Turkish Tenses, Modals, Linking Verbs and Their English Equivalents Yüksel Göknel

TURKISH TENSES,
MODALS, LINKING
VERBS
and their
ENGLISH
EQUIVALENTS
Yksel Gknel
2015
YGOKNEL@OUTLOOK.COM
TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS
Note: The aim of this colored revised version of this

book is not to make the pages look colorful, but to
show the functional parts of the sentences in different
colors.
The colored underlines and words show the following:
1. Subjects and personal subject allomorphs are blue.
2. Verbs are red.
3. Objects, nouns, coordinating conjunctions and
noun clauses are black.
4. Prepositions, adverbs, adverbials, adverbial
phrases and clauses, and subordinating conjunctions are green.
5. Subject and object complements are underlined brown.
6. Adjectives, articles and noun modifiers are purple.
SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE
Geni Zaman
The Turkish Simple Present Tense is generally used like the English Simple
Present Tense only with some exceptions. They will be dealt with after the
general explanations. The time morpheme of this tense is [R], which has the
allomorphs of [ir, r, r, ur, er, ar]. These allomorphs are always followed
by the compulsory personal subject allomorphs. These subject allomorphs are far more important then the subject pronouns becase the subject
allomorphs are always attached to main verbs in Turkish. Subject pronouns
are used only when the subjects are emphasized. The personal subject
allomorphs used in this tense are as follows:
(Ben) : [im, m, m, um]
(Sen) : [sin, sn, sn, sun]
(O)
: [] morpheme. (No subject allomorphs are attached.)
(Biz) : [iz, z, z, uz]
(Siz) : [siniz, snz, snz, sunuz]
(Onlar) : [ler, lar]

When the main verbs ending with vowels attach to The Simple Present
Tense allomorphs [ir, r, r, ur, er, ar], the last vowels of the verbs and the
first vowels of the allomorphs happen to be identical and shared between the last vowels of the verbs and the first vowels of The Simple Present Tense allomorphs, such as e-e, u-u. Therefore, they combine and
articulate as single vowels e or u. The verbs ending with consonants
are single underlined. These consonants detach from their syllables, and
attach to the first vowels of the following allomorphs if they start with vowels:
Bekle-er-im (bek*le*rim); bala-ar-m (ba*la*rm); yr-r-m (y*r*rm);
koru-ur-um (ko*ru*rum); bekle-er-sin (bek*ler*sin); bala-ar (ba*lar); ye-er
(yer); bekle-er-iz (bek*le*riz); bala-ar-snz (ba*lar*s*nz); yr-r-ler
(y*rr*ler); u-ar (u*ar); gez-er (ge*zer); gel-ir (ge*lir); sat-ar (sa*tar)
The coinciding vowels above, such as e-e combine. The transplaced
consonants are single underlined. This verb composition is formed as follows:
Yz-er-im. (y*ze*rim) I swim. (The im, m, m, um mean I.)
Bekle-er-im. (bek*le*rim) I wait.
Anla-ar-m. (an*la*rm) I understand.
Al-r-m. (a*l*rm) I take or buy.
Gtr-r-m. (g*t*r*rm) I take ... to.
Otur-ur-um. (o*tu*ru*rum) I sit.
Se-er-im. (se*e*rim) I choose.
Ka-ar-m. (ka*a*rm) I run away.
Se-il-ir-im (e*i*li*rim) I am elected, chosen. (Passive)
Yz-er-sin. (y*zer*sin) You swim. (The sin, sn, sn, sun mean you.)
Al-r-sn. (a*lr*sn) You take, you buy.
Gtr-r-sn. (g*t*rr*sn) You take ... to
Anla-ar-sn. (an*lar*sn) You understand.
Otur-ur-sun. (o*tu*rur*sun) You sit.
Yakala-ar-sn. (ya*ka*lar*sn) You catch.
Sat-ar-sn. (sa*tar*sn) You sell.
Se-il-ir-sin. (se*i*lir*sin) You are elected, chosen. (Passive)
No subject allomorphs are used when the sentences are the third person singular:

Yz-er. (y*zer) He (she, it) swims.
Al-r. (a*lr ) He (she) takes. He (she) buys.
Gtr-r. (g*t*rr) He (she, it) takes ... to.
Otur-ur. (o*tu*rur ) He (she, it) sits.
Bak-ar. (ba*kar) He (she, it) looks.
Bekle-er. (bek*ler) He (she, it) waits.
Gr-l-r. (g*r*lr) He (she, it) is seen. (Passive)
Ye-er. (yer) He (she, it) eats.
Yz-er-iz. (y*ze*riz) We swim. (The iz, z, z, uz mean we.)
Al-r-z. (a*l*rz) We take or buy.
Gtr-r-z. (g*t*r*rz) We take ... to.
Otur-ur-uz. (o*tu*ru*ruz) We sit.
Bekle-er-iz. (bek*le*riz) We wait.
Bala-ar-z. (ba*la*rz) We start.
Yen-il-ir-iz. (ye*ni*li*riz) We are beaten, defeated. (Passive)
Yz-er-siniz. (y*zer*si*niz) You swim. (The siniz, snz, snz,
sunuz mean you.)
Al-r-snz. (a*lr*s*nz) You take or buy.
Gtr-r-snz. (g*t*rr*s*nz) You take ... to
Otur-ur-sunuz. (o*tu*rur*su*nuz) You sit.
Oku-ur-sunuz. (o*kur*su*nuz) You read.
U-ar-snz. (u*ar*s*nz) You fly.
Anla-a-r-snz. (an*la*r*s*nz) You reach an agreement. (Reciprocal)
Yz-er-ler. (y*zer*ler) They swim. (The ler, lar mean they.)
Al-r-lar. (a*lr*lar) They take or buy.
Sakla-ar-lar. (sak*lar*lar) They hide.
Gtr-r-ler. (g*t*rr*ler) They take ... to
Otur-ur-lar. (o*tu*rur*lar) They sit.
Yr-r-ler. (y*rr*ler ) They walk.
Ka-ar-lar. (ka*ar*lar) They run away.
Anla-a-r-lar. (an*la*r*lar) They reach an agreement. (Reciprocal)

The verbs that are used in this and in the following tenses are of two kinds:
transitive verbs, and intransitive verbs. Transitive verbs need objects,
which may be pronouns, nouns, or nominal phrases, but intransitive
verbs do not need them. They are preceded by adverbs, or nouns attached
to [E], [DE], [DEN], or [LE] morphemes, which function as adverbials.
Kz-m saat dokuz-da okul-a git-er. (Intransitive)
subj
adverbial
adverbial
intr verb
(k*zm / sa*at / do*kuz*da / o*ku*la / gi*der ).

My daughter goes to school at nine. (Blue underlined words are subjects.)
Ben genellik-le yedi-de kalk-ar-m. (Intransitive)
subj
adverbial
adverbial
intr verb
(ben / ge*nel*lik*le / ye*di*de / kal*ka*rm )

I generally get up at 7. (Green underlined words are adverbials.)
Karde-im her sabah oda-/s/-/n/ tertiple-er. (Transitive)
subject
adverbial
definite object transitive verb
(kar*de*im / her / sa*bah / o*da*s*n / ter*tip*ler )

My sister tidies her room every morning. (Black underlined words are objects.)
In Turkish, the order of a predicate having an object is different from that of
an English predicate having an abject. In English, its order is predicate
verb + object, but in Turkish, the order is predicate object + verb:
(Ben)
subj
elma sev-er-im.
indef obj
verb
predicate
(Ben) kitap oku-ur-um.

subj
indef obj
verb
preficate
I
subj
I
subj
like
apples
verb indef obj

predicate
read
books.
verb
indef obj
predicate
As it is noticed, in the Turkish sentences above, the words elma and

kitap are not in plural form as they are used in their English equivalents.
This is because, if a common noun represents all of its own kind and covers
all books or apples, these nouns do not need plural allomorphs "[ler] or [lar]"
attached to them when they are used in the object or subject position. For
instance:
Benim kz-m kitap oku-maz. My daughter doesnt read books.
Halbuki, kitap faydal-dr. Books are useful, however.
Gmlek-ler-im-i ben tle-er-im. I iron my shirts.
In the last example above, the pronoun ben is not in the beginning of the
sentence, which is its usual position. It is used after the object to em-

phasize the subject, and it is stressed in speech in English, which is done
with myself". This sort of sequence is possible in Turkish by putting
kendim after ben. However, if someone says, "Gmlek-ler-im-i ben
kendim tlerim, you may think that he is boasting about his abilities.
The subject + object + verb order of the same sentence, Ben gmlek-lerim-i (gm*lek*le*ri*mi) tlerim can also change places in poetry and literature. For instance, although tlerim ben gmleklerimi, tlerim gmleklerimi ben, and Gmleklerimi tlerim ben kinds of sentences are quite
understandable and acceptable in Turkish, such sentences are generally
used in poetry to rhyme a poem.
VERBS ENDING WITH VOWELS OR CONSONANTS

(All main verbs end with subject allomorphs in Turkish.)
tle-er-im.
Ertele-er-iz.
Yakala-ar-lar.
Ara-ar-z.
Uyu-ur-uz.
Yr-r-z.
Tara-ar-m.
Besle-er-im.
Oku-ur-uz.
Anla-ar-snz.
Uyu-ur-uz.
Kurula-ar-z.
Yr-r-z.
Bekle-en-ir-iz.
Koru-ur-lar.
Yakala-ar-lar.
U-ar-z.
Yen-er-iz.
Gez-er-iz.
Bak-ar-snz.
t-er-im.
Yak-ar-snz.
-er.
Ta-ar.
Se-er-iz.
i-er.
Git-er-iz.
(*t*le*rim) I iron.
(er*te*le*riz) We postpone.
(ya*ka*lar*lar ) They catch.
(a*ra*rz) We search, look for.
(u*yu*ruz) We sleep.
(y*r*rz) We walk.
(ta*ra*rm) I comb.
(bes*le*rim) I feed.
(o*ku*ruz) We read.
(an*lar*s*nz) You understand.
(u*yu*ruz) We sleep.
(ku*ru*la*rz) We dry.
(y*r*rz) We walk.
(bek*le*ni*riz) We are waited.
(ko*rur*lar) They protect.
(ya*ka*lar*lar) They catch.
(u*a*rz) We fly.
(ye*ne*riz) We defeat.
(ge*ze*riz) We walk round.
(ba*kar*s*nz) You look.
(i*te*rim) I push.
(ya*kar*s*nz) You burn.
(i*er) He drinks.
(ta*ar) It boils over. It overflows.
(se*e*riz) We choose.
(i*er) It swells.
(gi*de*riz) We go.

Anla-r-z.
(an*la**rz) We reach an agreement.
Gl-r-ler.
(g*l*r*ler) They laugh all togetger.
Kayna-r-z.
(kay*na**rz) We become friendly at once.
nsanlar dn-r. (in*san*lar / d**nr) Human beings think.
al-an baar-r. (a*l*an / ba*a*rr) Those who work succeed.
ET, YAP, OL, LE, KAYDET, SALA

These verbs are all transitive in Turkish, which take either indefinite or
definite objects, or both preceding them.
et: (Transitive)
O ben-im-le
subj
adverbial
alay
etti.
ben-i affetti. O
indef obj trans verb subj def obj
verb
biz-i
deli
etti
subj def obj indef obj verb
alay et (a*la*yet) (make fun of), affet (af*fet) (forgive), armaan et (ar*ma*ga*net) (present as a gift), ba et (ba*et) (manage, cope with), beraat et
(be*ra*a*tet) (be acquitted), beyan et (be*ya:*net) (declare), buyur et (bu*yu*ret) (invite someone to), davet et (da:*ve*tet) (invite), dahil et (da:*hi*let) (include something in), daktilo et (dak*ti*lo / et) (type), dans et (dan*set) (dance), deli et (de*li / et) (make someone mad), dert et (der* det)
(occupy oneself with problems), devam et (de*va:*met) (continue), dikkat et
(dik*ka*tet) (pay attention to, be careful), dua et (du*a: / et) (pray, say ones
prayers), elde et (el*de / et) (obtain), gayret et (gay*re*tet) (try hard, do
ones best), g et (g*et) (migrate), haberdar et (ha*ber*da:*ret) (inform
someone), hakaret et (ha*ka:*re*tet) (insult), hapset (hap*set) (put in
prison, imprison), hareket et (ha*re*ke*tet) (act, behave, start), hata et
(ha*ta: / et) (make a mistake), hayl et (ha*y:*let) (dream, imagine, picture
in ones mind), hazmet (haz*met) (digest), hizmet et (hiz*me*tet) (serve,
assist), idare et (i*da:*re* / et) (manage, control), iftira et (if*ti*ra: / et)
(slander), ihanet et (i*ha:*ne*tet) (betray), ikram et (ik*ra:*met) (offer
someone to eat or drink something), ihll et (ih*l:*let) (violate), ikna et
(ik*na: / et) (convince, persuade), ihra et (ih*ra:*cet) (export, expel), ikaz
et (i:*ka:*zet) (warn), Imza et (im*za: / et) (sign), iml et (i:*m:*let)
(manufacture), intihar et (in*ti*ha:*ret) (commit suicide), iptal et (ip*ta:*let)
(cancel), isabet et (i*sa:*be*tet) (hit the mark), israf et (is*ra:*fet) (vaste),
istifa et (is*ti*fa: / et) (resign), istifade et (is*ti*fa:*de / et) (benefit from),
istirahat et (is*ti*ra*ha*tet) (have a rest), itaat et (i*ta:*a*tet) (obey), ithl et
(it*h:*let) (import), itiraf et (i:*ti*ra:*fet) (confess), iyi et (i*yi / et) (cure, do
the right thing), iyilik et (i*yi*li*ket) (do a favor), kabalk et (ka*ba*l*ket) (be
rude), kabul et (ka*bu:*let) (accept), kr et (k:*ret) (profit from), kavga et
(kav*ga /et) (fight, quarrel), kontrol et (kon*tro*let) (check), koordine et

