%lser
cancer
kanser
to faint
ba!lmak
hiccups
h1krk
migraine
migren
heart attack
kalp kri&i
itch
kat
to itch
kanmak
angina
anjin
bronchitis
bronit
-ow, some some sentences for telling !ou or somebod! somebod ! is sick.
* I am sick. ( 3astaym 3astaym.) * I am ver! sick. (4ok hastaym.) * I have a toothache. ( 5i6im .) 5i6im ağryor .) * I have a cold. ( 7e)leyim 7e)leyim. or 7e)le oldum.) * I got sick. ( 3asta 3asta oldum. or 3astalandm.) * I don?t feel well. ( 8yi 8yi hissetmiyorum. ) * :! foot is itching. ( 9yağm .) 9yağm ka6nyor ka6nyor .)
If somebod! tells !ou that he is sick or somebod! close to him is sick, !ou sa!7 * =e1mi olsun. (This is like wishing for recover!.)
ouse an! urniture
nglish
Turkish
ouse v
door
kap
room
oda
front door
2n kap
back door
arka kap
window
pencere
kitchen
mutfak
bedroom
!atak odas
dining room
!emek odas
living room
oturma odas
chldren's room
1ocuk odas
bathroom
ban!o
toilet
tuvalet
balcon!
balkon
corridor
koridor
garden
bah1e
basement
bodrum
ground floor
&emin kat
garage
garaj
terrace
teras
!ard
avlu
upper floorBstor!
%st kat
loft
tavan aras
cellar
kiler
stairs
merdiven
step
basamak
lift, elevator
asans2r
wall
duvar
roof
1at
fireplace
2mine /urniture 3%alar
table
masa
bookcase
kitaplk
chair
sandal!e
wardrobe
gardrop
shelf
raf
armchair
koltuk
sofa
koltuk * kanepe
shower
du
trash bin
12p kutusu
ashtra!
k%l tablas
bathtub
k%vet
door mat
paspas
tap
musluk
heating
kalorifer
candle
mum
ke!
anahtar
lamp
lamba
frame
1er1eve
socket
pri&
plug
fi
mirror
a!na
door bell
kap &ili
radio
rad!o
television
televi&!on
computer
bilgisa!ar
pan
tava
glass
bardak
bottle
ie
plate
tabak
spoon
kak
fork haracter
1atal
Englis(
)ur*is(
)haracter 4arakter
beha#ior
!a#ran78
honest
!9r9st
patient
sab7rl7
i"patient
sab7rs7:
kin!
kibar
prou!
gururlu
polite
kibar
i"polite
kaba
!ecent
terbi$eli - na:ik
skilul
$etenekli
'itt$, cle#er
:eki - ak7ll7
;uite
suskun - sessi:
curious
"erakl7
ni"als
Englis(
)ur*is(
Animals --- +a,vanlar ani"al
ha$#an
lion
aslan
tiger
kaplan
sheep
ko$un
co'
inek
bull
bo1a
ox
hen
ta#uk
rooster
horo:
pig
!o"u:
horse
at
!onke$
e8ek
turke$
hin!i
*o!$ parts
Englis(
)ur*is(
'udumu/ --- 0ur Bod, hea!
kafa * ba
bo!$
#9cut - g<#!e
ar"
kol
leg
bacak
han!
el
oot
a$ak
+nger
par"ak
in!ex +nger
i8aret par"a17
thu"b
ba8 par"ak
e$e
g<:
ear
kulak
hair
sa0
nail
t7rnak
6a"il$
Englis(
)ur*is(
ather
baba
"other
anne
brother
(erkek) kar!e8
sister
(k7:) kar!e8
el!er brother
abi
el!er sister
abla
son
o1ul - erkek 0ocuk
!aughter
k7: - k7: 0ocuk
aunt ("other si!e)
te$:e
aunt (ather si!e)
hala
gran!ather
!e!e - b9$9kbaba
gran!"other
nine - b9$9kanne
gran!"other ("other si!e)
anneanne
gran!"other (ather si!e)
babaanne
nephe', niece
$e1en
uncle (ather si!e)
a"ca
uncle ("other si!e)
!a$7
cousin
ku:en
ather-in-la'
ka$7nbaba - ka$7npe!er
"other-in-la'
ka$nana - ka$7n#ali!e
sister-in-la'
bal!7:
sister-in-la'=s husban!
bacanak
son-in-la'
!a"at
!aughter-in-la'
gelin
sister=s husban!
eni8te
gran!son, gran!!aughter, gran!chil!
torun
t'in
iki:
t'in brother, t'in sister
iki: kar!e8
'ie
e8, han7", kar7
husban!
koca
step "other
9#e$ anne
step ather
9#e$ baba
6ruits an! #egetables
Englis(
)ur*is(
ruits --- Me,veler banana
mu&
apple
el"a
orange
portakal
grape
9:9"
cherr$
kira:
tangerine
"an!alina
sour cherr$
#i8ne
pear
ar"ut
a#oca!o
a#oka!o
pineapple
ananas
stra'berr$
0ilek
currant
ku89:9"9
graperuit
gre$urt
olors
Englis(
)ur*is(
*lack
/i!ah
&hite
*e$a:
5e!
>7r"7:7
*lue
Ma#i
?range
Turuncu
@reen
e8il
urple
Mor
ink
e"be
*ro'n
>ah#erengi
ello'
Aar7
@re$
@ri
olor
5enk
Bight
07k
Cark
>o$u
The 6uestion for asking colors is constructed similar to the wa! it?s done in "nglish7 :ng 7 Dhat color is J Tr 7 ne renkJ ( 3ere" ne is what and renk is color )
The answer is also simple7 "ng7 is red. Tr7 krm&. 0owever, note the difference in word ordering when !ou want to add a color (or an! adjective) to an indefinite noun. "ng7 red . Tr7 8rm& bir . (-ot ? ir krm) ;;; ?)
-ow, tr! to understand the following sentences. "nglish translations are below the Turkish sentences. E. +u araba a1k mavi. . "vim ko!u krm&. U. =2&lerin ne renkJ O. +e!a& bir g2mlek aldm.
E. This car is light blue. . :! house is dark red. U. Dhat color are !our e!esJ O. I bought a white shirt. Duantit$ &or!s
Englis(
nton$"s
)ur*is(
a little, so"e
bira&
#er$, "uch, "an$
0ok
enough
$eterli
an$, no, none
hi0
e'
a:
too "uch, too "an$
0ok a:la
too
a:la
"ore
!aha a:la, !aha 0ok
less
!aha a:
a e'
birka0 (tane)
set of important anton!ms !ou need to know... Englis(
)ur*is(
big-s"all
b%!%k*k%1%k
ast-slo'
h7:l7-$a#a8
;uick-slo'
0abuk-$a#a8
ull-e"pt$
!olu-bo8
eas$-!ifcult
kola$-:or
hea#$-light
a17r-ha+
open-shut
a07k-kapal7
right-'rong
!o1ru-$anl78
ol!-ne'
eski-$eni
ol!-$oung
$a8l7-gen0
+rst-last
ilk-son
beautiul-ugl$
g9:el-0irkin
ree-bus$
serbest-"e8gul
Bo#e
goo!-ba!
i!i*k2t%
better-'orse
!aha i$i-!aha k
the best-the 'orst
en i$i-en k
earl$-late
erken-ge0
cheap-expensi#e
ucu:-pahal7
near-ar
$ak7n-u:ak
here-there
bura!a-ora!a
right-let
sa1-sol
tall-short
u:un-k7sa
!ark-light
ko$u-a07k
high-lo'
$9ksek-al0ak
open-close!
a07k-kapal7
thin-thick
ince-kal7n
sli"-at
:a$7-8i8"an
In this lesson, we will cover the love words and epressions in Turkish. In "nglish, !ou can use words like 'honey" darling" sweetheart ' to call the person !ou love. 4et's start with a list of love words used to call the person !ou love in Turkish. general point here is that !ou alwa!s use these words with possession in Turkish. Instead of sa!ing 'honey', the word !ou use in Turkish means 'my honey'. I will also give the direct translations of these words to "nglish. lthough the meaning of some of these words ma! seem strange, the! can all be used to call the person !ou love. )ur*is(
Englis(
a8k7"
m! love
can7"
"$ lie
bi tane"
"$ onl$ one
ha$at7"
"$ lie
se#gili"
"$ !arling
bal7"
"$ hone$
tatl7"
"$ s'eet$ (use! or girls)
g9:eli"
"$ beautiul (use! or girls)
0i0e1i"
"$ Eo'er (use! or girls)
g9l9"
"$ rose (use! or girls)
"ele1i"
"$ angel (use! or girls)
-ow, let's see some common love phrases in Turkish and their meanings7 )ur*is(
Englis(
Aeni se#i$oru".