(ko*or*di*ne / et) (coordinate), kfr et (kf*ret) (swear), mecbur et
(mec*bu:*ret) (oblige), megul et (me*gu:*let) (occupy someone),
memnun et (mem*nu:*net) (make someone happy), muhafaza et
(mu*ha:*fa*za / et) (keep, preserve), mutlu et (mut*lu / et) (make happy),
nefret et (nef*re*tet) (hate), niyet et (ni*ye*tet) (intend), nderlik et
(n*der*li*ket) (lead), raz et (ra:*z / et) (persuade), sabret (sab*ret) (be
patient), sakat et (sa*ka*tet) (make physically disabled), seyret (sey*ret)
(watch, observe), sohbet et (soh*be*tet) (chat, talk), sz et (s*zet) (talk
about), tamir et (ta:*mi:*ret) (repair, mend, fix), tahsil et (tah*si:*let) (be
educated), takip et (ta:*ki:*bet) (follow), taklit et (tak*li:*det) (imitate),
rahatsz et (ra*hat*s*zet) (disturb), tasarruf et (ta*sar*ru*fet) (economize
on), tasvir et (tas*vi:*ret) (describe), tavsiye et (tav*si*ye / et)
(recommend), tedavi et (te*da:*vi: / et) (cure), teklif et (tek*li:*fet) (offer),
telefon et (te*le*fo*net) (telephone, make a telephone call, ring up),
tembellik et (tem*bel*li*ket) (act or behave lazily), tembih et (tem*bi:*het)
(warn), tekrar et (tek*ra:*ret) (repeat), tenkit et (ten*ki:*det) (criticize),
tercih et (ter*ci:*het) (prefer), terk et (ter*ket) (abandon, leave, desert),
tesadf et (te*sa:*d*fet) (meet by chance, come across), teslim et
(tes*li:*met) (deliver, hand over), teebbs et (te*eb*b*set) (make an
attempt), teekkr et (te*ek*k*ret) (thank), tevik et (te*vi:*ket)
(encourage).
When the above "et" verbs are attached to the allomorphs of [ER], [YOR],
[ECEK], which all begin with vowels, the /t/ consonants change into the
voiced /d/; but when they are attached to the allomorphs of [D] and [M],
which begin with consonants, they do not change. For instance:
acele eder, acele ediyor, acele edecek, acele etti, acele etmi, teklif etti,
teklif etmi, istifa etti, istifa etmi, tercme etti, tercme etmi.
If the [me] negation allomorph is used, the stress goes onto the verb et:
alay et-me (a*lay / et*me) (a*la*yet*me), af et-me (af*fet*me), armaan etme (ar*ma*a*net*me), yardm et-me (yar*d*met*me), terk et-me (ter*ket*me). (Liaisons)
yap: The transitive verbs that are used after indefinite or definite objects:
Fatma kahve yapyor. Kahve-/y/i Fatma yap-sn.
subject
indef obj
verb
def object
subject
trans verb
alveri yap (do shopping), arama yap (carry out a search), by yap
(cast a spell on someone), ay yap, kahve yap (make tea or coffee), cmle
yap (make a sentence), elinden geleni yap (do your best), ev ii yap (do
housework), giri yap (enter), hazrlk yap (get ready), hesap yap

(calculate), i yap (do work, do business with), ibirlii yap (work together),
iyilik yap (do a favour), kaza: yap (have an accident), konuma yap (make
a speech), makyaj yap (do ones make up), dev yap (do homework),
rejim yap (go on a diet), aka yap (make a joke), tatil yap (have a holiday,
vacation), tica:ret yap (trade), toplant yap (hold a meeting), yanllk yap
(make a mistake), yata yap (make the bed), yemek yap (cook, do the
cooking), yorum yap (comment on something).
The other verbs that are used together with nouns are ol, ile, and
kaydet. Their examples are as follows:
ol: This transitive verb generally takes indefinite objects:

abone ol (a*bo*ne / ol) (subscribe to), destek ol (des*te*kol) (support, back
up), gerek ol (ger*e*kol) (come true) kayt ol (kay*dol) (enroll), raz ol
(ra:*z / ol) (be willing to, consent to), sahip ol (sa:*hi*bol) (possess), ahit
ol (a:*hi*tol) (witness), ehit ol (e*hi:*dol) (die while fighting for Islam or
his country), teslim ol (tes*li:*mol) (surrender to), ye ol (*ye / ol) (be a
member), drst ol (d*rs*tol) (be honest to), kahrolmak (be depressed)
ile, kaydet, sala, gir, kazan:

baar sala (succeed), cinayet ile (commit a murder) gnaha gir
(g*na:*ha / gir) (commit a sin), ilerleme kaydet (make a progress), su
ile (commit a crime), n kazan (be famous), yara gir (take part in a race)
NEGATIVE FORM OF THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

The vowels and consonants used in the negative form of this tense undergo
some changes. The composition of this tense is as follows:
In the first person singular I and plural we a verb root, stem or a verb
frame is used first, and then the negative making allomorphs either [me or
ma] is attached to the main verbs, and they are followed by the subject
allomorphs; gel-me-em (gel*mem) or gel-me-/y/iz (gel*me*yiz).
The remaining subjects, sen, o, siz, and onlar are used with [mez or
maz] negative making allomorphs. Please follow the example sentences:
Gel-me-em.
Oku-ma-am.
al-ma-am.
Yr-me-em.
Konu-ma-am.
(gel*mem) I do not come. (The em and am mean I.)

(o*ku*mam) I dont read.
(a*l*mam) I dont work.
(y*r*mem) I dont walk.
(ko*nu*mam) I dont speak.

Tart-ma-am.
tle-me-em.
Yaz-ma-am.
Yen-il-me-em.
(tar*t*mam) I dont discuss.

(*t*le*mem) I dont iron.
(yaz*mam) I dont write.
(ye*nil*mem) I am not defeated (beaten). (Passive)
In the second person singular, one of the [mez] or [maz] negative making
allomorphs is used after a main verb, which is followed by one of the
subject allomorphs [sin or sn]:
Gel-mez-sin.
(gel*mez*sin) You do not come.
al-maz-sn. (a*l*maz*sn) You do not work.
Oku-maz-sn. (o*ku*maz*sn) You dont read.
Konu-maz-sn. (ko*nu*maz*sn) You dont speak.
Atla-maz-sn. (at*la*maz*sn) You dont jump.
Ka-n-maz-sn. (ka*n*maz*sn) You dont avoid. (Reflexive)
As the third person singular takes a [] zero subject allomorph, only the
negation allomorphs [mez, maz] are used:
al-maz.
Oku-maz.
Yaz-maz.
Gr-mez.
Anla-maz.
Gl-mez.
Ye-mez.
-mez.
Uyu-maz.
Ka-n-maz.
(a*l*maz) He does not work.

(o*ku*maz) He does not read.
(yaz*maz) He doesnt write.
(gr*mez) He doesnt see.
(an*la*maz) He doesnt understand.
(gl*mez) He doesnt laugh.
(ye*mez) He doesnt eat.
(i*mez) He doesnt drink.
(u*yu*maz) He doesnt sleep.
(ka*n*maz) He doesnt avoid. (Reflexive)
The negative form of the first person plural takes [me, ma] negation
allomorphs followed by [/y/iz, /y/z] subject allomorphs:
Ta-ma-/y/z. (ta**ma*yz) We do not carry.
A-ma-/y/z.
(a*ma*yz ) We do not open.
Ala-ma-/y/z. (a*la*ma*yz) We dont cry.
Dzenle-me-/y/iz. (d*zen*le*me*yiz) We dont arrange.
Ka-ma-/y/z. (ka*ma*yz) We dont escape.
Ka-n-ma-/y/z. (ka*n*ma*yz) We dont avoid. (Reflexive)
Ertele-me-/y/iz. (er*te*le*me*yiz) We dont postpone.
-me-/y/iz.
(i*me*yiz) We dont drink.
v-n-me-/y/iz. (*vn*me*yiz) We dont boast. (Reflexive)
10

The negative form of the second person plural takes [mez or maz] allomorphs according to the vowel harmony rules:
Gel-mez-siniz.
(gel*mez*si*niz) You do not come.
Oku-maz-snz.
(o*ku*maz*s*nz) You do not read.
al-maz-snz. (a*l*maz*s*nz) You dont work.
Ta-maz-snz. (ta**maz*s*nz) You dont carry.
Seyret-mez-siniz. (sey*ret*mez*si*niz) You dont watch.
Ara-maz-snz.
(a*ra*maz*s*nz) You dont search.
The third person plural form takes [mez, maz] negation allomorphs
followed by [ler, lar] (they) subject allomorphs:
Gel-mez-ler.
Kal-maz-lar.
Dinle-mez-ler.
Konu-maz-lar.
U-u-maz-lar.
Yr-mez-ler.
Ala-maz-lar.
Ertele-mez-ler.
Kz-maz-lar.
ek-in-mez-ler.
(gel*mez*ler) They do not come.

(kal*maz*lar) They do not stay.
(din*le*mez*ler) They dont listen.
(ko*nu*maz*lar) They dont speak.
(u*u*maz*lar) They dont fly about. (Reciprocal)
(y*r*mez*ler) They dont walk.
(a*la*maz*lar) They dont cry.
(er*te*le*mez*ler) They dont postpone.
(kz*maz*lar) They dont get angry.
(e*kin*mez*ler) They dont avoid. (Reflexive)
SIMPLE PRESENT POSITIVE QUESTION

In all of the positive and negative question forms of this tense, the [mi, m,
m, mu] adverbial question allomorphs, which transforms the sentences into
the interrogative form, are separately used followed by subject allomorphs:
(ben)
(sen)
(o)
(biz)
(siz)
(onlar)
: mi-/y/im?, m-/y/m?, m-/y/m?, mu-/y/um?

: mi-sin?, m-sn?, m-sn?, mu-sun?
: mi?, m?, m?, mu?
: mi-/y/iz?, m-/y/z?, m-/y/z?, mu-/y/uz?
: mi-siniz?, m-snz?, m-snz?, mu-sunuz?
: ler mi?, lar m?
The /y/ phonemes above are all glides. Although these interrogative words
follow the vowel harmony rules, they are considered words, and therefore,
they are separately written:
Bekle-er mi-/y/im? (bek*ler / mi*yim) Do I wait?
ksr-r m-/y/m? (k*s*rr / m*ym) Do I cough?
Bekle-er mi-sin?
(bek*ler / mi*sin) Do you wait?
11

Gel-ir mi?
Git-er mi-/y/iz?
Yz-er mi-siniz?
Anla-ar-lar m?
Ta-r-lar m?
Ye-er-ler mi?
(ge*lir / mi) Does he come?

(gi*der / mi*yiz) Do we go?
(y*zer / mi*si*niz) Do you swim?
(an*lar*lar / m) Do they understand?
(ta*r*lar* / m) Do they carry?
(yer*ler / mi) Do they eat?
SIMPLE PRESENT NEGATIVE QUESTION

To form a Simple Present negative question verb composition, [mez, maz]
negative making allomorphs are used after the verb roots, stems or frames;
and then [mi-/y/im?, m-/y/m?, m-/y/m?, mu-/y/um?]; [mi-sin?, m-sn?,
m-sn?, mu-sun?]; [mi?, m?, m?, mu?]; [mi-/y/iz?, m-/y/z?, m-/y/z?,
mu-/y/uz?]; [mi-siniz?, m-snz?, m-snz?, mu-sunuz?] or [ler mi?, larm?] words are separately written. Although the following two sentences are
structurally The Simple Present Tense, they generally express reproach.
Sana yardm et-mez mi-/y/im? (stersin de yardm etmez miyim?)
(sa*na / yar*dm / et*mez / mi*yim) (help = yardm et)
Dont I help you? (Wont I help you if you ask me?)
Ben-im-le al-maz m-sn? (Offer)
(be*nim*le / a*l*maz / m*sn)
Dont you work with me? (Wont you work with me if I ask you?)
Although the sentences above are structurally Simple Present (Geni
Zaman), Turkish people generally prefer using (imdiki Zaman) The Present
Continuous English Tense verb formation in place of the Turkish sentences
above:
Sana hep yardm et-me-iyor mu-/y/um?
(sa*na / hep / yar*dm / et*mi*yor / mu*yum )
Am I not always helping you? (Complaint)
Gn boyunca al-ma-yor mu-sun?
(gn / bo*yun*ca / a*l*m*yor / mu*sun)
Dont you work all day long? Arent you working all day long?
Klasik mzik sev-me-iyor mu-sun? (Black underlines show objects.)
(kl*sik / m*zik / sev*mi*yor / mu*sun )
Dont you like classical music?
Karde-in senin-le oyna-ma-yor mu? (Blue undrlines show subjects.)
(kar*de*in / se*nin*le / oy*na*m*yor / mu )
Doesnt your sister play with you? (Green underlines show adverbials.)
12

As it is seen, The Turkish Present Continuous verb formation is used more
frequently than the usual Simple Present Tense. Compare the following
sentences:
Her gn rmak-ta yz-yor-um, or yz-er-im.
(her / gn / r*mak*ta / y*z*yo*rum) I swim in the river everyday.
Note: The river is the object of the preposition in, but when they are
together with the preposition in, they function as an adverbial prepositional
phrase.
E-im ngilizce ret-iyor.
(e*im / in*gi*liz*ce / *re*ti*yor)
My wife teaches English.
Patates pure-/s/i sev-me-iyor-um.
(pa*ta*tes / p*re*si / sev*mi*yo*rum)
I do not like mashed potatoes.
retmen-ler yaramaz ocuk-lar-dan holan-maz(lar). (holan is intransitive)
(*ret*men*ler / ya*ra*maz / o*cuk*lar*dan / ho*lan*maz)
Teachers dont like naughty children. (Like is transitive.)
Bazen bir lokanta-da akam yemek-i ye-iyor-uz, or yer-iz. (yi*yo*ruz)
Sometimes we have dinner at a restaurant.
Pop mzik sev-iyor mu-sun?
(pop / m*zik / se*vi*yor / mu*sun)
Do you like pop-music?
Okul-a (her gn) yr-/y/erek mi git-iyor-sun?
(o*ku*la / y*r*ye*rek / mi / gi*di*yor*sun)
Do you walk to school (every day)?
The position of the question word [mi, m, m, mu] can be changed and
put after an important and stressed word in an interrogative sentence:
Okul-a otobs-le mi git-iyor-sun?
(o*ku*la / o*to*bs*le / mi / gi*di*yor*sun)
Do you go to school by bus?
Otobs-le okul-a m git-iyor-sun?
(o*to*bs*le / o*ku*la / m / gi*di*yor*sun)
13

Okul-a otobs-le git-iyor mu-sun?
(o*ku*la / o*to*bs*le / gi*di*yor / mu*sun)
However, when the (Geni Zaman) The Simple Present Tense question
form is used, the sentence changes into an offer:
Okul-a otobs-le git-er mi-sin?
(o*ku*la / o*to*bs*le / gi*der / mi*sin)
How about go-ing to school by bus? (Offer)
Ben-im-le sinema-/y/a git-er mi-sin?
(be*nim*le / si*ne*ma*/y/a / gi*der/ mi*sin)
How about go-ing to the cinema with me? (Offer)
QUESTION WORDS USED IN THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