I love !ou.
Aeni 0ok se#i$oru".
lo#e $ou #er$ "uch.
Aen!en 0ok ho8lan7$oru".
like $ou #er$ "uch.
*eni"le 07kar "7s7nF
&oul! $ou like to go out 'ith "eF
*eni"le !ans e!er "isinF
&oul! $ou like to !ance 'ith "eF
*eni"le e#lenir "isinF
&ill $ou "arr$ "eF
G#len"e tekli+.
Marriage proposal.
Ni8anl7
6iancee
59$alar7"7n erke1isinHka!7n7s7n.
ou are the "anH'o"an o "$ !rea"s.
Aeninle ol"ak isti$oru".
'ant to be 'ith $ou.
Aeninle kal"ak isti$oru".
'ant to sta$ 'ith $ou.
Aeni 0ok <:l9$oru".
a" "issing $ou #er$ "uch.
Aeni 0ok <:le!i".
"isse! $ou #er$ "uch.
*ira: !aha kalabilir "isinF
an $ou sta$ a little longerF
Aeni bir !aha ne :a"an g
&hen 'ill see $ou nextF
*ir $erler!e bulu8al7".
Bet=s "eet so"e'here.
Aeni g
'ant to see $ou.
Iok g9:elsin.
ou are #er$ beautiul.
-ow, time to use what !ou learned. Cate an! Ti"e
2. Ti"e
4et?s start with simple dialogue sentences about time, the 6uestion and different answers. )ime - Englis(
)ur*is( Parant(eses or e!#lanation onl,4
&hat ti"e is itF
Aaat ka0F
t is ten oclock.
Aaat on (2K).
t is +#e past ten.
Aaat onu (2K-i) be8 (L) ge0i$or.
t is +#e past +#e.
Aaat be8i (L-i) be8 (L) ge0i$or.
t is +#e past six.
Aaat alt7$7 (-$O-i) be8 (L) ge0i$or.
t is +#e past three.
Aaat 909 (3-i) be8 (L) ge0i$or.
t is ;uarter past ten.
Aaat onu (2K-i) 0e$rek (;uarter) ge0i$or.
t is ten t'ent$.
Aaat onu (2K-i) $ir"i (/K) ge0i$or.
t is hal past ten.
Aaat on (2K) bu0uk (hal).
t is ten thirt$ +#e.
Aaat on bire (22-e) $ir"i be8 (/L) #ar.
t is ten ort$.
Aaat on bire (22-e) $ir"i (/K) #ar.
t is ;uarter to ele#en.
Aaat on bire (22-e) 0e$rek (;uarter) #ar.
t is ten to ele#en.
Aaat on bire (22-e) on (2K) #ar.
t is ele#en.
Aaat on bir (22).
Pronouns 2 In the previous lesson on pronouns, we covered the basic pronouns. The topics covered were7 •
ersonal pronouns (ben" sen" o" bi)" si)" onlar )
•
Kemonstrative pronouns (bu" 6u" o" bunlar" 6unlar" onlar )
•
ossessive pronouns o
o
•
ersonal possessive pronouns (benim" senin" onun" bi)im" si)in" onlarn) Kemonstrative possessive pronouns (bunun" 6unun" onun" bunlarn" 6unlarn" onlarn)
Lefleive pronouns (kendim, kendin, kendisi, kendimi&, kendini&, kendileri)
There are also other pronouns used for man! different situations, like everybody, nothing ... 4et's now see the Turkish meanings for these pronouns. nglish
Turkish
5asic co'ponents of these pronouns
ever!
her
thing
e!
none
hi1
an!
herhangibir
one, a
bir
some
ba&
all
b%t%n Pronouns
ever!thing
here! bire! (singular)
something
bire!ler (plural)
nothing
hi1bir e!
an!thing
herhangibir e!
ever!bod!
herkes birisi (singular)
somebod!
birileri (plural)
nobod!
hi1 kimse
an!bod!
herhangi birisi
all of these
(bunlarn) hepsi
all of those
(onlarn) hepsi
all of us
hepimi&
all of !ou
hepini&
none of these
(bunlarn) hi1biri
none of those
(onlarn) hi1biri
none of us
hi1birimi&
none of !ou
hi1birini&
some of these
(bunlarn) ba&lar
some of those
(onlarn) ba&lar
some of us
ba&larm&
some of !ou
ba&larn&
In "nglish, some of these pronouns that have negative meanings are used in positive sentences. For eample, There is nobod! here. (Instead of there isn't nobod! here) In Turkish, !ou never do this. If the meaning of a pronoun is negative, it must alwa!s be used in a negative sentence. /imilarl!, pronouns with positive meanings must alwa!s be used in positive sentences. There is nobod! here. **$ +urada hi1kimse !ok.
-ow, let's use some of these pronouns in sentences7 "ver! flower does not smell. **$ 0er 1i1ek kokma&. Dhat is this thingJ **$ +u e! neJ There is none left. **$ 0i1 kalmad. /ome students are here. **$ +a& 23renciler burada. ll students are here. **$ +%t%n 23renciler burada. "ver!thing's ok. **$ 0ere! !olunda. "ver!thing is here. **$ 0ere! burada. sk something. **$ +ire! sor. I saw nothing. **$ 0i1bir e! g2rmedim. Is there an!thingJ **$ 0erhangibir e! var mJ
Is ever!bod! hereJ **$ 0erkes burada mJ /omebod! came. **$ +irisi geldi. -obod! came. **$ 0i1 kimse gelmedi. n!bod! can come. **$ 0erhangi birisi gelebilir. ll of these are mine. **$ +unlarn hepsi benim. ronouns 2 ersonal ronouns
0ere are the Turkish translations of the personal pronouns. 0owever, these pronouns are generall! omitted in sentences since person is implied in the adjectives or the verbs in sentences. The! are often used to stress the person.
i
ben
i a" adjective
ben adjective-i"
$ou
sen
$ou are adjective
sen adjective-sin
he
she
he o
it
she A is ad,ective
o adjective
it B
'e
bi:
'e are adjective
bi: adjective-i:
$ou
si:
$ou are adjective
si: adjective-sini:
the$
onlar
the$ are adjective
onlar adjectiveler
g*(el 6 beautiful
I am beautiful. **$ +en g%&el*im. **$ =%&elim. (ersonal pronoun is implied) ou are beautiful. **$ /en g%&el*sin. **$ =%&elsin. 0eBsheBit is beautiful. **$ 9 g%&el. **$ =%&el. De are beautiful. **$ +i& g%&el*i&. **$ =%&eli&. ou are beautiful. **$ /i& g%&el*sini&. **$ =%&elsini&. The! are beautiful. **$ 9nlar g%&el*ler. **$ =%&eller.
k7t* 6 bad
I am bad. **$ +en k2t%*!*%m. **$ 82t%!%m. (-ote how k2t% and *(m are connected with the fusion consonant ? y?.) ou are bad. **$ /en k2t%*s%n. **$ 82t%s%n. 0eBsheBit is bad. **$ 9 k2t%. **$ 82t%. De are bad. **$ +i& k2t%*!*%&. **$ 82t%!%&. ou are bad. **$ /i& k2t%*sini&. **$ 82t%s%n%&. The! are bad. **$ 9nlar k2t%*ler. **$ 82t%ler.
geli%or 6 co'ing 8present continuous tense9
I am coming. **$ +en geli!or*um. **$ =eli!orum. ou are coming. **$ /en geli!or*sun. **$ =eli!orsun.
0eBsheBit is coming. **$ 9 geli!or. **$ =eli!or. De are coming. **$ +i& geli!or*u&. **$ =eli!oru&. ou are coming. **$ /i& geli!or*sunu&. **$ =eli!orsunu&. The! are coming. **$ 9nlar geli!or*lar. **$ =eli!orlar. For nouns other than these pronouns, !ou must use the third person case. :ar&ena is beautiful. **$ :ar&ena g%&el. :ar&ena is ver! beautiful. **$ :ar&ena 1ok g%&el. 5oe is bad. **$ 5oe k2t%. 5oe is coming. **$ 5oe geli!or.
Ce"onstrati#e pronouns
These are the pronouns used for obects instead of people. this
bu
that (bet'een this an! that)
8u
that
o
these
bunlar
those (bet'een these an! those)
8unlar
those
onlar
kitap 6 book
+u bir kitap. **$ This is a book. Vu bir kitap. **$ That is a book. 9 bir kitap. **$ That is a book. +unlar kitaplar. **$ These are books. Vunlar kitaplar. **$ Those are books. 9nlar kitaplar. **$ Those are books.
ossessi#e ronouns Personal #osessive #ronouns: "$
ben-i"
"$ noun
ben-i" noun-i"
$our
sen-in
$our noun
sen-in noun-in
his
her
his o-n-un
its
her A noun
o-n-un noun-i
its B
our
bi:-i"
our noun
bi:-i" noun-i"i:
$our
si:-in
$our noun
si:-in noun-ini:
their
onlar-7n
their noun
onlar-7n noun-leri
-otice hisBherBits is o-n-un instead of o-un. /ince two vowels don?t come together in Turkish, one fusion consonant is added in between. It is ?n? in this case. "ither a fusion consonant is added in between, or one of the vowels is dropped whenever a vowel is followed b! another vowel. Dhich techni6ue must be used changes among different rules, but it is consistent in a single rule. This will be mentioned in different lessons when necessar!.
ev 6 house
m! house **$ ben*im ev*im **$ evim (personal pronoun is implied) !our house **$ sen*in ev*in **$ evin hisBherBits house **$ o*n*in ev*i **$ onun evi **$ evi our house **$ bi&*im ev*imi& **$ evimi& !our house **$ si&*in ev*ini& **$ evini& their house **$ onlar*n ev*leri **$ evleri
araba 6 car
m! car **$ ben*im araba*m **$ arabam (the suffi *im becomes *m when added after a vowel, since two vowels don?t come together in Turkish) !our car **$ sen*in araba*n **$ araban hisBherBits car **$ o*n*in araba*s* **$ onun arabas **$ arabas (Instead of dropping one vowel, here the fusion consonant ?s? is added between vowels since the suffi is onl! a single vowel.)
our car **$ bi&*im araba*m& **$ arabam& !our car **$ si&*in araba*n& **$ araban& their car **$ onlar*n araba*lar **$ arabalar
For nouns other than these pronouns, alwa!s the third person form is used. =i&em?s house **$ =i&em?in evi =i&em?s car **$ =i&em?in arabas :! mother?s house **$ nnemin evi
"emonstartive #osessive #ronouns: o this
bu-nun
o that (bet'een this an! that)
8u-nun
o that
o-n-un
o these
bunlar -7n
o those (bet'een these an! those)
8unlar7n
o those
onlar-
7n
+unun evi **$ The house of this Vunun evi **$ The house of that 9nun evi **$ The house of that +unlarn evleri **$ The house of these. Vunlarn evleri **$ The house of those. 9nlarn evleri **$ The house of those.
For nouns other than these pronouns, alwa!s the third person form is used. The room of the house **$ "vin odas at?s food **$ 8edinin !eme3i
5eEexi#e ronouns
The wa! refleive pronouns are constructed in Turkish is ver! similar to the wa! we do it in "nglish. The Turkish word for self is kendi. The refleive pronouns hence are as follows7
"$sel
ken !ii"
ken!i "
$oursel
ken
ken!i
!iin
n
ken !isi
ken!i si
oursel# es
ken !ii"i :
ken!i "i:
$oursel #es
ken !iini:
ken!i ni:
the"s el#es
ken !ileri
ken!i leri
hi"sel
herself itself
Nu"bers
onstructing numbers in Turkish is simple and straightforward. The rule is to line up the parts in decreasing magnitude like in "nglish, but without putting an! conjunctive words in between. For eample, direct translation of E
K
s77r
/2
$ir"i bir
2
bir
//
$ir"i iki
/
iki
3K
otu:
3
90
PK
k7rk
P
!
LK
elli
L
be8
K
alt"78
alt7
QK
$et"i8
Q
$e!i
RK
seksen
R
seki:
SK
!oksan
S
!oku:
2KK
$9:
2K
on
23Q
$9: otu: $e!i
22
on bir
/KK
iki $9:
Alphabet Turkish alphabet consists of Y letters * N vowels and E consonants. "ach letter has eactl! one associated sound which never changes. Three letters of the "nglish alphabet are missing in the Turkish alphabet. E. (Z*6) . (D*w) U. (*)
There are seven additional characters not found in the "nglish alphabet. E. (H*1) . ([*3) U. (I*) O. (P*i) <. (C*2) W. (V*) \. (Q*%) The letters of Turkish alphabet and the sounds associated with these are in the following table...
:ette r
, a
Pronunciation
like the a in car
+, b
like the b in bet
, c
like the g in gender
H, 1
like the ch in chance
K, d
like the d in debt
", e
like the e in less
F, f
like the f in f elon!
=, g
like the g in game
[, 3
this is a ver! weak sound, not pronouncing at all will be ok
0, h
like the h in hello
I,
like the e in halted
P, i
like the ee in k een
5, j
like the s in leisure
8, k
like the k in k ell!
4, l
like the l in lamb
:, m
like the m in 'an
-, n
like the n in neighbor
9, o
like the a in ball
C, 2
like the u in urge
, p
like the p in pen
L, r
like the r in rent
/, s
like the s in send
V,
like the sh in shed
T, t
like the t in tennis
>, u
like the oo in good
Q, %
like the u in nude
G, v
like the v in vent
, !
like the % in %es
], &
like the ( in (en
;ntroduction
ral*ltaic languages. /ome languages similar to Turkish are ? orean" ?ongolian" >a)ak" @)bek" Tatar" ?anchu?. ompared to "nglish, the most fundamental differences in Turkish grammar can be listed as7 •
9rdering of sentence parts o
t!pical Turkish sentence is ordered as (subject ^ object ^ verb)
rkadam [?y friend --A sub,ect] araba [car --Aob,ect] ald [bought--
Averb]. •
-o gender o
o
•
-o gender in personal pronouns (the Turkish word for he, she and it is o)
Gowel harmon! o
•
There are no articles in Turkish, and no gender associated with words
0armon! of vowels is a ver! fundamental propert! of Turkish. The rules concerning vowel harmon! need to be learned as one of the first steps because the! affect the wa! almost all the other rules are applied.
>se of suffies o
/uffies are ver! widel! used in Turkish. The meaning of prepositions, personal pronouns and tenses are all countered b! adding suffies to word roots.
8albimdesin [Bou are in my heart]
9nce !ou get to these differences and learn the basic harmon! rules, the rest of the grammar is 6uite simple. lmost ever!thing follows well defined, simple rules.
Sounds nother important point is the wa! !ou read a written tet. There is eactl! one sound for each character in Turkish. character alwa!s represents the same sound, regardless of its position in a word or the characters net to it. Therefore, it is straightforward to pronounce a word that !ou see for the first time once !ou are familiar with the characters in the Turkish alphabet.
,ocabular% 9nce !ou are comfortable or at least familiar with the harmon! rules, the main challenge will be the vocabular!. Turkish vocabular! can be ver! challenging since the words have no resemblance to the "uropean languages ecept the few words adapted directl! from these languages.
resent ontinuous Tense
)enses There are < fundamental tenses in Turkish. These are7 E. resent simple tense (=eni &aman) . resent continuous tense (Vimdiki &aman) U. Future tense (=elecek &aman) O. ast tense with *di (*di'li ge1mi &aman) **$ Legular past tense <. ast tense with *mi (*mi'li ge1mi &aman) **$ lso called the stor! past tense In the basic grammar lessons, we will cover the present continuous tense and the future tense. Lest will be covered in the intermediate level lessons.
To start with, let's review some verbs we'll use in the following lessons and their meanings7 gelmek **$ to come gitmek **$ to go okumak **$ to read kapatmak **$ to close komak **$ to run aramak **$ to call konumak **$ to talk vermek **$ to give ka!namak **$ to boil 1almak **$ to work
!emek **$ to eat beklemek **$ to wait
The meaning of tenses are given using some suffies. There are some important properties common to all these suffies denoting tense7 •
•
The suffi for tenses is added right after the verb root if the verb is positive, or after the negating suffi if the verb is negative. The present tense for of 'to be' comes after the suffi for tense. o
o
Therefore, the order becomes7 verb root ^ (negative) ^ tense ^ present tense to be This is different onl! for the regular past tense, where past tense form of to be is used.