The question words kim? (who?); kim-i? (ki*mi) (whom?); nasl?
(how?); nere-de, nere-/y/e? (ne*re*ye) (where?); kim-in? (ki*min)
(whose?); ne sklk-ta?" (how often?); ne zaman? (when?); saat kata? (what time?); niin?, ne-den? (why?); ne eit? (what kind of?)
can be used in this tense as they are used in the other tenses. The
inflectional morphemes attached to these interrogative words are the
defining allomorph [i] in kim-i?, the allomorphs of the morpheme [DE] in
nere-de?, ne sklk-ta?, ka-ta?; the possessive allomorph [in] in kimin?, "ne-/y/in?", the [DEN] morpheme in kim-den?, ne-den? and "nereden?", and [LE] morpheme kim-le?, ne/y/-le?.
In order to make up Turkish sentences containing one of the interrogative
words above, one can put one of these words in a positive or negative
sentence without changing its sentence order. In other words, one can use
such interrogative words in any Turkish positive or negative sentences
without changing their positive or negative sentence structures.
Bro-un-a nasl git-iyor-sun? Brona . gidiyorsun.
(b*ro*na / na sl / gi*di*yor*sun)
(not *nasl gidiyor musun) How do you go to your office? Otobs-le. By bus.
Nerde ngilizce ret-iyor-sun?
(ner de / n*gi*liz*ce / *re*ti*yor*sun)
Where do you teach English? or "Where are you teaching English?"
Nerede ngilizce ret-ir-sin? is an offer. It means, Where do you
want to teach English?
14

Bu soru-/y/a kim cevap ver-mek iste-iyor? (Cevap ver is intransitive.)
(bu / so*ru*ya / kim / ce*vap / ver*mek / is*ti*yor)
Who wants to answer this question? (Want and answer are transitive.)
Tiyatro-/y/a ne sklk-ta git-iyor-sun?
(ti*yat*ro*ya / ne / sk*lk*ta / gi*di*yor*sun)
How often do you go to the theatre?
Her sabah saat ka-ta kalk-yor-sun?
( her / sa*bah / sa*at / ka*ta / kal*k*yor*sun)
What time do you get up every morning?
In traditional Turkish grammars, some consonants, such as /m/, /n/, /k/, /z/,
are considered subject allomorphs, which are inconsistent with the rest of
the bound morphemes and syllables of the Turkish language. No consonants can carry meanings by themselves. The Turkish bound morphemes
and their allomorphs, like syllables, are all made up of at least one vowel
such as []; consonant + vowel such as [D]; vowel + consonant such
as [L], [M], [N], [K] or [Z]; vowel + consonant + consonant such as
art, rt; consonant + vowel + consonant such as [M], or consonant
+ vowel + consonant + consonant such as tirt, drt, dirt, trt, or
they are made of two syllables such as, [iyor], [meli], [e.cek], [a.maz], There
are no bound morphemes in Turkish without vowels. However, some of
these vowels drop and they are ignored in speech and writing, or when they
coincide, they combine, and verbalize as single vowels.
To shorten these syllable structures, the first letters of them can be used as
v, c.v, v.c, v.c.c, c.v.c or c.v.c.c. The only exception to this rule
is the [T] morpheme used in the causative verb frames as in (ge*tirt), (al*drt). All Turkish morphemes and syllables are formed of one of these six
syllable types. In short, there are no morphemes in Turkish without vowells, but the phonological system drops or combines some of them while
rearranging the syllables of the morphemes to maintain the Turkish
syllabication and sound sequence.
One important rule to add to the explanations above is that the morphemes
and syllables in Turkish do not follow a parallel pattern. While the words
are divided into syllables, the morphemes comply with the syllable rules of
the Turkish language. For instance, the last consonants of some words or
morphemes detach from their syllables, and attach to the first vowels of the
following morphemes, such as:
ku-u (ku*u), ben-i (be*ni), oda-am-a (o*da*ma), defter-im (def*te*rim),
tarla-am (tar*lam), gr-l-mek (g*rl*mek), kes-i-mek (ke*si*mek), etc.
15

Furthermore, The Simple Present Tense allomorphs are [ir, r, r, ur, er,
ar] such as in: gel-ir (ge*lir), al-r (a*lr), gr-r (g*rr), otur-ur
(o*tu*rur) a-ar (a*ar), bekle-er (bek*ler), yakala-ar (ya*ka*lar).
The Simple Present Tense allomorphs above attach to the verbs ending with
consonants. However, if the verbs end with vowels, the first vowels of the
Simple Present Tense allomorphs coincide with the last vowels of the verbs.
These coinciding vowels combine, and verbalize as single vowels:
Bekle-er (bek*ler), incele-er (in*ce*ler), hazrla-ar (ha*zr*lar), yakala-ar
(ya*ka*lar), yr-r (y*rr), uyu-ur (u*yur), yakala-ar-m (ya*ka*la*rm)
Likewise, when the subject allomorphs [im, m, m, um], [in, n, n, un],
[ik, k, k, uk], [iniz, nz, nz, unuz] follow the Simple Past Tense
allomorphs [di, d, d, du, ti, t, t, tu], their vowels coincide and
combine, and verbalize as single vowels. For instance:
Gel-di-im (gel*dim), al-d-m (al*dm), gr-d-m (gr*dm), otur-du-um
(o*tur*dum), bekle-di-in (bek*le*din), konu-tu-un (ko*nu*tun), p-t-n
(*p*tn), bekle-di-ik (bek*le*dik), otur-du-uk (o*tur*duk), konu-tu-unuz
(konu*tu*nuz), ka-t-nz (ka*t*nz).
PRESENT CONTINUOUS
AND
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSES
The Present Continuous (imdiki Zaman) time morpheme is [.YOR], which
has four allomorphs: [iyor, yor, .yor, u.yor]. When these allomorphs
attach to the main verbs ending with consonants, these consonants detach
from their syllables and attach to the following [.YOR] allomorphs. These
consonants are single underlined. However, when they attach to the verb
roots, stems or frames ending with vowels, the end vowels of these verbs
drop, so the allomorphs of the [YOR] morpheme follow the vowels that
precede the dropped vowels. The dropped vowels are double underlined
in this book.
Note: The vowels that are said dropped are the vowels that are overlooked by the Turkish language sound system while the previous vowels are
being linked to the following ones. This is because it is not harmonious for
the Turkish-speaking people to pronounce two vowels attached to one another, so they either skip one of them, or combine them or link them with
glides.
16

The verb roots, stems or frames ending with consonants:
gel-iyor (ge*li*yor), bak-yor (ba*k*yor), otur-uyor (o*tu*ru*yor),
ksr-.yor (k*s*r*yor), yana-yor (ya*na**yor), bekle-iyor
(bek*le*i*yor), beklen-iyor-lar (bek*le*ni*yor*lar), art-yor (ar*t*yor),
it-iyor (i*ti*yor).
The verb roots, stems or frames ending with vowels:
bekle-iyor (bek*li*yor), ertele-iyor (er*te*li*yor), yr-yor (y*r*yor),
atla-yor (at*l*yor), alkala-yor (al*ka*l*yor), akla-yor (ak*l*yor),
dengele-iyor (den*ge*li*yor), oku-uyor) (o*ku*yor), ta-yor (ta**yor),
oyna-uyor (oy*nu*yor).
The last vowels of the verbs above are double underlined. When these last
vowels drop, the first vowels of the [YOR] morpheme follow the vowels
preceding the dropped vowels. The single underlined consonants
preceding the dropped vowels detach from their syllables and attach to the
first vowels of the [YOR] allomorphs.
bekliyor, erteliyor, yryor, atlyor, alkalyor, aklyor, dengeliyor
When one of the allomorphs of the morpheme [YOR] is attached to the negative making allomorphs [me] or [ma], these negative making
allomorphs also drop their last vowels, and the [YOR] allomorphs follow
the vowels preceding the dropped vowels according to the vowel harmony of
the Turkish language:
gel-me-iyor (gel*mi*yor), oku-ma-uyor (o*ku*mu*yor), bekle-me-iyor
(bek*le*mi*yor), al-ma-yor (a*l*m*yor), gl-me-yor (gl*m*yor),
ertele-me-iyor (er*te*le*mi*yor).
The [YOR] morpheme is composed of two syllables: i*yor. The second
syllable of this morpheme yor never follows the vowel harmony rules, and
consequently, the subject allomorphs that follow them do not have different
allomorphs:
gel-iyor-um, bala-yor-sun, ko-uyor, gez-iyor-uz, al-yor-sunuz, glyor-lar, bekle-iyor, anla-yor, kovala-yor, besle-iyor (bes*li*yor).
As a rule, the last consonants of the verbs detach from their syllables, and
attach to the first vowels of the following morphemes. However, when the /p,
t, , k/ unvoiced consonants detach from their syllables and attach to the
following morphemes, they also change into their voiced forms /b, d, c, /.
17

The Present Continuous and The Present Perfect Continuous tenses of
the English language are both expressed in The Present Continuous
Tense (imdiki zaman) in Turkish. Compare the following sentences:
(O) gel-iyor.
(ge*li*yor )
He is coming. (Now or later)
O bir mektup yaz-yor.
(o / bir / mek*tup / ya*z*yor )
He is writing a letter. (Now)
O bir saat-tir bir mektup yaz-yor.
(o / bir / sa*at*tir / bir / mek*tup / ya*z*yor )
He has been writing a letter for an hour.
Jack bahe-de oyna-uyor. (The /a/ drops, and the /n/ ataches to /u/.)
(Jack / bah*e*de / oy*nu*yor )
Jack is playing in the garden.
Jack sabah-tan beri bahe-de oyna-uyor.
(Jack / sa*bah*tan / be*ri / bah*e*de / oy*nu*yor )
Jack has been playing in the garden since morning.
Mehmet bahe-de ko-uyor.
(meh*met / bah*e*de / ko*u*yor)
Mehmet is running in the garden. (Now)
Mary nehir-de yz-yor.
(ma*ri / ne*hir*de / y*z*yor)
Mary is swimming in the river. (Now)
Okul-un n-/n/-de bekle-iyor-uz. (Reciprocal)
(o*ku*lun / *nn*de / bek*le*i*yo*ruz)
We are waiting together in front of the school.
Jack boyuna televizyon seyret-iyor.
(Jack / bo*yu*na / te*le*viz*yon / sey*re*di*yor )
Jack is always watching television. (Complaint)
Televizyon seyret-iyor-um. (Subject allomorphs are always together with verbs.)
(te*le*viz*yon / sey*re*di*yo*rum )
I am watching television.
18

The single underlined consonants detach from their syllables and attach to
the first vowels of the following morphemes during syllabication. Moreover,
the /p, t, , k/ single underlined unvoiced consonants both detach from their
syllables and attach to the first vowels of the following morphemes and
change into their voiced counterparts /b, d, c, /, as well.
Bahe-de oyna-uyor-uz.
(bah*e*de / oy*nu*yo*ruz)
We are playing in the garden.
Trke ren-iyor mu-sunuz?
(Trk*e / *re*niyor / mu*su*nuz)
Are you learning Turkish? (now)
ay-dr Trke ren-iyor-uz.
(*ay*dr / trk*e / *re*ni*yo*ruz) (liaison)
We have been learning Turkish for three months.
Mart-lar gkyz/n/-de u-uyor-lar.
(mar*t*lar / gk*y*zn*de / u*u*yor*lar)
The seagulls are flying in the sky. (Now)
Onlar sen-i bekle-iyor-lar. (The /e/ drops, and the /l/ attaches to /i/.)
(se*ni / bek*li*yor*lar )
They are waiting for you. (Now)
le yemek-i ye-iyor-uz. (The /e/ drops, and the /y/ attaches to /i/.)
(*le / ye*me*i / yi*yo*ruz)
We are having lunch. (Now)
renci-ler saat sekiz-den beri retmen-ler-i-/n/i bekle-iyor-lar.
The students have been waiting for their teacher since eight.
Ne kadar zaman-dr televizyon seyret-iyor-sun?
(ne / ka*dar / za*man*dr / te*le*viz*yon / sey*re*di*yor*sun)
How long have you been watching television?
Gnler uza-uyor. (Liaison) (Uzuyor is a verb in Turkish.)
(gn*le*ru*zu*yor )
Days are getting longer. (longer is subject complement in English.)
Oul-um ev dev-i-/n/i yap-yor. (Liaison)
(o*lum / e*v*de*vi*ni / ya*p*yor)
My son is doing his homework.
19

saat-tir ders al-yor-um.
( / sa*at*tir / ders / a*l**yo*rum)
I have been studying for three hours.
Bir saat-tir sen-i bekle-iyor-um.
(bir / sa*at*tir / se*ni / bek*li*yo*rum)
I have been waiting for you for an hour.
Sabah-tan beri ne yap-yor-sun? (What? and ne? are interrogative pronouns)
(sa*bah*tan / be*ri / ne / ya*p*yor*sun)
What have you been doing since morning?
imdi ne yap-yor-sun?
(im di / ne / ya*p*yor*sun)
What are you doing now?
The morpheme [DR] can also be used after The Present Continuous Tense
(imdiki Zaman) in Turkish to express estimation:
Jack ne yap-yor?
(jack / ne / ya*p*yor)
What is Jack doing?
Ders al-yor-dur. (Ders al-mak means to study)
(ders / a*l**yor*dur)
I think (guess) he is studying.
The near future concept can also be expressed in the Present Continuous
Tense (imdiki Zaman) in Turkish as it is done in English:
Uak biraz-dan havalan-yor.
(u*ak / bi*raz*dan / ha*va*la*n*yor)
The plane is taking off soon.
Misafir-ler yarn gel-iyor-lar.
(mi*sa:*fir*ler / ya*rn / ge*li*yor*lar)
The visitors are coming tomorrow.
Misafir-ler birazdan gel-iyor mu?
(mi*sa:*fir*ler / bi*raz*dan / ge*li*yor / mu)
Are the visitors coming soon?
Yarn Londra/y/a git-iyor-uz.
(ya*rn / Lon*dra*ya / gi*di*yo*ruz)
We are going to London tomorrow.
20

Biraz-dan k-yor mu-/y/uz?
(bi*raz*dan / *k*yor / mu*yuz)
Are we leaving soon?
Yarn yeni bir araba satn al-yor-um. (Liaison)
(ya*rn / ye*ni / bi*ra*ra*ba / sa*t*na*l*yo*rum)
Im going to buy a new car tomorrow.
Yarn tan-yor mu-sunuz? (Reflexive)
(ya*rn / ta**n*yor / mu*su*nuz)
Are you moving tomorrow.
Yarn sigara-/y/ brak-yor-um.
(ya*rn / si*ga*ra*y / b*ra*k*yo*rum)
I am going to stop smok-ing tomorrow.
THE VERBS THAT ARE NOT USED IN SIMPLE TENSES

IN TURKISH
Some verbs that are not normally used in continuous tenses in English are
especially used in continuous tenses in Turkish, and strange to say, these
verbs are not generally used in simple tenses.
These verbs are as follows:
adore, appreciate, believe, care, desire, forgive, hate, hear, know,
like, love, mean, mind, miss, recall, refuse, remember, see, smell,
seem, think, trust, understand, want, wish.
Consider and compare the following sentences:
Sen-i affet-iyor-um. (Present Continuous)
(se*ni / af*fe*di*yo*rum) (The /t/ changes into /d/.)
I forgive you. (Simple Present)
Sen-i sev-iyor-um. (Present Continuous) Ben-i sev-iyor mu-sun?
(se*ni / se*vi*yo*rum)
(be*ni / se*vi*yor / mu*sun)
I love you. (SimplePresent)
Do you love me?
Sana tap-yor-um. (Present Continuous)
(sa*na / ta*p*yo*rum)
I adore you. (Simple Present)
21

Hepiniz-i hatrla-yor-um.
(he*pi*ni*zi / ha*tr*l*yo*rum)
I remember all of you.
Ben-i hatrla-yor mu-sunuz?