2. resent continuous tense (i"!iki :a"an)
The suffi for present continuous tense is *iyor . resent continuous tense is used, ver! much like the one in "nglish7 •
•
To tell what !ou are currentl! doing o
I am working now. **$ Vimdi 1al!orum.
o
I am eating ice cream. **$ Kondurma !i!orum.
To tell something !ou will do in the close future o
Dait, I'm coming in < minutes. **$ +ekle, < dakika i1inde geli!orum.
resent continuous tense is used onl! for verbs, it is not meaningful for nouns and adjectives.
resent continuous tense of a verb is constructed this wa!7
verb root ^ (negative) ^ i!or ^ present tense to be
If the verb !ou want to add the suffi *iyor ends with a vowel, drop the last vowel and add *iyor . 9therwise, just simpl! add *iyor. +e careful about the vowel harmon! rules for the 'i' of *iyor . 4et's see how a verb is put into present continuous tense on the following eamples7 gel*i!or **$ geli!or **$ he is coming git*i!or*im **$ gidi!orum **$ i am going oku*i!or **$ oku!or **$ he is reading kapat*i!or*i& **$ kapat!oru& **$ we are closing ko*i!or **$ kou!or **$ he is running ara*i!or*sin **$ ar!orsun **$ !ou are calling konu*i!or **$ konuu!or **$ he is talking ver*me*i!or **$ vermi!or **$ he is not giving !e*me*i!or **$ !emi!or **$ he is not eating gel*me*i!or*sini& **$ gelmi!orsunu& **$ !ou are not coming (plural !ou)
nd let's see how present continuous tense is used with different cases of person. English
)ur*is( to 'ome --5 gelme*
i a" co"ing
(ben) geli$or-i" --U geli$oru"
$ou are co"ing
(sen) geli$or-sin --U geli$orsun
he V
she A is coming
(o) geli$or
it B 'e are co"ing
(bi:) geli$or-i: --U geli$oru:
$ou are co"ing
(si:) geli$or-sini: --U geli$orsunu:
the$ are co"ing
(onlar) geli$or-ler --U geli$orlar
6uture Tense
)enses There are < fundamental tenses in Turkish. These are7 E. resent simple tense (=eni &aman) . resent continuous tense (Vimdiki &aman) U. Future tense (=elecek &aman) O. ast tense with *di (*di'li ge1mi &aman) **$ Legular past tense <. ast tense with *mi (*mi'li ge1mi &aman) **$ lso called the stor! past tense In the basic grammar lessons, we will cover the present continuous tense and the future tense. Lest will be covered in the intermediate level lessons.
To start with, let's review some verbs we'll use in the following lessons and their meanings7 gelmek **$ to come gitmek **$ to go okumak **$ to read kapatmak **$ to close komak **$ to run aramak **$ to call konumak **$ to talk vermek **$ to give ka!namak **$ to boil 1almak **$ to work
!emek **$ to eat beklemek **$ to wait
The meaning of tenses are given using some suffies. There are some important properties common to all these suffies denoting tense7 •
•
The suffi for tenses is added right after the verb root if the verb is positive, or after the negating suffi if the verb is negative. The present tense for of 'to be' comes after the suffi for tense. o
o
Therefore, the order becomes7 verb root ^ (negative) ^ tense ^ present tense to be This is different onl! for the regular past tense, where past tense form of to be is used.
/. 6uture tense (@elecek :a"an)
The suffi for future tense in Turkish is *ecek . There are not two different cases like in "nglish will and is going to. Future tense is alwa!s constructed using the suffi *ecek . The uses of the Turkish future tense is just like a union of the uses of will and going to in "nglish. •
To epress an! action that will take place in the future.
Future tense is used onl! for verbs, it is not meaningful for nouns and adjectives.
Future tense of a verb is constructed this wa!7 verb root ^ (negative) ^ ecek ^ present tense to be
Dhen !ou want to append the suffi *ecek to a verb that ends with a vowel, !ou add the fusion consonant 'y' between the verb and the suffi to separate the two vowels. 9therwise, just simpl!
add the suffi *ecek . +e careful about the harmon! rules though, as alwa!s. 4et's see how future tense is obtained using some eample verbs7 gel*ecek **$ gelecek **$ he will come git*ecek*im **$ gidece3im **$ I will go oku*ecek*sin **$ oku!acaksn **$ !ou will read kapat*ecek*i& **$ kapataca3& **$ we will close ko*ecek*sini& **$ koacaksn& **$ !ou will run (plural !ou) ara*ecek*ler **$ ara!acaklar **$ the! will call konu*me*ecek **$ konuma!acak **$ he will not talk ver*me*ecek*sin **$ verme!eceksin **$ !ou will not give
To see the use of future tense with different cases of person, check the following table7 )ur*is(
English
to 'lose --5 *a#atma* i 'ill close
(ben) kapatacak-i" --U kapataca17"
$ou 'ill close
(sen) kapatacak-sin --U kapatacaks7n
he V
she A will close it B
(o) kapatacak
Duestions
'e 'ill close
(bi:) kapatacak-i: --U kapataca17:
$ou 'ill close
(si:) kapatacak-sini: --U kapatacaks7n7:
the$ 'ill close
(onlar) kapatacak-ler --U kapatacaklar
6uestion Senten'es Zuestion sentences in Turkish can be classified into two groups like in "nglish7 E. es*no 6uestions . Legular 6uestions There are also 6uestion tags, i.e. 6uestions of the form ;ou are coming, aren't !ouJ;. In this lesson, we will see how these different t!pes of 6uestions can be asked in Turkish. +efore looking at how 6uestions are constructed, let's see the 6uestion words in Turkish. Englis(
)ur*is(
'hatF
neF
'hoF
ki"F
'hichF
hangiF
'hereF
nereF
'henF
ne :a"anF
ho'F
nas7lF
ho' "an$F
ka0 taneF
ho' "uchF
ne ka!arF
ho' otenF
ne s7kl7kla
-ow, let's see how different t!pes of 6uestion sentences can be constructed. 2. es-no ;uestions
In Turkish, !es*no 6uestions are constructed with the 6uestion suffi '-mi' . It is important to note, however, the 6uestion suffi -mi is written separate from the word it is appended to. ou can ask at this point7 ;Dh! is it a suffi instead of a separate word if it is written separatel!J;. The reason 6uestion suffi -mi is regarded as a suffi is that it has to satisf! the major and minor vowel harmon! rules for the word it is appended to. 4et's see some eample sentences demonstrating the use of the 6uestion suffi -mi. . This is a book. **$ +u bir kitap. +. Is this a bookJ **$ +u bir kitap mJ (-ote how the regular sentence is turned into a !es*no 6uestion sentence b! the addition of the 6uestion suffi -mi) E. es, this is a book. **$ "vet, bu bir kitap. . -o, this is not a book. This is a notebook. **$ 0a!r, bu bir kitap de3il. +u bir defter.
. 0is name is hmet. **$ 9nun ad hmet. +. Is his name hmetJ **$ 9nun ad hmet miJ E. es, his name is hmet. . -o, his name is not hmet. 0is name is :ehmet. **$ 0a!r, onun ad hmet de3il. 9nun ad :ehmet. U. -o. 0is name is :ehmet. **$ 0a!r. 9nun ad :ehmet.
. This is m! house. **$ bu benim evim +. Is this !our houseJ **$ +u senin evin miJ
E. es, this is m! house. **$ "vet, bu benim evim. . -o, this is not m! house. This is m! mother's house. **$ 0a!r, bu benim evim de3il. +u annemin evi.
/. 5egular ;uestions
Legular 6uestions are the ones constructed using the 6uestion words listed above and the answers to these 6uestions are not simpl! !es or no. In "nglish, there is a certain word order for regular 6uestion sentences. The 6uestion word comes first, and the rest of the sentence elements follow it. In Turkish, however, 6uestions are constructed in a 6uite different wa!. To learn how to construct a 6uestion, a simple wa! is to follow the following steps. This will work in most cases7 2. onstruct the ans'er sentence. /. Bocate the 'or! or phrase that is the actual ans'er to the ;uestion. 3. Just replace that 'or! or phrase 'ith the appropriate ;uestion 'or!.
4et's appl! this on an eample. The 6uestion we want to ask is, ;Dho is thisJ;. 2. The ans'er sentence 'ill be so"ething like W This is my brother . --U Bu benim kardeşim.W /. The ans'er to the ;uestion is the phrase W my brother --U benim kardeşimW. 3. 5eplace this phrase 'ith the ;uestion 'or! Wwho --U kimW an! the ;uestion sentence beco"es WBu kimFW.