(be*ni / ha*tr*l*yor / mu*su*nuz)
Do you remember me?
Hepiniz-e gven-iyor-um.
(he*pi*ni*ze / g*ve*ni*yo*rum)
I trust all of you.
Bana gven-me-iyor mu-sun?

(ba*na / g*ven*mi*yor / mu*sun)
Do you not trust me?
Siz-i anla-yor-um.
(si*zi / an*l*yo*rum)
I understand you.
Ben-i anla-yor mu-sunuz?

(be*ni / an*l*yor / mu*su*nuz)
Do you understand me?
Siz-i anla-ma-yor-um.
(si*zi / an*la*m*yo*rum)
I do not understand you.
Ben-i anla-ma-yor mu-sunuz?

(be*ni / an*la*m*yor / mu*su*nuz)
Do you not understand me?
Bir fincan kahve iste-iyor-um.

(bir / fin*can / kah*ve / is*ti*yo*rum)
I want a cup of coffee.
Gramer kitap-lar- oku-mak-tan nefret et-iyor-um. (Intransitive)
(gra*mer / ki*tap*la*r / o*ku*mak*tan / nef*re*te*di*yo*rum )
I hate read-ing grammar books. (Transitive)
Ben-i zle-yor mu-sun?
(be*ni / z*l*yor / mu*sun)
Do you miss me?
Sana inan-ma-yor-um.
(sa*na / i*nan*m*yo*rum)
I do not believe you.
Hibir ey iit-me-iyor-um.
(hi*bir / ey / i*it*mi*yo*rum)
I do not hear anything.
Umursa-ma-yor-um. (Umur-um-da deil.) (Bana ne?)
(u*mur*sa*m*yo*rum) (u*mu*rum*da / de*il ) (ba*na / ne)
I do not care.
Bu proje uygulan-abil-ir grn-yor.
(bu / pro*je / uy*gu*la*na*bi*lir / g*r*n*yor)
This project seems (looks) (sounds) feasible. Feasible is subject complement.
22

Siz-i takdir et-iyor-um.
(si*zi / tak*di:*re*di*yo*rum) (Liaison)
I appreciate you.
The verbs that are given above can also be used in The Simple Present
Tense (Geni Zaman) in conditional sentences:
Tekrar ge kal-ma-ma-/y/a sz ver-ir-se-en sen-i affet-er-im.
(tek*rar / ge / kal*ma*ma*ya / sz / ve*rir*sen~ / se*ni / af*fe*de*rim)
If you promise not to be late again, I will forgive you.
Bana yeni bir araba al-r-sa-an sen-i daha ok sev-er-im.
(ba*na / ye*ni / bir / a*ra*ba / a*lr*san / se*ni / da*ha / ok / se*ve*rim)
If you buy me a new car, I will love you more.
TURKISH VERB FRAMES

The suffixes (the inflectional allomorphs) that form Turkish verb frames
make them indivisible units, and so they are used as verb stems. The other
suffixes, such as: negative making, time and subject allomorphs follow
them in succession. There are five kinds of verb frames:
Transitive verb frames (geili fiil atlar), intransitive verb frames (geisiz fiil atlar), passive verb frames (edilgen fiil atlar), reflexive verb
frames (dnl fiil atlar), and reciprocal verb frames (ite fiil atlar).
TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE VERB FRAMES

Transitive verb frames are the verbs that take definite or indefinite objects:
Annem her hafta ev-i temizler. Mother cleans the house every week.
subject
adverbial
def obj tran verb
subject tran verb definite obj
adverbial phrs
Ahmet bir hikye kitab- okuyor Ahmet is reading a story book.

subject
indefinite object
tran verb
subject
(Ben) her sabah odam- tertipler-im. I

subj
adverbial
definite obj
tran verb
tran verb
indefinite obj
tidy my room every morning.
subj tran verb
object
adverbial phrs
Intransitive verb frames do not take objects:

Ben
subj
bazen nehir-de yz-er-im. I sometimes

adverb
adverbial
intr verb
subj
23
adverbial
swim
in the river.
intr verb
adverbial

Olum gn-de sekiz saat uyur. My son sleeps eight hours a day.
subject
adverbial
adverbial
intr verb
subj
intr verb
adverbial
Olum okul-a her sabah otobs-le gider.

subject
adverbial
adverbial
adverbial
intr verb
My son goes to school by bus every morning.

subject
intr verb
adverbial
adverbial
adverbial
REFLEXIVE VERB FRAMES (DNL FL ATILARI)

A reflexive verb frame is a verb whose action in a sentence has its effect
on a person or thing that does the action. The most commonly used
inflectional suffix that turns verb roots and stems into reflexive verbs is [N],
which has six allomorphs: [in, n, n, un, en, an]. The other one, which
has only a few examples in Turkish is [L], which has four allomorphs [il,
l, l, ul], such as Gmleime ay dk-l-d, Deniz ek-il-di. As a rule,
the identical a-a, e-e, -vowels combine, and the single underlined
consonants /n/ detach from their syllables and attach to the following
vowels:
Oul-um ykan-yor.
(o*lum / y*ka*n*yor)
My son is having a bath. (He is washing himself.)
Aye taran-yor.
(ay*e / ta*ra*n*yor)
Aye is combing. (Her hair)
Ba-m kan-yor.
(ba*m / ka**n*yor)
My head is itching.
Kedi masa-/n/n alt-/n/-da kan-yor.
(ke*di / ma*sa*nn / al*tn*da / ka**n*yor)
The cat is scratching under the table. (It is scratching itself.)
.
Yaz silin-di. (Turkish is reflexive.)
(ya*z / si*lin*di)
The writing has been ereased. (English is passive.)
vn-yor.
(*v*n*yor)
He is boasting or praising himself.
24

Aye sa--/n/ tara-yor. (Transitive.)
(ay*e ~/ sa**n / ta*r*yor )
Aye is combing her hair. (Transitive)
Dkkn-lar saat yedi-de kapan-r. (Reflexive)
(dk*kn*lar / sa*at / ye*di*de / ka*pa*nr)
Shops close at seven oclock. (They close themselves.) (Reflexive)
Aye kap-/n/n arka-/s//-/n/a saklan-yor. (Reflexive)
(ay*e / ka*p*nn / ar*ka*s*na / sak*la*n*yor)
Aye is hiding behind the door. (She is hiding herself.) (Reflexive)
Yer sarsl-yor. (Reflexive)
(yer / sar*s*l*yor )
The ground is shaking. (It is shaking itself.) (Reflexive)
zl-ecek-sin. (zl is an action verb in Turkish.)
(*z*le*cek*sin)
You will be sorry. (Sorry is a subject complement in English.)
The allomorphs that are used to form reflexive verbs are also used with
verbs when they are transformed into the passive voice. As these allomorphs sometimes cause confusion, one should be careful when one defines them:
Kara grn-d. (Reflexive) (It showed itself.)
(ka*ra / g*rn*d)
The land has showed itself.
Kara grl-d. (Passive)
(ka*ra / g*rl*d)
The land has been seen.
PASSIVE TRANSFORMATION OF THE INTRANSITIVE

VERB FRAMES
Some Turkish intransitive verbs can also be transformed into the passive
forms without being put into the passive voice. While these verbs are being
shaped, the passive transformation allomorphs are attached to these
verb roots or stems. In doing this, the verbs ending with vowels and the /L/
phonemes attach to the [in, n, n, un, en, an] allomorphs; the others,
25

ending with consonants, attach to the [il, l, l, ul] allomorphs. Although
this form does not exist in English, it is expressed in a different sentence
structure, which does not exist in Turkish. Consider the following:
Deniz-de yz-l-r. (de*niz*de / y*z*lr)
It is possible (natural) to swim in the sea, or "The sea is a place where
one can naturally swim." (Passive shaped intransitive)
-e saat sekiz-de bala-an-r. (The a-a combine, and the n attaches to )
(i*e / sa*at / se*kiz*de / ba*la*nr)
It is a rule to start work at eight. (Passive shaped intransitive)
Pazar gnler-i dinlen-il-ir.
(pa*zar / gn*le*ri / din*le*ni*lir)
It is customary to have a rest on Sundays. (Passive shaped intransitive)
Byle gne-li bir gn-de piknik-e git-il-ir.
(by*le / g*ne*li / bir / gn*de / pik*ni*e / gi*di*lir)
It is advisable (natural) to go for a picnic on such a sunny day.
(Passive shaped intransitive)
Gzel-e bak-l-r.
(g*ze*le / ba*k*lr)
It is natural to look at the beautiful. (Passive shaped intransitive)
Pazartesi gn-ler-i erken kalk-l-r.
(pa*zar*te*si / gn*le*ri / er*ken / kal*k*lr)
It is a rule to get up early on Mondays.
(Passive shaped intransitive)
To use the negative forms of the above sentences, the [mez, maz]
allomorphs are used after the main verbs:
Byle bir grlt-de uyu-un-maz. Byle bir grlt-de uyu-un-ur mu?
(by*le / bir / g*rl*t*de / u*yun*maz ) (u*yu*nur / mu )
It is impossible to sleep in such a noise. (Passive shaped intransitive)
Bu sokak-ta yr-n-mez. (The - vowels combine.)
(bu / so*kak*ta / y*rn*mez)
It is impossible to walk in this street. (Passive shaped intransitive)
26

O-/n/un laf--/n/a bak-l-maz.
(o*nun / l*f*na / ba*kl*maz)
It is natural (advisable) not to mind what he says. (Passive shaped intr.)
Bu otel-de kal-n-maz.
(bu / o*tel*de / ka*ln*maz)
It is impossible to stay in this hotel. (Passive shaped intransitive)
O/n/un akl--/n/a uy-ul-maz.
(o*nun /ak*l*na /u*yul*maz)
It is inadvisable to follow his advice. (Passive shaped intransitive)
Bu gl-de yz-l-r m?
(bu / gl*de / y*z*lr/ m)
Is it possible to swim in this lake? (passive shaped intransitive)
Note: The English adverb not is expressed in Turkish either as [me, ma] or [mez,
maz] adverbial negative making allomorphs, or the adverb deil is used in place of
these allomorphs. Additionally, as there are not interrogative adverbial allomorphs
like mi, m, m, mu in English, a positive or negative English verb formation is
transformed into a question form, such as You are a teacher. Are you a
teacher? etc.
RECIPROCAL VERB FRAMES (TE FL ATILARI)

1. A reciprocal verb expresses an action which is exchanged between two
or more people. The reciprocal morpheme is [], which has [i, , ,
u, e, a] allomorphs. When the main verbs end with vowels, and the
allomorphs start with the same vowels, these two vowels coincide,
combine and verbalize as single vowels:
Bak-yor-lar.
(ba*k**yor*lar)
They are exchanging glances.
Onlar bak-ma-yor-lar m?
(on*lar / ba*k*m*yor*lar / m)
Are they not exchanging glances?
Kucakla-yor-lar.
(ku*cak*la**yor*lar)
They are hugging. (Each other).
Tokala-yor-lar.
(to*ka*la**yor*lar)
They are shaking hands.
27

Dv-yor-lar.
(d*v**yor*lar)
They are fighting. (They are beating each other.)
p-yor-lar-d.
(*p**yor*lar*d)
They were kissing.
Onlar p-me-yor-lar m/y/-d?

(on*lar / *p*m*yor*lar / my*d)
Weren't they kissing?
Onlar Pazar gn-ler-i gr-r-ler.

(on*lar / pa*zar / gn*le*ri / g*r*r*ler)
They meet and talk on Sundays.
2. Some verbs that are attached to reciprocal allomorphs convey the
concept of (all) together:
Haber-i duy-unca bar-t-lar.
(ha*be*ri / du*yun*ca / ba**r*t*lar)
They shouted all together when they heard the news.
Polis-i gr-nce ka-t-lar.
(po*li*si / g*rn*ce / ka**t*lar)
They ran away all together when they saw the police-officer.
ocuklar futbol takm-lar- hakknda tart-yor-lar.
(o*cuk*lar / fut*bol / ta*km*la*r / hak*kn*da / tar*t**yor*lar)
The boys are discussing about their football teams.
Baz ocuk-lar kap-da bekle-iyor-lar.
(ba*z / o*cuk*lar / ka*p*da / bek*le*i*yor*lar)
Some children are waiting together at the door.
3. Some other verbs that are attached to the allomorphs above convey the
idea of about:
Ku-lar gkyz/n/-de uu-uyor-du.
(ku*lar / gk*y*zn*de / u*u*u*yor*du)
Birds were flying about in the sky.
ocuk-lar bahe-de kou-uyor-lar.
(o*cuk*lar / bah*e*de / ko*u*u*yor*lar)
The children are running about in the garden.
28

rdek-ler havuz-da yz-yor-lar.
(r*dek*ler / ha*vuz*da / y*z**yor*lar)
The ducks are swimming about in the pool.
BOTH TRANSITIVELY AND INTRANSITIVELY USED

ENGLISH VERBS
(The Ambitransitive English Verbs)
Some English verbs are both transitive and intransitive. There are few verbs
used in this fashion in Turkish. Therefore, those who are studying English or
Turkish as a second language face some difficulties in learning them. In the
following list, you can find frequently used English verbs that are used both
transitively and intransitively. The Turkish equivalents of such verbs and how
their allomorphs change are given in the examples below.
As it has already been noted, the identical vowels that follow each other
combine, and the single underlined consonants detach from their
syllables and attach to the first vowels of the following allomorphs during the
syllabication process:
Yumurta-lar kayna-yor.
(yu*mur*ta*lar / kay*n*yor)
The eggs are boiling. (The Turkish and English verbs are intransitive.)
Fatma yumurta kayna-at-yor. (Transitive)
(fat*ma / yu*mur*ta / kay*na*t*yor)
Fatma is boiling eggs.
In the first Turkish sentence above, the intransitive verb kayna has
changed into kayna-at transitive verb frame to take the object yumurta.
However, the English verb boil has not changed. This shows us that the
English verb boil can be used both transitively and intransitively. In the following sentences, the explanations in parentheses are about the Turkish
sentences. However, when necessary, both Turkish and English verbs are
explained in parentheses. In the following examples, the subjects are blue,
the objects are black, the verbs are red, the subject complements are
brown, and the modifiers are purple.
Ate yan-yor. (Intransitive)
(a*te / ya*n*yor)
The fire is burning.
29

Ate parmak-lar-n- yak-ar. (Transitive)
(a*te / par*mak*la*r*n / ya*kar)
Fire burns your fingers.
Dkkn-lar saat yedi-de kapan-r. (Reflexive)
(dk*kn*lar / sa*at / ye*di*de / ka*pa*nr )
Shops close at seven. (They close themselves.)
Onlar dkkn-lar- yedi-de kapat-r-lar. (Transitive)
(on*lar / dk*kn*la*r / sa*at / ye*di*de / ka*pa*tr*lar)
They close the shops at seven.
Dkkn-lar saat yedi-de kapat-l-r. (Passive)
(dk*kn*lar / sa*at / ye*di*de / ka*pa*t*lr)
The shops are closed at seven.
Renk-ler sonbahar-da dei-ir. (Intransitive)
(renk*ler / son*ba*har*da / de*i*ir)
Colors change in the autumn.
(O) giysi-ler-i-/n/i deitir-iyor. (Transitive.)
(o ~/ giy*si*le*ri*ni / de*i*ti*ri*yor)
He is changing his clothes.
imdi mutfak-ta yemek piir-iyor. (Turkish is transitive)
(im*di / mut*fak*ta / ye*mek / pi*i*ri*yor)
She is cooking in the kitchen now. (English is intransitive)
O, balk piir-iyor. (Transitive)
(o / ba*lk / pi*i*ri*yor)
She is cooking fish.
Yemek pi-ti. (Intransitive)
(ye*mek / pi*ti)
The meal has cooked.
Meyve-ler olgun-la-nca aa-lar-dan d-er. (Intransitive)
(mey*ve*ler / ol*gun*la*n*ca / a*a*lar*dan / d*er)
Fruits drop from trees when they ripen.
Kalem-i-/n/i dr-d. (Transitive)
(ka*le*mi*ni / d*r*d)
She dropped her pencil.
30

Baz nehir-ler yaz-n kuru-ur. (Intransitive)
(ba*z / ne*hir*ler / ya*zn / ku*rur)
Some rivers dry up in the summer.
El-ler-in-i ben-im havlu-um-da kurula-ma. (Transitive)
(el*le*ri*ni / be*nim / hav*lum*da l ku*ru*la*ma)
Dont dry your hands on my towel.
Sava sona er-di. (Intransitive)
(sa*va / so*na / er*di)
The war ended.
Sava- sona erdir-di-ler. (Transitive)
(sa*va* / so*na / er*dir*di*ler)
They ended the war.
Bir bomba patla-d. (Intransitive)
(bir / bom*ba / pat*la*d)
A bomb exploded.
Bir bomba patlat-t-lar. (Transitive)
(bir / bom*ba / pat*lat*t*lar)
They exploded a bomb.
nekler tarla-da beslen-iyor-lar. (Reflexive)
(i*nek*ler / tar*la*da / bes*le*ni*yor*lar)
The cows are feeding (grazing) in the field.
Kpek-im-i her sabah besle-er-im. (Transitive)
(k*pe*i*mi / her / sa*bah / bes*le*rim)
I feed my dog every morning.
Sokak-lar k-n amur-la dol-ar. (Intransitive)
(so*kak*lar / k*n / a*mur*la / do*lar)
The streets fill up with mud in winter.
Kalem-im-i siyah mrekkep-le doldur. (Transitive)
(ka*le*mi*mi / si*yah / m*rek*kep*le / dol*dur)
Fill my pen with black ink.
henz bit-me-di. (Intransitive)
(i / he*nz / bit*me*di)
The work hasnt finished yet.
31

-im-i henz bitir-me-di-im. (Transitive)
(i*i*mi / he*nz / bi*tir*me*dim)
I havent finished my work yet.
Ku-lar hava-da u-ar. (Intransitive)
(ku*lar / ha*va*da / u*ar)
Birds fly in the sky.
ocuk-lar uurtma uur-uyor-lar. (Transitive)
(o*cuk*lar / u*urt*ma / u*u*ru*yor*lar)
The boys are flying kites.
Patates-ler kzar-yor. (Intransitive)
(pa*ta*tes*ler / k*za*r*yor )
The potatoes are frying.
O, balk kzart-yor. (Transitive)
(o~ / ba*lk / k*zar*t*yor )
She is frying fish.
Pamuk Adanada yeti-ir. (Intransitive)
(pa*muk / a*da*na*da / ye*ti*ir)
Cotton grows in Adana.
Adanada pamuk yetitir-ir-ler. (Transitive)
(a*da*na*da / pa*muk / ye*ti*ti*rir*ler )
They grow cotton in Adana.
Kap-/n/n arka-/s/-/n/a saklan-yor. (Reflexive)
(ka*p*nn / ar*ka*s*na / sak*la*n*yor )
He is hiding behind the door. (He is hiding himself.)
Mektup-lar--/n/ sakla-ar. (Transitive)
(mek*tup*la*r*n / sak*lar)
She hides her letters.
Zorluk-lar-mz art-yor. (Intransitive)
(zor*luk*la*r*mz / ar*t*yor)
Our difficulties are increasing.
Hz-n- artr-ma. (Transitive)
(h*z*n / ar*tr*ma)
Dont increase your speed.
32

iek-ler sabah-leyin a-ar. (Intransitive)
(i*ek*ler / sa*bah*le*yin / a*ar)
Flowers open in the morning.
Sabah-leyin pencere-ler-i a-ar-z. (Transitive)
(sa*bah*le*yin / pen*ce*re*le*ri / a*a*rz)
We open the windows in the morning. (The verb "a" is used both
transitively and intransitively in Turkish as it is used in English.)
At-lar yar-yor. (Intransitive)
(at*lar / ya*r**yor)
The horses are racing.
At-lar- yartr-yor-lar. (Transitive)
(at*la*r / ya*r*t*r*yor*lar)
They are racing the horses.
Elma-lar scak hava-da olgunla-r. (Intransitive)
(el*ma*lar / s*cak / ha*va*da / ol*gun*la*r)
Apples ripen in warm weather.
Note: "Ol" is a verb root, "olgun" is an adjective stem, "olgunla" is an
intransitive verb frame, "olgunlatr" is a transitive verb frame.
Scak hava elma-lar- olgunlatr-r. (Transitive)
(s*cak / ha*va / el*ma*la*r / ol*gun*la*t*rr)
Warm weather ripens the apples.
Zil al-yor. (Intransitive)
(zil / a*l*yor)
The bell is ringing.
Zil-i al. (Transitive)
(zi*li / al)
Ring the bell.
("al" and "ring" verbs are used both transitively and intransitively in Turkish
and in English.)
Bazen kaya-lar tepe-ler-den aa yuvarlan-r. (Reflexive)
(ba:*zen / ka*ya*lar / te*pe*ler*den / a*a* / yu*var*la*nr)
Sometimes rocks roll down the hills.
33

Baz kimse-ler tepe-den aa kaya-lar- yuvarla-yor-lar. (Transitive)
(ba:*z / kim*se*ler / te*pe*den / a*a* / ka*ya*la*r / yu*var*l*yor*lar)
Some people are rolling rocks down the hill.
Baz kz-lar nehir-de yz-yor. (Intransitive)
(ba:*z / kz*lar / ne*hir*de / y*z*yor)
Some girls are swimming in the river.
ocuk-lar model kayk-lar--/n/ yzdr-yor. (Transitive)
(o*cuk*lar / mo*del / ka*yk*la*r*n / yz*d*r*yor)
The children are sailing their modal boats.
Yer sarsl-yor. (Reflexive)
(yer / sar*s*l*yor)
The ground is shaking.
la- i-me-den nce ie-/y/i alkala (sars). (Transitive)
(i*la*c / i*me*den / n*ce / i*e*yi / al*ka*la)
Shake the bottle before you take the medicine.
kinci Dnya Sava/n/-da birok gemi bat-t. (Intransitive)
(i*kin*ci / dn*ya: / sa*va*n*da / bir*ok / ge*mi / bat*t)
A lot of ships sank during The Second World War.
kinci Dnya Sava/n/-da birok gemi batr-d-lar.
(i*kin*ci / dn*ya: / sa*va*n*da / bir*ok / ge*mi / ba*tr*d*lar)
They sank a lot of ships during The Second World War. (Transitive)
Gmlek-im-e ay dkl-d. (Reflexive)
(gm*le*i*me / ay / d*kl*d)
Tea spilled on my shirt.
Seyhan Nehri Akdeniz-e dkl-r. (Reflexive)
(sey*han / neh*ri / ak*de*ni*ze / d*k*lr)
The Seyhan River pours into the Mediterranean Sea.
Limonata-/y/ yer-e dk-t-m. (Transitive)
(li*mo*na*ta*y / ye*re / dk*tm)
I have spilled (spilt) the lemonade on the floor.
Araba-lar dur-du. (Intransitive)
(a*ra*ba*lar / dur*du)
The cars stopped.
34

Polis araba-lar- durdur-du. (Transitive)
(po*lis / a*ra*ba*la*r / dur*dur*du)
The police officer stopped the cars.
Tekerlek-ler dn-yor. (Intransitive)
(te*ker*lek*ler / d*n*yor)
The wheels are turning.
Motor tekerlek-ler-i dndr-r. (Transitive)
(mo*tor / te*ker*lek*le*ri / dn*d*rr)
The engine turns the wheels.
Parmak--/n/a bir ine bat-t. (Intransitive)
(par*ma**na / bir / i*ne / bat*t )
A needle stuck in her finger.
Parmak--/n/a bir ine batr-d. (Transitive)
(par*ma**na / bir / i*ne / ba*tr*d)
She stuck a needle into her finger.
Bu pul iyi yap-ma-yor. (Intransitive)
(bu / pul / i*yi / ya*p*m*yor)
This stamp doesnt stick well.
Mektup-un st--/n/e bir pul yaptr. (Transitive)
(mek*tu:*bun / s*t*ne / bir / pul / ya*p*tr)
Stick a stamp on the letter.
SIMPLE PAST AND PRESENT PERFECT TENSES

(Dli Gemi Zaman)
Both The Simple Past and The Present Perfect tenses of the English
Language are expressed in The Simple Past Tense in Turkish. In other
words, the Turkish Simple Past Tense covers these two English tenses.
The time morpheme of this tense is [D], which has eight allomorphs: [di,
d, d, du, ti, t, t, tu]. One of these allomorphs is used attached to verb
roots, stems or frames in accordance with the Turkish vowel and consonant
harmony rules. The verbs ending with vowels and voiced consonants are
followed by the allomorphs written in bold face; and the verbs followed by
unvoiced consonants are written in regular type. The compulsory subject
allomorphs in this tense are as follows:
35

ben
sen
o
biz
siz
onlar
[im, m, m, um]
[in, n, n, un]
[]
[ik, k, k, uk]
[iniz, nz, nz, unuz]
[] or [ler, lar]
Naturally, as all the allomorphs of the [D] morpheme [di, d, d, du, ti, t,
t, tu] end with vowels, and the subject allomorphs [im, m, m, um;
in, n, n, un; ik, k, k, uk; in.iz, n.z, n.z, un.uz] start with vowels,
the first vowels of the subject allomorphs coincide with the allomorphs of the
morpheme [D] and combine, such as in di-im (dim), d-m" (dm), d-m"
(dm), du-um" (dum), ti-im (tim), "t-m" (tm), "t-m" (tm), "tu-um"
(tum); "di-in" (din), "ti-in" (tin), "ti-ik" (tik), "di-iniz" (di*niz), "ti-iniz" (ti*niz).
ki saat nce i-im-i bitir-di-im.
(i*ki / sa*at / n*ce / i*i*mi / bi*tir*dim)
I finished my work two hours ago.
-im-i bitir-di-im.
(i*i*mi / bi*tir*dim)
I have finished my work. (My work is ready now.)
Onlar geen hafta sinema-/y/a git-ti.
(on*lar / ge*en / haf*ta / si*ne*ma*ya / git*ti)
They went to the cinema last week.
Onlar sinema-/y/a git-ti.
(on*lar / si*ne*ma*ya / git*ti )
They have gone to the cinema.
(They are at the cinema or on the way to the cinema.)
O kitap- geen sene oku-du-um.
(o / ki*ta*b / ge*en / se*ne / o*ku*dum)
I read that book last year.
Kitap- oku-du-um.
(ki*ta*b / o*ku*dum)
I have read the book. (I have finished reading it.)
Biz-e inan-ma-d-nz.
(bi*ze / i*nan*ma*d*nz)
You didn't believe us.
36

Bulak-lar ykan-d bile. (Passive)
(bu*la*k*lar / y*kan*d / bi*le)
The dishes have already been washed. (The dishes are clean now.)
Negative:
The negative making allomorphs [me, ma] are put after verb roots, stems
or verb frames, and then they are followed by the [di, d] time allomorphs,
which are followed by the subject allomorphs respectively. The other time
allomorphs, such as [d, du, ti, t, t, tu] are used in positive forms. They
are not used here as a result of the [me, ma] negative making allomorphs:
Fatma-/y/ pazar-dan beri gr-me-di-im.
(fat*ma*y / pa*zar*dan / be*ri / gr*me*dim)
I have not seen Fatma since Sunday.
Fatma-/y/ bir hafta-dr gr-me-di-im.
(fat*ma*y / bir / haf*ta*dr / gr*me*dim)
I havent seen Fatma for a week.
Fatma-/y/ geen hafta gr-me-di-im.
(fat*ma*y / ge*en / haf*ta / gr*me*dim )
I didnt see Fatma last week.
Daha ev dev-im-i yap-ma-d-m.
(da*ha / e*v*de*vi*mi / yap*ma*dm) (Liaison)
I havent done my homework yet.
Dn bu oda-/y/ temizle-me-di-ler.
(dn / bu / o*da*y / te*miz*le*me*di*ler )
They didnt clean this room yesterday.
Bu oda-/y/ gn-dr temizle-me-di-ler.
(bu / o*da*y / / gn*dr / te*miz*le*me*di*ler)
They havent cleaned this room for three days.
Geen hafta futbol oyna-ma-d-k.
(ge*en / haf*ta / fut*bol / oy*na*ma*dk)
We didn't play football last week.
Kayp ocuk daha bulun-ma-d. (Passive)
(ka*yp / o*cuk / da*ha / bu*lun*ma*d)
The lost child hasnt been found yet.
37