To summari&e, a 6uestion sentence has the same word order as a regular sentence. The difference is that the part of the sentence that is asked is replaced b! the appropriate 6uestion word. The 6uestion word takes all the suffies of the word it is replaced for. onsider the sentence ;hmet eve gidi!or. **$ hmet is going home.; Dho is going homeJ **$ 8im eve gidi!orJ ( 9hmet in the regular sentence is replaced b! who. The rest of the sentence is the same.) Dhere did hmet goJ **$ hmet nere!e gittiJ (ev in the regular sentence is replaced b! nere. -ote that the 6uestion word nere also takes the suffi -e of the word ev and becomes nere!e, meaning 'to where' )
Dhat is hmet doingJ **J hmet ne !ap!orJ (The phrase 'eve gidiyor ' in the original sentence is replaced b! ;ne yapyor **$ what's he doing ;)
-ote that to make a 6uestion sentence asking a verb, we use 7 ;Chat D to be %in the appropriate tense& ^ ob,ect ^ to do %in the appropriate tense&; :$E7 Dhat are !ou doingJ :$F7 Dhat did hmet doJ
In Turkish, this structure becomes7 ;Gb,ect ^ ne ^ yapmak %in the appropriate tense and person&; :$E7 (/en) ne !ap!orsunJ :$F7 hmet ne !aptJ
This is simpl! the regular sentence where the action is replaced b! ;ne ^ yapmak ;, which is consistent with our rule for constructing 6uestion sentences.
3. Duestion tags
Zuestion tags are the 6uestions of the form7 ou are home, aren't !ouJ 0e did his homework, didn't heJ :ehmet will come toda!, won't heJ
onstructing 6uestion phrases in Turkish is ver! simple and straightforward. ou just add ;değil mi; at the end regardless of the sentence. The translations for the 6uestion tags above are then7
"vdesin, de3il miJ Cdevini !apt, de3il miJ :ehmet bug%n gelecek, de3il miJ "perati#es - Bet
:aking a verb imperative for the second singular person ( sen), is the same as it is done in "nglish. 5ust use the plain verb without an! suffi or change. Dhen !ou want to order something to a single person listening to !ou, !ou just sa! the plain verb. "amples7 ome_ **$ =el_ =o_ **$ =it_ Lead_ **$ 9ku_ /it down_ **$ 9tur_ /tand up_ **$ 8alk_ 0owever, different from "nglish, there is an imperative form for different cases of person. 4et ?s see now how these are constructed7
Su!
Personal Pronoun
*en
No +rst person singular or"
Aen
* (no suffi)
?
-sin
*i:
No +rst person plural or"
Ai:
-in
?nlar
-sinler
-ow, let?s see the meaning of each case using the verb to go (gitmek).
)ase
Meaning
(sen) git
go_ (singular, to a single person)
(o) git-sin --U gitsin
let him go (not like ;allow him to go;, this has the meaning that !ou want him to go in an imperative wa!)
(si:) git-in --U gi!in
goX (plural, to "ultiple people)
(onlar) git-sinler --U gitsinler
let the" go (again, the "eaning is not like Wallo' the" to goW, gitsinler "eans that $ou 'ant the" to go an! $ou are expressing this in an i"perati#e 'a$)
s !ou can see, a commonl! used clause, ;let#s;, is included in the imperative definition. If !ou want to sa! ; Het#s go to the movie;, it becomes ;Sinemaya gidelim; in Turkish. -ow, let?s see how the eample verbs we used above are made imperative with respect to different cases of person.
Personal Pronoun
gelme* - to 'ome
gitme* to go
o*uma* to read
oturma* to sit do$n
*al*ma* to stand u#
sen
gel
git
oku
otur
kalk
o
gelsin
gitsin
okusun
otursun
kalks7n
si:
gelin
gi!in
oku$un
oturun
kalk7n
onlar
gelsiler
gitsinler
okusunlar
otursunlar
kalks7nlar
There is no first person singular or first person plural form of the imperatives, but there is another form called -ish clause that gives a similar meaning for the first person singular and plural . -ote that onl! the first person singular and first person plural forms of the wish clause are used in practice. 0ere is how the wish clause is constructed7
Personal Pronoun
Suffix
Ben
-eyim
Biz
-elim
Case
Meaning
(ben) git-eyim --> gideyim
let me go
(biz) git-elim --> gidelim
let´s go
Personal Pronoun
gelmek - to
gitmek - to
okumak - to
oturmak - to
kalkmak - to
come
go
read
sit down
stand up
Ben
Geleyim
gideyim
okuyayım
oturayım
kalkayım
Biz
Gelelim
gidelim
okuyalım
oturalım
kalkalım
Cegrees o !jecti#es
omparatives and superlatives are constructed in a ver! straightforward wa! in Turkish. +esides these, there is a special wa! of making adjectives stronger in Turkish and this is not ver! trivial. I this lesson, we will cover all these topics. 2. o"parati#es 1.1. More7 8ess omparative of an adjective is obtained b! adding the word ;daha; before the adjective. De can sa! that daha is the word for more and all adjective comparatives are constructed like 'more clever' (not like faster).
faster **$ daha h&l slower **$ daha !ava more intelligent **$ daha &eki more hardworking **$ daha 1alkan more beautiful **$ daha g%&el
If !ou want to sa! less beautiful or less hardworking, then replace the word 'daha' with 'daha a)'. less fast **$ daha a& h&l less intelligent **$ daha a& &eki less hardworking **$ daha a& 1alkan less beautiful **$ daha a& g%&el
-ow, let's see how the comparative form of an adjective is used in sentences. I am beautiful. **$ (+en) g%&elim. I am more beautiful. **$ (+en) daha g%&elim. ou are more beautiful. **$ (/en) daha g%&elsin. /he is more beautiful. **$ (9) daha g%&el.
This is a fast car. **$ +u h&l bir araba. This is a faster car. **$ +u daha h&l bir araba. This car is faster. **$ +u araba daha h&l.
1.2. More t(an If !ou want to compare two nouns with respect to an adjective, the structure used in "nglish is as follows7
nounE is 'ore ad,ective than nounF
:$EI hmet is more hardworking than :ehmet. :$FI I am more intelligent than !ou.
The structure to epress the same meaning in Turkish is as follows7 nounE nounF*den daha ad,ective :$EI hmet :ehmet'ten daha 1alkan. (-ote that the ' sign is used to separate private names from their suffies) :$FI +en senden daha &eki!im.
-ow, let's see a few eample sentences with this epression. * +eril is beautiful. **$ +eril g%&el. * =2k1e is more beautiful. **$ =2k1e daha g%&el. * =2k1e is more beautiful than +eril. **$ =2k1e +eril'den daha g%&el. * 0e is more hardworking than me. **$ 9 benden daha 1alkan. * :! car is faster than !our car. **$ +enim arabam senin arabandan daha h&l. * >/ is larger than Turke!. **$ merika T%rki!e'den daha b%!%k.
1.3. As ... as If !ou want to sa! that two nouns are e6ual with respect to an adjective, the strctre used in "nglish is7
nounE is as ad,ective as nounF :$EI +eril is as beautiful as =2k1e. :$FI I am as beautiful as !ou.
The structure to epress the same meaning in Turkish is as follows7 nounE nounF kadar ad,ective .
or nounE de nounF kadar ad,ective
+oth of these epressions have the same meaning, !ou will understand the very slight difference as !ou see them used. 9ne point to note here is that if nounF is a simple pronoun (like ben, sen, bu, u) then it is used in possessive form (like benim, senin, bunun, unun). :$EI +eril de =2k1e kadar g%&el. :$FI +en de senin kadar g%&elim.
-ow, let's see a few eample sentences with this epression. * +eril is beautiful. **$ +eril g%&el. * =2k1e is also beautiful. **$ =2k1e de g%&el. (de means 'also'" 'as well' ) * =2k1e is as beautifl as +eril. **$ =2k1e de +eril kadar g%&el. * 0e is as hardworking as me. **$ 9 da benim kadar 1alkan. * :! car is as fast as !our car. **$ +enim arabam da senin araban kadar h&l. * >/ is almost as large as hina. **$ merika nerede!se Hin kadar b%!%k. (neredeyse means almost )
/. Auperlati#es
/uperlatives are also straightforward in Turkish, like it is in "nglish. Instead of 'the most ', !ou use 'en', and all superlatives are constructed using this word. the fastest **$ en h&l slower **$ en !ava
the most intelligent **$ en &eki the most hardworking **$ en 1alkan the most beautiful **$ en g%&el
-ow, let's see how the superlative form of an adjective is used in sentences. I am beautiful. **$ (+en) g%&elim. I am more beautiful. **$ (+en) daha g%&elim.