Positive question:
The question allomorphs [mi, m, m, mu], which are separately written,
are used either after the verbs, or they may be used after the stressed
words in sentences. They are interrogative adverbs that add interrogatve
concepts to verbs, adjectives and nouns.
Ahmet mi okul-a otobs-le git-ti?
(ah*met / mi / o*ku*la / o*to*bs*le / git*ti )
Has Ahmet gone to school by bus?
Ahmet okul-a otobs-le mi git-ti?
(ah*met / o*ku*la / o*to*bsle / mi / git*ti)
Ahmet otobs-le okul-a m git-ti?
(ah*met / o*to*bs*le /o*ku*la / m / git*ti)
Ahmet okul-a git-ti mi?
(ah*met / o*ku*la / git*ti / mi )
Has Ahmet gone to school? (All the sentences are yes-no questions.)
If the last syllable in a sentence is used with a rising intonation (), the
sentence means, I am surprised to hear it, or I could not hear you well. If
it is used with a falling intonation, the question is a yes-no question.
Mektuplar- at-t-n m?
(mek*tup*la*r / at*tn / m)
Have you posted the letters?
Pazar gn futbol ma--/n/a git-ti-in mi?
(pa*zar / g*n / fut*bol / ma**na / git*tin / mi)
Did you go to the football match on Sunday?
Pazar gn futbol ma--/n/a m git-ti-in?
(pa*zar / g*n / fut*bol / ma**na / m / git*tin) (I am surprised.)
Did you go to the football match on Sunday?
Kpek-i yka-d-nz m?
(k*pe*i / y*ka*d*nz / m)
Have you washed the do?
38

Araba-/y/ m yka-d-nz?
(a*ra*ba*y/ m / y*ka*d*nz) (I am surprised.)
Have you washed the car? (I didnt want you to wash the car; you should
have washed the dog instead.)
iek-ler-i sula-d-n m?
(i*ek*le*ri / su*la*dn / m)
Have you watered the flowers?
Patates-ler-i soy-du-un mu?
(pa*ta*tes*le*ri / soy*dun / mu)
Have you peeled the potatoes?
In the negative question form, the [me, ma] allomorphs are attached to
the verbs first, and then the [di, d] time allomorphs (the others are not
used as a result of the [me, ma] allomorphs) are used, and finally, the
above-mentioned subject allomorphs follow them. The [mi, m] question
allomorphs are separately written. They are words because they are
separately written; they are allomorphs because they follow the vowel
harmony rules:
Pazar gn- futbol oyna-ma-d-nz m?
(pa*zar / g*n / fut*bol / oy*na*ma*d*nz / m)
Did you not play football on Sunday? (Negative question)
Ahmet daha ev-e gel-me-di mi?
(ah*met / da*ha / e*ve / gel*me*di / mi)
Hasnt Ahmet come home yet?
Ayn yanl-lk- tekrar yap-ma-d-n m?
(ay*n / yan*l*l* / tek*rar / yap*ma*dn / m)
Havent you made the same mistake again?
The verb git and the same dili past tense are also used in place of
have (has) been to:
Ben birka kez Londra/y/a git-ti-im.
(ben / bir*ka / kez / lon*dra*ya / git*tim)
I have been to London several times.
Ben hi Tokyo-/y/a git-me-di-im.
(ben / hi / tok*yo*ya / git*me*dim)
I have never been to Tokyo.
39

Sen hi Paris-e git-ti-in mi?
(sen / hi / pa*ri*se / git*tin / mi)
Have you ever been to Paris?
Bugn nere-/y/e git-ti-in?
(bu / gn / nere*ye / git*tin)
Where have you been today?
In Turkish, The Simple Present is also used in place of have (has) had:
Bu araba-/y/a be yl-dr sahip-im.
(bu / a*ra*ba*ya / ben / be / yl*dr / sa:*hi*bim)
I have had this car for five years.
Bu araba-/y/a ne kadar zaman-dr sahip-sin?
(bu / a*ra*ba*ya / ne / ka*dar / za*man*dr / sa:*hip*sin)
How long have you had this car?
All the question words can be used in the simple past tenses as they are
used in others, but in doing this, the sentence order should be taken into account. In English, after the question words, the question order of a sentence is kept in question form, but in Turkish, when the question words
are used, the rest of the sentence is not in question form:
Ne zaman Ankaraya gittin? In this sentence, the underlined part of the
sentence is not a question. However, in the English sentence When did
you go to Ankara?, the underlined part of the sentence is a question. This
rule is applied to all the interrogative sentences containing question words
in Turkish.
Onu dn grdn. Onu ne zaman grdn?
As it is seen in the sentences above, the verbs grdn do not change although the second sentence is a question. This shows us that when
someone uses a question word in a Turkish sentence, the sentence is
automatically changes into an interrogative sentence concept without the
positive or negative sentence order being changed.
O-/n/u ne zaman gr-d-n? (onu grdn)
(o*nu / ne / za*man / gr*dn)
When did you see her?
40

Sen-i kim gr-d? (sen-i grd)
(se*ni / kim / gr*d)
Who saw you?
When the question word who asking for the subject is used, the sentence
order in English is the same as it is in Turkish.
Sen kim-i gr-d-n? (sen grdn)
(sen / ki*mi / gr*dn)
Whom (who) did you see?
(The [i] in "kim-i" is the defining allomorph, so kim-i asks the object.)
Onlar toplant-/y/ niin ertele-di-ler? (onlar toplanty ertelediler)
(on*lar / top*lan*t*y / ni*in / er*te*le*di*ler)
Why did they postpone the meeting?
Bu kahve-/y/i kim yap-t? (bu kahveyi yapti)
( bu / kah*ve*yi / kim / yap*t )
Who has made this coffee?
Niin patates-ler-i soy-ma-d-n? ( patatesleri soymadn)
(ni*in / pa*ta*tes*le*ri / soy*ma*dn)
Why havent you peeled the potatoes?
Kim-in araba-/s/-/n/ dn al-d-n? ( arabsn dn aldn)
(ki*min / a*ra*ba*s*n / *dn / al*dn)
Whose car did you borrow?
Onlar nere-de bulu-tu-lar? (Onlar bulutular)
(on*lar / ner* de / bu*lu*tu*lar)
Where did they meet?
Amerika-da ne kadar kal-d-n? (Amerikada kaldn)
(a*me*ri*ka*da / ne / ka*dar / kal*dn)
How long did you stay in The U.S.A.?
Anne-en-le baba-anne sklk-ta ziyaret et-ti-in? (Annenle baban ziyaret ettin)
(an*nen*le / ba*ba*n / ne / sk*lk*ta / zi*ya:*ret / et*tin)

How often did you visit your parents?
Ne de-di-in? ( dedin)
(ne / de*din)
What did you say?
41

If noticed, when the question words are taken out of all the Turkish
interrogative sentences, the remaining parts are good grammatical
positive or negative sentences. For instance:
Onu ne zaman grdn? Onu grdn.
Onlar toplanty niin ertelediler? Onlar toplanty ertelediler.
Likewise, one can also produce interrogative sentences by inserting
question words in all Turkish positive or negative sentences:
Onlar toplanty ertelediler. Onlar toplanty niin ertelediler?
Sen stanbula gideceksin. Sen stanbula nasl gideceksin?
Onu grdn. Onu nerede grdn?
Bu kitab satn alacaksn. Bu kitab ne zaman satn alacaksn?
Londraya gittin. Londraya ka kez gittin?.
Bizi ziyaret etmedin. Bizi niin ziyaret etmedin?
The places of the interrogative words are changeable in Turkish, but this
characteristic of the Turkish language does not exist in English:
Niin onlar ma ertelediler? (ni*in / on*lar / ma* / er*te*le*di*ler)
Onlar niin ma ertelediler? (on*lar / ni*in / ma* / er*te*le*di*ler)
Onlar ma niin ertelediler? (on*lar / ma* / ni*in / er*te*le*di*ler)
Onlar ma ertelediler. Niin? (on*lar / ma* / er*te*le*di*ler) (ni*in)
There is only one English equivalent of the above first three Turkish
interrogative sentences: Why did they postpone the meeting?
The mi, m, m, mu question words can also be put into the positive or
negative sentences without changing the sentence order as the other
question words:
Onlar toplanty ertele-di-ler.
Onlar m toplanty ertele-di-ler?
Onlar toplanty m ertelediler?
Onlar toplanty ertelediler mi?
Onlar toplanty ertele-me-di-ler.
42

Onlar m toplanty ertelemediler?
Onlar toplanty m ertelemediler?
Onlar toplanty ertelemediler mi?
The [M] interrogative morpheme can also be used accordingly in all other Turkish
sentences.
ML PAST TENSE (Mili Gemi)

Rumor & Inference
This tense does not exist in English. The concept of this tense is inferred
from the context in which it is used. The inference allomorphs of this tense
are [mi, m, m, mu], which are followed by the subject allomorphs:
(ben) [im, m, m, um]; (sen) [sin, sn, sn, sun]; (o) []; (biz) [iz, z,
z, uz]; (siz) [siniz, snz, snz, sunuz]; (onlar) [] or [ler, lar]).
Compare the Turkish with the English sentences to understand the
difference:
O git-mi. They say (that) he has gone or I am surprised to see (hear)
that he has gone. They say (that) he went. I think (that) he has gone. He
says (that) he has gone. Somebody says (that) he has gone. He is said to
have gone. All these English sentences are expressed in the Turkish
sentence O git-mi. In such sentences the origin and the time of the
rumor is unknown, but inferred:
Sen snav- ge-mi-sin. People say that you have passed the examination.
-i/n/-den kov-mu-lar. People say, or he himself says that they (have) fired him.
-i/n/-den kovul-mu. (ko*vul*mu) They say that he has been fired, or
was fired. (He himself says (that) he has been fired, or was fired.)
When one of the [dir, dr, dr, dur, tir, tr, tr, tur] allomorphs is attached
to one of the allomorphs of [M], the verb composition gains the meaning of
possibility or certainty . Consider the following:
Bu film-i gr-m-sn-dr.
(bu / fil*mi / gr*m*sn*dr)
You are likely to have seen this film. (Possibility)
You must have seen this film. (Certainty)
Zil al-m-tr. (Possibility or certainty)
(zil / al*m*tr)
The bell must (may) have rung.
43

Anne-em ev-den k-m-tir bile. (Certainty)
(an*nem / ev*den / k*m*tr / bi*le)
Mother must have already left home.
Yeni ders-i ren-mi-siniz-dir. (Certainty)
(ye*ni / der*si / *ren*mi*si*niz*dir)
You may or must have learned the new lesson.
Ben-i anla-m-sn-dr.
(be*ni / an*la*m*sn*dr)
You must (may) have understood me.
Ben-i anla-m ol-mal-sn. (Anlam is subject complement in Turkish)
(be*ni / an*la*m / ol*ma*l*sn)
You must have understood me.
Otobs ge kal-m ol-mal. (Ge kalm is subject complement.)
(o*to*bs / ge / kal*m / ol*ma*l)
The bus must have been late. (Late is subject complement.)
Program- iptal et-mi-ler-dir.
(prog*ra*m / ip*ta:l / et*mi*ler*dir)
They must (may) have canceled the program.
O-/n/u yanl anla-m-m-dr.
(o*nu / yan*l / an*la*m*m*dr)
I must (may) have misunderstood it.
O-/n/u gr-me-mi-sin-dir.
(o*nu / gr*me*mi*sin*dir)
You may not have seen him.
O-/n/u gr-m ol-amaz-sn.
(o*nu / gr*m / o*la*maz*sn )
You can not have seen her.
Ylan- ldr-m-ler-dir.
(y*la*n / l*dr*m*ler*dir)
They must have killed the snake.
-i/n/-den kovul-mu-tur. (Passive)
(i*in*den / ko*vul*mu*tur)
He must (may) have been fired.
44

Negative:
After the verb roots, stems or frames, one of the [me, ma] negation
allomorphs is used; and then only the [mi, m] allomorphs follow them
according to the vowel harmony rules, and finally the subject allomorphs are
added:
al-ma-/y/a bala-ma-m bile.