Dhen !ou want to use the superlative form in a sentence, there are two different cases7 I am the most beautiful. **$ (+en) en g%&elim. (This has the meaning of describing !ourself, like an answer to the 6uestion ;Chat are your traitsJ;) I am the most beautiful. **$ "n g%&el benim. (This has the meaning of the answer to the 6uestion ;Cho is the most beautifulJ;)
I am the most beautiful girl. **$ "n g%&el k& benim. I am the most beautiful girl in this class. **$ +u snftaki en g%&el k& benim. ou are the most beautiful girl in this class. **$ +u snftaki en g%&el k& sensin. /he is the most beautiful girl in this class. **$ +u snftaki en g%&el k& o.
3. Making an a!jecti#e stronger 3.1. er, In "nglish, when !ou want to make an adjective stronger, !ou use the word 'very'. /a!ing very fast is a stronger statement than just sa!ing fast . The same method is applied also in Turkish, and the word for very is 'ok '. 0ence7
ver! fast **$ 1ok h&l ver! slow **$ 1ok !ava ver! intelligent **$ 1ok &eki ver! hardworking **$ 1ok 1alkan ver! beautiful **$ 1ok g%&el ou are ver! beautiful. **$ (/en) 1ok g%&elsin. /he is a ver! beautiful girl. **$ (9) 1ok g%&el bir k&. This girl is ver! beautiful. **$ +u k& 1ok g%&el. 3.2. )oo nother wa! of making an adjective stronger, but this time giving the meaning e$treme, is to use the word too. /a!ing something is too fast gives the meaning that it is etremel! fast and should be slower. The word for too in Turkish is 'fa)la'.
too fast **$ fa&la h&l too slow **$ fa&la !ava too intelligent **$ fa&la &eki too hardworking **$ fa&la 1alkan too beautiful **$ fa&la g%&el De are too fast. **$ (+i&) fa&la h&l!&. This car is too fast. **$ +u araba fa&la h&l. 3.3. 0t(er $a,s third wa! commonl! used in Turkish (which is not seen in "nglish) to make an adjective stronger is adding a modified form of the first s!llable before the adjective. Important points to note here are7 •
There is not a rule for how this first s!llable should be modified, which makes this rule
hard to learn. •
•
•
This gives the same meaning as using the word 'very' and makes the adjective stronger. ll adjectives can't be made stronger using this method, and there is not a rule to understand for which adjectives this method can be used. group of adjectives !ou can alwa!s use this method is colors, to epress that the color is strong. 0owever, there is no rule to eactl! sa! which adjectives can be made stronger like this. +ecause there is not a well*defined rule, it will be ver! difficult to go over adjectives and see what the stronger form of each adjective is. I think !ou should not tr! to learn this for each adjective at this step. The best strateg! here would be to note that there is a rule like this and when !ou see it used, !ou will understand what it means. In !our sentences, !ou simpl! can use 'ok D ad,ective' instead and !ou will be clearl! understood.
4et's see some eamples to this rule7 h&l **$ fast hph&l **$ ver! fast sar **$ !ellow sapsar **$ ver! !ellow, strong !ellow mavi **$ blue masmavi **$ ver! blue, strong blue be!a& **$ white bembe!a& **$ ver! white, strong white 1abuk **$ 6uick 1ar1abuk **$ ver! 6uick kaln **$ thick
kapkaln **$ ver! thick
nother wa! to make an adjective stressed and stronger is to repeat it twice. gain, this is not done with all adjectives and the best wa! to learn for which adjectives this rule is applicable is to note when !ou hear an adjective used like this. Kon't be afraid b! these rules, !ou will learn how to use them if !ou start reading Turkish tets or if !ou speak to native speakers. ou can still epress !ourself without using these methods for making adjectives stronger. /impl! use the word 'ok ' before the adjective. I am giving these rules now so that !ou know the meaning when !ou see such a usage somewhere. b%!%k b%!%k evler **$ big houses, the propert! big is stressed sar sar elmalar **$ !ellow apples, the propert! yellow is stressed
There is also another wa! to stress an adjective and make it stronger. That is, adding a modified form of the adjective after the original form. This is again an irregular rule and !ou don't need to know this completel!, just understand it when !ou see this usage. /ometimes, an adjective followed b! the modified form of that adjective ma! have a slightl! different meaning. !al **$ old (for people) !al bal **$ old, mature eski **$ old (for objects) eski p%sk% **$ ver! old and useless resent Ai"ple Tense
)enses There are < fundamental tenses in Turkish. These are7 E. resent simple tense (=eni &aman) . resent continuous tense (Vimdiki &aman) U. Future tense (=elecek &aman) O. ast tense with *di (*di'li ge1mi &aman) **$ Legular past tense <. ast tense with *mi (*mi'li ge1mi &aman) **$ lso called the stor! past tense resent si"ple tense (@eni8 :a"an)
The present simple tense is used, ver! much ike the one in "nglish7 •
To make general statements o
•
Dater boils at EXX degrees. **$ /u EXX derecede ka!nar.
To mention things !ou do regularl! o
I run ever! morning. **$ 0er sabah koarm.
resent simple tense is used onl! for verbs, it is not meaningful for nouns and adjectives.
resent simple tense of a verb is constructed this wa!7 verb root ^ ir or er ^ present tense to be
The suffi for constructing the present simple tense of a verb is not alwa!s the same. The suffi is sometimes *ir , sometimes *er . This is the onl! tense with this irregularit!, but there are certain rules that will tell !ou which one to choose most of the time. The rules that will help
!ou choose which one of *ir or *er to use as suffi are as follows7 E. If the verb ends with a vowel, the vowel of the suffi falls and !ou add onl! *r. o
ara*r **$ arar **$ he calls
o
oku*r **$ okur **$ he reads
. If the verb has more than one s!llable, use *ir o
kapat*ir **$ kapatr **$ he closes
o
konu*ir **$ konuur **$ he talks
U. If the verb has onl! one s!llable7 o
o
If the vowel of this s!llable is 'a' or 'e' and if the verb ends with 'l', 'n' or 'r' then use *ir
gel*ir **$ gelir **$ he comes
ver*ir **$ verir **$ he gives
>se *er for the other single s!llable cases
git*er **$ gider **$ he goes
ko*ar **$ koar **$ he runs
-ow, let's look at how the present simple tense is used with different personal pron ouns7 )ur*is(
English
E!am#le 1 to co'e 6 gel'ek
i co"e
(ben) gelir-i" --U geliri"
The negative of present simple tense is a little different than just adding the negative*making suffi *me. onstruction of negatives of present simple tense is given in the table below. The negative*making suffi becomes *me& ecept for ! and we. :oreover, when negative suffi is used, the present simple tense suffi is not used. )ur*is(
English
E!am#le 1 to co'e 6 gel'ek
i !on=t co"e
(ben) gel-"e-i" --U gel"e"
$ou !on=t co"e
(sen) gel-"e:-sin --U gel"e:sin
he V
she A doesn't come
(o) gel-"e: --U gel"e:
it B 'e !on=t co"e
(bi:) gel-"e-i: --U gel"e$i:
$ou !on=t co"e
(si:) gel-"e:-sini: --U gel"e:sini:
the$ !on=t co"e
(onlar) gel-"e:-ler --U gel"e:ler
resent simple tense is the most irregular tense in Turkish, it's not simple as the name implies. ast Tense
)enses There are < fundamental tenses in Turkish. These are7 E. resent simple tense (=eni &aman) . resent continuous tense (Vimdiki &aman) U. Future tense (=elecek &aman) O. ast tense with *di (*di'li ge1mi &aman) **$ Legular past tense <. ast tense with *mi (*mi'li ge1mi &aman) **$ lso called the stor! past tense ast tense 'ith -!i (-!i=li ge0"i8 :a"an) --U 5egular past tense
There is no suffi for the regular past tense. The onl! point is that !ou must use the past tense form of to be. +e careful about the harmon! rules though, as alwa!s. The use of the past tense with *di is almost the same as the "nglish past tense. •
To tell an action that took place in the past. o
•
0e came. **$ =eldi.