(a*l*ma*ya / ba*la*ma*m / bi*le)
They say he hasnt started work-ing yet. (Astonishment and complaint)
Snav- ge-me-mi-sin.
(s*na*v / ge*me*mi*sin)
They say you didnt pass, or havent passed the examination.
Oul-un dn okul-a git-me-mi.
(o*lun / dn / o*ku*la / git*me*mi)
They say, or I heard that your son didnt go to school yesterday.
Mektup-u at-ma-m.
(mek*tu*bu / at*ma*m)
I heard that he hadn't posted the letter.
Teklif-i kabul et-me-mi-ler.
(tek*li:*fi / ka*b:I / et*me*mi*ler)
I heard that they didnt accept the proposal.
(Ben-im) oul-um dn okul-a git-me-mi.
(be*nim / o*lum / dn / o*ku*la / git*me*mi)
I heard that my son didnt go to school yesterday.
This type of verb structure is also used to express surprise:
Kedi papaan-m- ye-mi!
(ke*di / pa*pa*a*n*m / ye*mi~)
The cat has eaten up my parrot! (Astonishment and anger)
Kek yan-m!
(kek / yan*m~)
The cake has been burned (burnt)! (Astonishment)
Positive question:
In positive questions, [mi-/y/im, m-/y/m, m-/y/m, mu-/y/um]; [mi-sin,
m-sn, m-sn, mu-sun]; [mi, m, m, mu]; [mi-/y/iz, m-/y/z, m-/y/z,
45

mu-/y/uz]; [mi-siniz, m-snz, m-snz, mu-sunuz] and [ler mi, lar m]
words are separately used in accordance with the harmony rules:
Oul-un dn ma-a git-mi mi?
(o*lun / dn / ma*a / git*mi / mi)
Tell me whether your son went to the football match yesterday.
Kap-/y/ kilitle-mi mi-/y/im?
(ka*p*y / ki*lit*le*mi / mi*yim)
Tell me whether I have locked the door.
(The /y/ glides are inserted between the successive vowels.)
Yenil-mi-ler mi!?
(ye*nil*mi*ler / mi)
Have they been beaten!? (Astonishment)
Araba-am tamir et-il-mi mi?
(a*ra*bam / ta:*mir / e*dil*mi / mi)
Do they say (have you heard) that my car has been repaired? (Passive)
Negative question:
In negative questions, the [me, ma] negation allomorphs are attached to
verb roots, stems or frames:
Kap-/y/ kilit-le-me-mi-ler mi?!
(ka*p*y / ki*lit*le*me*mi*ler / mi)
Do they say that they didn't lock the door? (Im shocked to hear that.)
Ben-i gr-me-mi mi?
(be*ni / gr*me*mi / mi)
Does he say that he didn't see me? (I can't believe!)
Ev dev-i-/n/i yap-ma-m m?
(ev / *de*vi*ni / yap*ma*m / m)
Does he say that he hasn't done his homework? (Anger and astonishment)
Daha kalk-ma-m m?
(da*ha / kalk*ma*m / m) (Surprise)
Do you say that he hasnt got up yet? (How lazy he is!)
Oul-un Trke bil-me-iyor mu/y/-mu?
(o*lun / trk*e / bil*mi*yor / muy*mu)
Do you say that your son doesnt know Turkish?
46

Ben-i tan-ma-yor mu/y/-mu? Hayret bir ey!
(be*ni / ta*n*m*yor / muy*mu) (Hay*ret / bi*ey~)
Does he say that he doesnt know me? Unbelievable! Ridiculous!
SIMPLE FUTURE AND BE GOING TO

Gelecek Zaman
These two different English time concepts above are expressed in [ecek,
acak] time allomorphs in Turkish. The compulsory subject allomorphs
follow these two time allomorphs as usual, such as:
(ben) [im, m]; (sen) [sin, sn]; (o) []; (biz) [iz, z]; (siz) [siniz,
snz]; (onlar) [] or [ler, lar] in Turkish.
The same concepts can also be expressed in The Present Continuous
Tense (imdiki Zaman), as well. Consider the following:
Yeni bir araba satn al-acak-z.
(ye*ni / bir / a*ra*ba / sa*tn / a*la*ca*z)
We are going to buy a new car. We will buy a new car.
.
Bir gn ben-i anla-/y/acak-sn.

(bir / gn / be*ni / an*la*ya*cak*sn)
You will understand me some day.
(The /y/ glide is inserted between the successive a-a vowels.)
Para-am ol-unca sana yardm et-er-im.
(pa*ram / o*lun*ca / sa*na / yar*dm / e*de*rim)
I will help you when I have enough money.
(The /t/ consonant changes into the voiced /d/.) (Promise)
Para-am ol-unca sana yardm et-ecek-im.
(pa*ram / o*lun*ca ~/ sa*na / yar*dm / e*de*ce*im)
I will certainly help you when I have enough money. (Strong promise)
The underlined /t/ and /k/ unvoiced consonants above change into the
voiced /d/ and // consonants respectively.
Baz hayvan-lar bir gn yok ol-acak.
(ba:*z / hay*van*lar / bir / gn / yok /o*la*cak)
Some animals will be extinct some day.
(Kap-/y/) ben a-ar-m.
(ka*p*y / be*na*a*rm) (Liaison)
Ill open (the door).
(One can use this form as soon as one hears the doorbell.)
47

(Telefon-a) ben cevap ver-ir-im.
(te*le*fo*na / ben / ce*vap / ve*ri*rim)
Ill answer (the phone).
(This expression is used as soon as one hears the telephone ring.)
Mr. Brown yarn niversite-de bir konferans ver-ecek. (ve*re*cek)
Mr. Brown is going to give a lecture at the university tomorrow.
Negative:
The negative making allomorphs of this tense are [me] or [ma], which are
followed by [ecek] or [acak] allomorphs. When "me-/y/ecek" or "ma/y/acak" allomorphs follow one another, the successive /e/ or /a/ vowels are
linked by the /y/ glides to maintain the harmonious link between these
vowels:
Toplant-/y/a git-me-/y/ecek-im. (Refusal)
(top*lan*t*ya / git*me*ye*ce*im), or impolitely; (git*miy*cem)
I wont go to the meeting.
The /y/ glide is inserted between the successive e-e vowels, and the unvoiced consonant /k/ changes into the voiced form //.
Onlar-n teklif-i-/n/i kabul et-me-/y/ecek-iz.
(on*la*rn / tek*li:*fi*ni / ka*bl / et*me*ye*ce*iz)
We will not accept their proposal.
(The /n/ and /y/ are the glides inserted between the successive i-i and e-e
vowels. The /k/ unvoiced consonant in ecek changes into the voiced //.)
Yamur ya-ma-/y/acak.
(ya*mur / ya*ma*ya*cak)
It is not going to rain.
(The /y/ glide is inserted between the successive a and a vowels.)
Positive question:
In positive questions, mi-/y/im?, mi-sin?, mi?, mi-/y/iz?, misiniz?, (ler) mi? or their allomorphs are separately used:
Bu mektup-lar- daktilo et-ecek mi-sin?
(bu / mek*tup*la*r / dak*ti*lo / e*de*cek / mi*sin)
Are you going to type these letters?
48

Yarn git-ecek mi-sin?, or Yarn git-iyor mu-sun?
(ya*rn / gi*de*cek / mi*sin) (ya*rn / gi*di*yor / mu*sun)
Are you leaving tomorrow? (The /t/ changes into /d/.)
Onlar biz-i ziyaret et-ecek-ler mi?
(on*lar / bi*zi / zi*ya:*ret / e*de*cek*ler / mi)
Are they going to visit us?
Note: Although the [mi, m, m, mu] adverbial interrogative allomorphs and the [me,
ma] adverbial negative making allomorphs are written in green, they will be written in
red from now on as they are the allomorphs of the verb compositions in Turkish, and
difficult to write them in different colors.
In polite requests, geni zaman (The Simple Present Tense) is used in

Turkish in place of The Simple Future Tense (will) of the English language:
Bu mektup-lar- ben-im iin ltfen daktilo et-er mi-sin?
(bu / mek*tup*la*r / be*nim / i*in / lt*fen / dak*ti*lo / e*der / mi*sin)
Will you please type these letters for me? (Polite request)
Lutfen ben-im iin bir fincan kahve yap-ar m-sn?
(lt*fen / be*nim / i*in / bir / fin*can / kah*ve / ya*par / m*sn)
Will you please make a cup of coffee for me? (Polite request)
Negative question:
In the negative question form, [me] or [ma] negation allomorphs follow the
verb roots, stems or frames:
Biz-im-le gel-me-/y/ecek mi-sin?
(bi*zim*le / gel*me*ye*cek / mi*sin)
Wont you come with us?
(The /y/ glide links the successive /e/ vowels.)
When the question words are involved, mi-/y/im, mi-sin, etc. are not
used:
Saat ka-ta ev-e dn-ecek-sin?
(sa*at / ka*ta / e*ve / d*ne*cek*sin )
What time will you come back home?
Yarn nere-/y/e git-iyor-sun? (The /t/ changes into /d/.)
(ya*rn / ne re*ye / gi*di*yor*sun )
Where are you going tomorrow?
49

Yarn hava nasl ol-acak?
(ya*rn / ha*va / na * sl / o*la*cak )
What is the weather going to be like tomorrow?
Soru-um-a kim cevap ver-ecek?
(so*ru*ma / kim / ce*vap / ve*re*cek )
Who is going to answer my question?
Soru-um-a sen mi cevap ver-ecek-sin?
(so*ru*ma / sen / mi / ce*vap / ve*re*cek*sin)
Are you going to answer my question?
(If this question is asked with a rising () intonation, it becomes sarcastic.)
Toplant-/y/ nere-de yap-acak-lar?
(top*lan*t*y / ne*re*de / ya*pa*cak*lar)
Where are they going to hold the meeting?
Bu kim-in kitap-?
(bu / ki*min / ki*ta*b)
Whose book is this? (The /p/ transplaces, and changes into the voiced
/b/.)
Siz-e nasl yardm et-ebil-ir-im? (Yardm et is intransitive.)
(si*ze / na*sl / yar*dm / e*de*bi*li*rim )
How can I help you? (Help is transitive. Therefore, siz-e is an adverb,
but you is an object.)
PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE

imdiki Zamann Hikyesi
This tense is used like The Past Continuous Tense of the English Language. The time morpheme of this tense is a combination of [.YOR] morpheme followed by the [D] morpheme, which are followed by the usual
subject allomorphs. The allomorphs of these morphemes are simultaneously chosen by the phonological component in accordance with the
Turkish harmony rules as usual.
The allomorphs of [.YOR] are [iyor, yor, yor, uyor] as they are in The
Present Continuous Tense. As all the allomorphs of the [.YOR] mor-pheme
end with yor syllables, only the [du] allomorph of the morpheme [D] is
used after the allomorphs of [YOR]. For instance:
iyor-du, yor-du, yor-du, uyor-du.
50

Although the subject morphemes are [M], [N], [], [K], [NZ], and [LER-D],
only their allomorphs [um], [un], [], [uk], [unuz] and [lar-d] are used due to
the [du] past time allomorph. As the vowels of the [du] allomorphs coincide
with the vowels of the subject allomorphs, they combine and verbalize as
single vowels:
(ben) [du-um] (dum); (sen) [du-un] (dun); (o) [du] (du); (biz) [du-uk] (duk);
(siz) [du-unuz] (du*nuz); (onlar) [du] (du) or [lar-d] (lar*d).
As all these allomorphs are attached to [iyor-du] allomorphs, they become
iyor-du-um, iyor-du-un, iyor-du, iyor-du-uk, iyor-du-unuz, iyor-lard:
Ankara-/y/a git-iyor-du-um.
(an*ka*ra*ya / gi*di*yor*dum)
I was going to Ankara.
Onlar biz-e yardm et-iyor-lar-d.
(on*lar / bi*ze / yar*dm / e*di*yor*lar*d )
They were helping us.
Televizyon seyret-iyor-du-un.
(te*le*viz*yon / sey*re*di*yor*dun)
You were watching television.
Arkada-lar-mz- ara-yor-du-uk. (The double underlined a drops.)
(ar*ka*da*la*r*m*z / a*r*yor*duk)
We were looking for our friends.
Bir problem z-yor-du-um.
(ben / bir / prob*lem / *z*yor*dum)
I was solving a problem.
Onlar- bekle-iyor-du-uk. (The double underlined e drops.)
(on*la*r / bek*li*yor*duk)
We were waiting for them.
O ben-i sev-iyor-du.
(o / be*ni / se*vi*yor*du)
She was in love with me. (In love is subject complement.)
renci-ler retmen-ler-i-/n/i dikkat-le dinle-iyor-lar-d.
(*ren*ci*ler / *ret*men*le*ri*ni / dik*kat*le / din*li*yor*lar*d)
The students were listening to their teacher carefully.
(The double underlined /e/ drops and the /l/ attaches to /i/.)
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Uyu-uyor-du-uk. (The /u/ drops, the /y/ attaches to /u/, and the u-u combine.) (u*yu*yor*duk)
We were sleeping.
Negative:
Although the negative making allomorphs of this tense are [me] and [ma],
their last vowels drop when they are attached to the allomorphs of [YOR]:
Gel-me-iyor-lar-d. (One word) (The /e/ drops, and the /m/ attaches to /i/.)
(gel*mi*yor*lar*d)
They were not coming. (Four words)
Onlar- bekle-me-iyor-du-uk. (Two words) (Bekle is transitive in Turkish.)
(on*la*r / bek*le*mi*yor*duk)
We were not waiting for them. (Six words)(Wait is intransitive in English.)
O ben-i sev-me-iyor-du.
(o / be*ni / sev*mi*yor*du)
She wasnt in love with me. (In love is a subject complement.)
O ben-i anla-ma-yor-du. (O ben-i anla-ma-d.)
(o / be*ni / an*la*m*yor*du)
She didnt understand me.
Uyu-ma-uyor-du-um. (One word)
(u*yu*mu*yor*dum)
I wasn't sleeping. (Four words)
Positive question:
The question allomorphs of this tense are [mi, m, m, mu]. Each one of
these allomorphs may be separately used after any stressed word in a
sentence:
Ahmet okul-a otobs-le mi git-iyor-du?
(ah*met / o*ku*la / o*to*bsle*mi / gi*di*yor*du)
Was Ahmet going to school by bus?
Ahmet otobs-le okul-a m git-iyor-du?
(ah*met / o*to*bs*le / o*ku*la m / gi*di*yor*du)
Ahmet okul-a otobs-le git-iyor mu/y/-du?
(ah*met / o*ku*la / o*to*bs*le / gi*di*yor / muy*du)
52

Uyu-uyor mu/y/-du-unuz? (The [mi, m, m, mu] are queston allomorps.)
(u*yu*yor / muy*du*nuz)
Were you sleeping?
al-yor mu/y/-du-uk?
(a*l**yor / muy*duk)
Were we working?
When the verb is stressed, the question allomorph [mu] attaches to [du]
followed by the subject allomorphs:
"Gidiyor mu/y/-du-um?" "Bekliyor mu/y/-du-un?" "alyor mu/y/-du?" "Uyuyor mu/y/-du-uk?" "Kouyor mu/y/-du-unuz?" "Glyor-lar m/y/-d?"
Negative question:
The [me, ma] negative allomorphs are used in negative questions as usual:
Onlar otobs-le git-me-iyor-lar m/y/-d?
(on*lar / o*to*bs*le / git*mi*yor*lar / my*d)
Were they not going by bus?
In the sentence above, the double underlined /e/ drops, the /m/ attaches to
/i/ and the /y/ glide is inserted between [mu] and [du]. Instead of Gitmiyorlar myd?, Gitmiyor muydular? is often heard.
When the question words are involved, the [mi, m, m, mu] allomorphs
are not used, and the verbs are in positive form:
Ne yap-yor-du-un?
(ne / ya*p*yor*dun)
What were you doing?
Sana kim yardm et-iyor-du? (Yardm etmek is intransitive in Turkish.)
(sa*na / kim / yar*dm / e*di*yor*du)
Who was helping you? (Help is transitive in English.)
Nere-/y/e git-iyor-du-un?
(nere*ye / gi*di*yor*dun)
Where were you going?
The /t/ changes into the voiced /d/, and the /u-u/ vowels combine.
53