To make a statement that was true in the past. o
/he was beautiful. **$ =%&eldi.
The same wa! regular past tense is applied to verbs, it can also be applied to nouns and adjectives using the past tense form of to be. The meaning in this case is the same as the meaning of 'was' in "nglish. 0e was good. **$ P!i!di. I was successful. **$ +aarl!dm.
Legular past tense of a word is constructed this wa!7
word root ^ (negative) ^ past tense to be
4et's see how a verb is used in regular past tense on the following eamples7 gel*di **$ geldi **$ he came git*me*di **$ gitmedi **$ he did not go oku*di **$ okudu **$ he read kapat*dik **$ kapattk **$ we closed ko*din **$ kotun **$ !ou ran ara*dini& **$ aradn& **$ !ou called (plural !ou) konu*me*di **$ konumad **$ he did not talk ver*me*dim **$ vermedim **$ I did not give 1al*ma*dik **$ 1almadk **$ we did not work !e*diler **$ !ediler **$ the! ate bekle*me*diler **$ beklemediler **$ the! did not wait
-ote that making the past tense of a verb and making the past tense of a noun or adjective is the same, but onl! as long as the! are positive. The negative suffi for verbs is *me, but negatives of nouns and adjectives are constructed using değil . Ke3il is not a suffi, it is used as a seperate word. 4et's see a few eamples to how nouns and adjectives are epressed in past tense. /he was beautiful. **$ =%&eldi. /he was not beautiful. **$ =%&el de3ildi. (-ote what we did is just to replace the suffi *me for verbs with the word değil in the case of nouns and adjectives. The ordering is still the same. ast tense of to be, which followed *me for verbs " is now put after değil )
ou were not kids. **$ Hocuk de3ildini&.
4et's see how these personal suffies are used on some eample verbs7 English
)ur*is( to $ait --5 %e*leme*
i 'aite!
(ben) bekle-!i" --U bekle!i"
$ou 'aite!
(sen) bekle-!in --U bekle!in
he V
she A waited
(o) bekle-!i --U bekle!i
it B 'e 'aite!
(bi:) bekle-!ik --U bekle!ik
$ou 'aite!
(si&) bekledi*ni& **$ bekledini&
the$ 'aite!
(onlar) bekle-!iler --U bekle!iler to $or* --5 9al;ma*
i 'orke!
(ben) 0al78-!i" --U 0al78t7"
$ou 'orke!
(sen) 0al78-!in --U 0al78t7n
he V
(o) 0al78-!i --U 0al78t7
she A worked it B 'e 'orke!
(bi:) 0al78-!ik --U 0al78t7k
$ou 'orke!
(si&) 1al*dini& **$ 1altn&
the$ 'orke!
(onlar) 0al78-!iler --U 0al78t7lar
Ator$ ast Tense
)enses There are < fundamental tenses in Turkish. These are7 E. resent simple tense (=eni &aman) . resent continuous tense (Vimdiki &aman) U. Future tense (=elecek &aman) O. ast tense with *di (*di'li ge1mi &aman) **$ Legular past tense <. ast tense with *mi (*mi'li ge1mi &aman) **$ lso called the stor! past tense ast tense 'ith -"i8 (-"i8=li ge0"i8 :a"an) YYU lso calle! the stor$ past tense
To obtain the stor! past tense of a verb, we append the suffi -mi6 to the verb. +e careful about the harmon! rules. ast tense with *mi is used7 •
To talk about something !ou learned from somebod! else or some other resource, there is some uncertaint! in the statement. If !ou use the stor! past tense when talking about something, it implies that !ou are not the source of the information and !ou shouldn't be responsible for the mistakes. o
•
To talk about something !ou just learned or understood o
•
I talked to his mother. 0e went to school. **$ nnesi!le konutum. 9kula gitmi. (The part about talking to the mother is !our direct eperience, so !ou tell it using regular past tense. 0owever, the part about he going to school is information !ou got from the mother, so !ou tell it using stor! past tense.)
Is this !our daughterJ /he is ver! beautiful. **$ +u senin k&n mJ Hok g%&elmi. (ou just noticed that she is beautiful, and !ou epress this using stor! past tense)
/imple stories are written and told in using this tense.
/tor! past tense of a word is constructed this wa!7
word root ^ (negative) ^ mi ^ present tense to be
The same wa! stor! past tense is applied to verbs, it can also be applied to nouns and adjectives. I talked to 8emal about her. /he is sick. **$ 8emal'le onun hakknda konutum. 0asta!m. (ou learned that she is sick from 8emal) rime minister was in France !esterda!. **$ +abakan d%n Fransada!m. (ou use stor! past tense because !ou learned this from somebod! else or from the news) rime minister was not in France !esterda!. **$ +abakan d%n Fransada de3ilmi. (Lemember that negatives of non*verbs are made with değil )
4et's see the use of stor! past tense on some eample verbs. gel*mi **$ gelmi **$ he came git*mi*sini&**$ gitmisini& **$ !ou went (plural !ou) oku*mi*sin**$ okumusun **$ !ou read kapat*mi*ler**$ kapatmlar **$ the! closed ko*me*mi**$ komam **$ he did not run ara*me*mi*sin**$ aramamsn **$ !ou did not call konu*me*mi*ler**$ konumamlar **$ the! did not talk ver*mi*i&**$ vermii& **$ we gave
Finall!, let's see how a verb is used in the stor! past tense with different personal pronouns. English
)ur*is(
to $ait --5 %e*leme* i 'aite!
(ben) bekle"i8-i" --U bekle"i8i"
$ou 'aite!
(sen) bekle"i8-sin --U bekle"i8sin
he V
she A waited
(o) bekle"i8
it B 'e 'aite!
(bi:) bekle"i8-i: --U bekle"i8i:
$ou 'aite!
(si&) beklemi*sini& **$ beklemisini&
the$ 'aite!
(onlar) bekle"i8-ler --U bekle"i8ler
Must, a#e to, Nee! to, &ant to 2. Must
The best counterpart in Turkish for the meaning of necessit! that is given with ''ust' in "nglish is the suffi ''eli'. The skeleton for using a verb with this suffi is as follows7 verb'elito be
I must go **$ git*meli*im **$ gitmeli!im (note the use of the fusion consonant %) De must stud! **$ 1almal!& (note that the suffi 'eli becomes 'al# due to the major vowel harmon!)
ou must sit down (plural) **$ oturmalsn& ou must go home now. **$ Vimdi eve gitmelisin.
De can show how to epress the necessit! of a verb the for different cases of person7 Su!
Personal Pronoun
*en
-"eli$i"
Aen
*melisin
?
-"eli
*i:
-"eli$i:
Ai:
-"elisini:
?nlar
-"eliler
/. a#e to
The meaning of formal obligation that 'have to' gives in "nglish is best given b! the word 'la(#'' in Turkish. The structure for using this construct is as follows7 verb'epossession 8blank space9 la(#'
This might seem confusing, let us eplain how this structure works. The suffi 'e allows a verb to be used like a noun, it is similar to a gerund. ou might ask at this point, wasn't the suffi 'e used for negating verbsJ That is right, but the suffi for negating verbs and the suffi for using a verb like a noun are the same. /o, oku'a can mean either don=t read or reading according to the contet in which it is used. In this case, we are concerned about the
second meaning. /o, in the phrase oku'a' la(#' , the part oku'a' means m! reading and the part la(#' means re6uired. Dhen we put these together, it becomes '% reading is re>uired and this is what we use for ; have to read in Turkish. 4et's look at a few eamples to clarif! this further7 I have to go to school tomorrow. **$ arn okula gitmem la&m. I have to work now. **$ Vimdi 1almam la&m. De have to get read!. **$ 0a&rlanmam& la&m. ou have to go. **$ =itmen la&m.
3. Nee! to
This is ver! similar to the use of have to, both in meaning and structure. The word we use to give the meaning of need to is 'gereki%or'. It is similar to ' have to' in meaning, so that it can be used interchangeabl! with have to (la(#'). It is similar in structure, which can be seen in the structural skeleton7 verb'eposession 8blank space9 gereki%or
The following eamples will clarif! this further7 I need to go home. **$ "ve gitmem gereki!or. ou need to be here at . **$ /aat ikide burada olman gereki!or. ou need to sleep earl!. **$ "rken u!uman gereki!or. /he needs to see a doctor. **$ Koktora gitmesi gereki!or.
P. &ant to
The use of want to is logicall! almost identical to the "nglish counterpart. 9ne important difference is that !ou use the verb 'to -ant' in present continuous tense instead of present simple. The turkish verb for to -ant is iste'ek . The structure goes as follows7
verb8infinitive9 8blank space9 isti%orto be
I want to go. **$ =itmek isti!orum. I want to sleep. **$ >!umak isti!orum. I want to take a rest. **$ Kinlenmek isti!orum. I want to go home. **$ "ve gitmek isti!orum. Dhat do !ou wantJ **$ -e isti!orsunJ 8onumak isti!or musunJ **$ Ko !ou want to talkJ
)rende - 0n t(e )rain )ur*is( 4ural Ze!ersini:, buras7 bo8 "uF *9lent G#et bo8, bu$urun oturun. 4ural Te8ekk9r e!eri". *9lent *ir8e$ !e1il. 4ural Nere!en geli$orsunu:F *9lent [stanbul=!an geli$oru", si: !e "i [stanbul=!an geli$orsunu:F 4ural a$7r, l"an$a=!an geli$oru". *9lent angi 8ehir!enF 4ural *erlin=!en. Ai: [stanbul=!a "7 oturu$orsunu:F *9lent a$7r, nkara=!a oturu$oru". Ai: nere$e gi!i$orsunu:F 4ural *en !e nkara=$a gi!i$oru". Aigara i0er "isini:F *9lent a$7r, te8ekk9r e!eri", i0"i$oru". 4ural nkara=!a ne i8 $ap7$orsunu:F *9lent Ataj$er !oktoru". Ai:in "esle1ini: neF 4ural nkara \ni#ersitesi=n!e asistan7". *9lent angi b
Me"ur *iletler l9tenX 4ural *u$urun bak7n. Turgut Tren!e r
en!ine i$i bakX Mektup $a:X *9lent llaha7s"arla!7kX Ae#i" han7" @9le g9leX Aa!un be$ [$i $olculuklar o1lu"X *9lent epini: ho80a kal7n. Englis( Mrs. Ae#i" o"e on !ear, get on the train. Ti"e is up. *9lent There are still +#e "inutes, "u". Mr. Aa!un our "other is right, son. o"e on, get on. *9lent ?ke$ ather. Take care "u". Bet "e kiss $our han!. Mrs. Ae#i" Aee $ou son. &rite to us. *9lent Take care @9n!er. @9n!er Aee $ou brother. *9lent Atu!$ har!. @9n!er ?ke$ brother. Mrs. Ae#i" Aee $ou son. Mrs. Ae#i" o"e on. *e ;uickX *9lent ?ke$ "u", oke$, there are still t'o "inutes. a" getting on right a'a$. Mrs. Ae#i" ?pen the 'in!o'X ?pen the 'in!o'X &here are the luggagesF
*9lent ere the$ are "u". Mrs. Ae#i" &here are the packagesF *9lent The$ are also here. Mrs. Ae#i" @oo!. There are pastries in the packages, an! there is ja". ou 'ill eat in the "ornings. Mr. Aa!un *e careul 'ith the luggages. Con=t orget the" on the train. *9lent ?ke$ ather, 'on=t orget. Mrs. Ae#i" Take careX &rite to usX *9lent Take careX Mrs. Ae#i" Aee $ouX Mr. Aa!un a#e a nice trip sonX *9lent @oo! b$e all.
Bar; Be, - Mr. Bar; )ur*is( *ar78 be$ i8ine her sabah R=!e gi!i$or. ?, bir okul!a <1ret"en!ir. *ar78 be$ <1le $e"e1ini okul!a $i$or. G#ine saat 2R=!e geli$or. G#!e hi0 bir 8e$ $ap"7$or. I9nk9 0ok $orgun!ur. aln7: ga:ete oku$or, ra!$o !inli$or. *ar78 be$ u"artesi #e a:ar g9nleri okula git"i$or. I9nk9 okul kapal7!7r. u"artesi #e a:ar g9nleri e#!e oturu$or, kitap oku$or, resi" $ap7$or. Englis( Mr. *ar78 goes to 'ork at Ra" e#er$ "orning. e is a teacher at a school. Mr. *ar78 eats lunch at school. e co"es ho"e at p". e !oesn=t !o an$thing at ho"e. *ecause he is #er$ tire!. e just rea!s ne'spaper, listens to the ra!io. Mr. *ar78 !oesn=t go to school on Aatur!a$s an! Aun!a$s. *ecause school is close!. ?n Aatur!a$s an! Aun!a$s he sits at ho"e, rea!s books, !ra's pictures.
=a(valt - Brea*ast )ur*is( Ta"a$ >ah#alt7 $apacaks7n !e1il "iF *9lent a$7r $ap"a$aca17". 0 !e1ili". Iok $orgun #e u$kusu:u". i"!i he"en u$u$aca17". Ta"a$ Ia$ ha:7r. *ir !u8 al. orgulu1un 07ks7n. >ah#alt7!a bir 8e$ler $e, sonra !a u$u. *9lent >ah#alt7!a neler #arF Ceni: Aen ne isti$orsunF *en 8i"!i bakkala gi!ece1i". u"urta, bal, :e$tin alaca17". *9lent u paketi a07n. [0in!e bah#alt7!a s9t "9, 0a$ "7 i0eceksinF *9lent Ai: ne i0eceksini:F Ta"a$ *i: 0a$ i0ece1i:. *9lent *en !e 0a$ i0ece1i". orgunlu1a i$i gelir. Ta"a$ [$i bir kah#alt7 $orgunlu1un en i$i ilac7!7r. *9lent *u s<:9n !o1ru. a$!i sen kah#alt7$7 ha:7rla. *en !e he"en gelece1i". *ir !akikaX Aor"a$7 unuttu". Mektup ka17!7 #e :ar #ar "7F Ta"a$ 4ar, ki"e $a:acaks7nF *9lent nne"e $a:aca17". A<: #er!i". Englis( Ta"a$ ou 'ill ha#e breakast, 'on=t $ouF *9lent No, 'on=t. a" not hungr$. a" #er$ tire! an! sleep$. 'ill sleep right a'a$. Ta"a$ Tea is rea!$. Take a sho'er. ou 'ill eel reste!. Gat so"ething or breakast, then sleep. *9lent &hat is there or breakastF Ceni: &hat !o $ou 'antF 'ill go to the grocer$ store no'. 'ill bu$ eggs, hone$ an! oli#es.
*9lent ?pen this package. There is pastr$ an! ja" insi!e. M$ "other "a!e. Ta"a$ n! it is sourcherr$ an! stra'berr$ ja". Ceni: The pastries are also !elicious. *9lent M$ "other "akes goo! pastries. Ta"a$ o"e on, take a sho'er. *9lent Con=t hurr$, 'ill take sho'er. Ta"a$ *ut breakast is rea!$, !on=t "ake us 'ait. *9lent Ceni: 'ill go to the grocer$ store. Ahe 'ill bu$ hone$, eggs an! oli#es. Ceni: ?ke$, a" going to the grocer$ s tore. n! $ou take a sho'er an! sha#e. *9lent 'ill be rea!$ in +#e "inutes. Ta"a$ n! 'ill prepare the breakast table. *9lent ut sourcherr$ ja" in a plate. Ta"a$ ?ke$. &ill $ou !rink "ilk or tea or breakastF *9lent &hat 'ill $ou !rinkF Ta"a$ &e 'ill !rink tea. *9lent 'ill also !rink tea. t helps tire!ness. Ta"a$ goo! breakast is the best "e!ication or tire!ness. *9lent This is right. o"e on, prepare the breakast. n! 'ill be back soon. ?ne "inuteX orgot to ask. Co 'e ha#e en#elope an! paper or a letterF Ta"a$ es, 'ho 'ill $ou 'rite toF *9lent 'ill 'rite to "$ "other. pro"ise!.
=asa#ta - At t(e But'(er>s )ur*is( >asap *u$urun han7"een!i, ar:unu:X *a$an Cana eti #ar "7F >asap G#et #ar. *a$an B9ten $ar7" kilo !ana eti. >asap *iteklik "iF *a$an G#et, biteklik. >asap *a8ka ar:unu:F *a$an \0 $9: gra" !a k7$"a. >asap Cana etin!en "iF *a$an a$7r, ko$un etin!en. B9ten bira: $a1l7 olsun. >asap \0 $9: gra" k7$"a $9: elli lira, $ar7" kilo !ana eti iki $9: elli lira. epsi topla" !