Cadde-de bir kadn niin ko-uyor-du?
(cad*de*de / bir / ka*dn / niin / ko*u*yor*du)
Why was a woman running along the street?
The intonation patterns of the Turkish and English interrogative sentences
are different when the question words are involved. In the Turkish sentences, the stress is on the question words, but in English, the stress is on
the verbs: (ne*re*ye / gi*di*yor*sun ); (where / are / you / gowing )
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE

imdiki Zamann Hikyesi
The past continuous verb structure of the Turkish language is also used in
place of the Past Perfect Continuous Tense of the English language.
Consider and compare the following sentences:
Ahmet gel-dik-i/n/-de ben onu bir saat-tir otobs durak-/n/-da bekle-iyor-du-um.
(ah*met / gel*di*in*de~/ ben / o*nu / i*ki / sa*at*tir / o*to*bs / du*ra*n*da /bek*li*yor*dum)

I had been waiting for Ahmet at the bus stop for an hour when he arrived.
Snav son-a er-dik-i/n/-de iki saat-tir soru-lar-a cevap ver-me-/y/e alyor-du-um. I had been trying to answer the questions for two hours
when the exam ended. (er-dik and ver-me are infinitives.)
Iklar sn-dk-/n/-de iki saat-tir ev dev-im-i yap-yor-du-um.
(*k*lar / sn*d*n*de / i*ki / sa*at*tir / ev / *de*vi*mi / ya*p*yor*dum)
When the lights went off, I had been doing my homework for two hours.
Otobs durak-/n/-da bekle-iyor-du-um.
(o*to*bs / du*ra*n*da / bek*li*yor*dum)
I was waiting at the bus stop. (Past Continuous)
Otobs durak-/n/-da iki saat-tir bekle-iyor-du-um.
(o*to*bs / du*ra*n*da / i*ki / sa*at*tir / bek*li*yor*dum)
I had been waiting at the bus stop for two hours. (Past Perfect Continuous)
Sabah-leyin kalk-tk-m-da saat-ler-dir yamur ya-yor-du.
(sa*bah*le*yin / kalk*t*m*da / sa*at*ler*dir / ya*mur / ya**yor*du)
It had been raining for hours when I got up in the morning.
As it is seen in the examples above, only The Past Continuous Tense is
used in Turkish to express both The Past Continuous and The Past Perfect
Continuous Tenses of the English language.
54

WAS (WERE) GOING TO
Gelecek Zamann Hikyesi
This tense expresses an action that was going to be done in the past, but
was interrupted for some reason. The same tense exists in the English
language, as well.
To form this tense in Turkish, the [ecek] or [acak] allomorphs are attached
to verb roots, stems or frames first, and then they are followed by [ti, t]
past allomorphs, and finally personal subject allomorphs (ben) [im, m];
(sen) [in, n]; (o) []; (biz) [ik, k]; (siz) [iniz, nz]; (onlar) [ler-di,
lar-d] are added:
Ev dev-im-i yap-acak-t-m, ama birden elektrik-ler sn-d.
(ev / *de*vi*mi / ya*pa*cak*tm / a*ma ~/ bir*den / e*lek*trik*ler / sn*d)
I was going to do my homework, but suddenly the lights went out.
Tam retmen-in soru-/s/u-/n/a cevap ver-ecek-ti-im, ama zil al-d.
(tam / *ret*me*nin / so*ru*su*na / ce*vap / ve*re*cek*tim / a*ma / zil / al*d)
I was just going to answer the teachers question, but the bell rang.
Tam uyku-/y/a dal-acak-t-m, telefon al-d.
(tam / uy*ku*ya / da*la*cak*tm~/ te*le*fon / al*d)
Just as I was going to sleep, the telephone rang.
This tense is also used in conditional unreal past tenses in Turkish:
Bilet bul-sa/y/-d-m, tiyatro-/y/a git-ecek-ti-im.
(bi*let / bul*say*dm~/ ti*yat*ro*/y/a / gi*de*cek*tim)
If I had found a ticket, I would have gone to the theatre.
(If is a subordinating conjunjtion.)
retmen ben-i kopya ek-erken yakala-ma-sa/y/-d, tm sorular-a cevap ver-ecek-ti-im.
I would have answered all the questions if the teacher hadnt caught
me cheat-ing.
55

USED TO
Geni Zamann Hikyesi
The equivalent of the expression of used to is used in Turkish as it is used
in English. To form this expression, the simple present tense allomorphs of
[R], [ir, r, r, ur, er, ar], are used followed by [di, d, d, du] past
allomorphs; and finally, (ben) [im, m, m, um]; (sen) [in, n, n, un];
(o) []; (biz) [ik, k, k, uk]; (siz) [iniz, nz, nz, unuz]; (onlar) [lerdi, lar-d] personal subject allomorphs are added. The identical i-i, -, , u-u vowels combine and verbalize as single vowels:
Onsekiz ya-m-da/y/-ken futbol oyna-ar-d-m.
(on*se*kiz / ya*m*day*ken / fut*bol / oy*nar*dm)
I used to play football when I was eighteen.
Biz her akam televizyon seyret-er-di-ik.
(biz / her / ak*am / te*le*viz*yon / sey*re*der*dik)
We used to watch television every evening.
Negative:
The negation allomorph, which is used without the /z/ consonant for the first
person in The Simple Present Tense (Geni Zaman) negative, is used with
the phoneme /z/ in negative used to tenses, such as: git-mez, oku-maz.
After this, the allomorphs of the morpheme [D] and the subject allomorphs
follow:
Gen-ken (ben) basketbol oyna-maz-d-m.
(gen*ken / bas*ket*bol / oy*na*maz*dm)
I didnt use(d) to play basketball when I was young.
Okul-a otobs-le git-mez-di-ik.
(o*ku*la / o*to*bs*le / git*mez*dik)
We didnt use(d) to go to school by bus.
Baba-am gzlk-ler-i-/n/i tak-ma-am-a izin ver-mez-di.
(ba*bam / gz*lk*le*ri*ni / tak*ma*ma / i*zin / ver*mez*di)
My father didnt use(d) to let me wear his eyeglasses.
Positive question:
To produce a positive question, one of the Simple Present Tense allomorphs is attached to a verb root, stem or frame, and then, as a separate
word, one of the question allomorphs [mi, m, m, mu], and one of the
56

Simple Past Tense allomorphs [di, d, d, du] is linked to the question
allomorphs by the /y/ glides, and finally a suitable personal subject allomorph follows them:
Siz her gn ngilizce al-r m/y/-d-nz?, or (alyor muydunuz?)
(siz / her*gn / in*gi*liz*ce / a*l*r / my*d*nz)
Did you use(d) to study English every day?
(The /y/ glide is inserted between [m] and [d].)
Mutfak-ta anne-en-e her gn yardm et-er mi/y/-di-in?
(mut*fak*ta / an*ne*ne / her / gn / yar*dm / e*der / miy*din)
Did you use to help your mother in the kitchen every day?
Sen gen-ken kz-lar futbol oyna-ar m/y/-d?
(sen / gen*ken / kz*lar / fut*bol / oy*nar/ my*d)
Did girls used to play football when you were young?
This verbal composition is also used in conditional sentences:
Sen-in yer-in-de ol-sa-am baba-am-n t--/n/ dinle-er-di-im.
(se*nin / ye*rin*de / ol*sam / ba*ba*mn / **d*n / din*ler*dim)
If I were you, I would listen to my fathers advice. (Advice)
Jack bura-da ol-sa, biz-e yardm et-er-di.
(Jack / bur*da / ol*sa~ / bi*ze / yar*dm / e*der*di)
If Jack were here, he would help us.
RUMOR FORMS OF THE SIMPLE AND CONTINUOUS

TENSES
The rumor forms of The Simple Present, The Present Continuous, The
Simple Future, and the modals such as must, mustn't, can, can't, and
double rumor forms are also possible in Turkish. To form these tenses, one
of the allomorphs of The Simple Present Tense [ir, r, r, ur, er, ar], the
allomorphs of The Present Continuous [iyor, yor, yor, uyor], The
Simple Future [ecek, acak], and the modal morphemes [meli, mal],
[ebil, abil], and their negative forms, and additional rumor suffixes
[mi, m, m, mu] can be attached to verb roots, stems or frames,
which are followed by personal subject allomorphs:
(ben) [im, m, m, um]; (sen) [sin, sn, sn, sun]; (o) []; (biz) [iz,
z, z, uz]; (siz) [siniz, snz, snz, sunuz]; (onlar) [ler, lar]:
57

al-r-m-m. (a*l*r*m*m) They say that I work.
al-maz-m-m. (a*l*maz*m*m) They say that I don't work.
al-r m/y/-m-m? (a*l*r / my*m*m) Do they say that I work?
al-maz m/y/-m-m? (a*l*maz / my*m*m) Do they say that I don't
work?
Gl-er-mi-siniz. (g*ler*mi*si*niz) They say that you laugh.
Gl-mez-mi-siniz. (g*mez*mi*si*niz) They say that you don't laugh.
Gl-er-mi mi-siniz? (g*ler*mi / mi*si*niz) Do they say that you laugh?
Gl-mez-mi mi-siniz? (gl*mez*mi / mi*si*niz) Do they say that you don't laugh?
Sat-yor-mu-um. (sa*t*yor*mu*um) They say that I am selling.
Sat-ma-yor-mu-um. (sat*m*yor*mu*um) They say that I am not selling.
Sat-yor mu/y/-mu-um? (sa*t*yor / muy*mu*um) Do they say that I am selling?
Sat-ma-yor mu/y/-mu-um? (sat*m*yor / muy*mu*um) ... that I am not selling?
Git-ecek-mi-iz. (gi*de*cek*mi*iz) They say that we will go.
Git-me-/y/ecek-mi-iz. (git*me*ye*cek*mi*iz.) They say that we will not go.
Git-ecek mi/y/-mi-iz? (gi*de*cek / miy*mi*iz) Do they say that we will go?
Git-me-/y/ecek mi/y/-mi-iz? (git*me*ye*cek / miy*mi*iz) ... that we will not go?
In all [mi, m, m, mu] sentences the origin and the time of the rumor
are either unknown or unimportant.
Bekle-meli/y/-mi-im. (bek*le*me*liy*mi*im) They say that I must wait.
Bekle-me-meli/y/-mi-im. (bek*le*me*me*liy*mi*im) They say that I mustn't wait.
Bekle-meli mi/y/-mi-im? (bek*le*me*li / miy*mi*im) Do they say that I must wait?
Bekle-me-meli mi/y/-mi-im? (bek*le*me*me*li / miy*mi*im) Do they say I mustn't.
Bitir-ebil-ir-mi-im. (bi*ti*re*bi*lir*mi*im) They say that I can finish.
Bitir-emez-mi-sin. (bi*ti*re*mez*mi*sin) They say that you can't finish.
Bitir-emez mi/y/-mi-im? (bi*ti*re*mez / miy*mi*im) Do they say I can't finish?
al-amaz-lar m/y/-m? (a*l*a*maz*lar / my*m) ... that they can't work?
Jack bir Rus kz--/n/ m sev-iyor-mu?
(jack~ / bir / rus / k*z*n / m /se*vi*yor* mu ) (Surprise)
Do they say that Jack is (was) in love with a Russian girl?
Btn kzlar Jack'e ak-m-m.
(b*tn / kz*lar / ja*ke / a:*k*m*m)
Jack says (or I have heard) that all girls are in love with him, which is
unbelievable.
"Mi mi", "m m", "m m", "mu mu" express unbelievable rumor.
Ben-i tan-ma-yor mu/y/-mu? Daha neler!
(be*ni / ta*n*m*yor / muy*mu) (da*ha / ne*ler)
Does he (she) say that he (she) doesn't know me?
58

Jack bekr deil mi/y/-mi?
(jack / be*kr / de*il / mi/y/*mi)
Have you heard that Jack isn't bachelor?
Patron bugn ok megul-mu.
(pat*ron / bu*gn / ok / me*gul*mu)
They say that the boss is very busy today.
THE PAST PERFECT TENSE

Mili Gemiin Hikyesi
This tense is generally used in complex sentences. To form this tense, one
of the allomorphs of [mi, m, m, or mu] is used after a verb root,
stem or frame, then one of the [ti, t, t, tu] past allomorphs is added, and
finally, they are followed by one of the personal subject allomorphs. As
the following sentences are complex sentences, the main clauses are red,
the noun clauses are black, and the English adverbial clauses and the
Turkish adverbial phrases are green.
The personal subject allomorphs used in this tense are: (ben) [im, m,
m, um]; (sen) [in, n, n, un]; (o) []; (biz) [ik, k, k, uk]; (siz) [iniz,
nz, nz, unuz]; (onlar) [] or [ler-di, lar-d]. All these suffixes follow the
vowel and consonant harmony rules while they are being suffixed. As the
last vowels of the past allomorphs and the first vowels of the subject
allomorphs coincide, they combine and vocalize as single vowels:
Yat-ma-dan nce ev dev-in-i bitir-mi mi/y/-di-in?
(yat*ma*dan / n*ce / ev / *de*vi*ni / bi*tir*mi / miy*din)
Had you finished your homework before you went to bed?
Misafir-ler gel-me-den nce akam yemek-imiz-i ye-mi-ti-ik.
(mi*sa:*fir*ler / gel*me*den / n*ce / ak*am / ye*me*i*mi*zi / ye*mi*tik)
We had eaten our lunch before the visitors arrived.
Birisi baba-am-a telefon et-tik-i/n/-de baba-am ev-den yeni k-m-t.
(bi*ri*si / ba*ba*ma / te*le*fon / et*ti*in*de~ / ba*bam / ev*den / ye*ni /
k*m*t)
When somebody telephoned my father, he had just left home.
(Ben-im) hava alan--/n/a var-dk-m-da uak havalan-m-t bile
noun + infinitive compound - da
adverbial phrs of time
subject
verb
adverb
When I arrived at the airport, the plane had already taken off.
59

(O) (ben-im) hangi lke-ler-e git-tik-im-i ren-mek iste-di.
subj
(noun compound) object of renmek

definite object
object of iste
verb
He wanted to know which countries I had been to.

Daha nce (kendi-/s/i-/n/in) ben-im-le karla-m ol-duk-u-/n/u syle-di.
(da*ha / n*ce / be*nim*le / kar**la*m / ol*du*u*nu / sy*le*di)
He said that he had met me before.
The /k/ phonemes in [dik, dk, dk, duk] change into the voiced //
phonemes.
FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE

This tense expresses an action going on at a certain time in the future. To
compose this tense, one of the progressive allomorphs [iyor, yor, yor,
or uyor] is attached to verb roots, stems or frames first, and then, as a separate word, the verb ol is used attached to [acak] allomorph, which is followed by one of the personal subject allomorphs. As the linking verb be is
used in this tense in English and Turkish, the English adjective present participles verb-ing, and Turkish continuous nominal verb-iyor are used:
Yarn saat sekiz-de sen-i bekle-iyor ol-acak-m.
(ya*rn / sa*at / se*kiz*de / se*ni / bek*li*yor / o*la*ca*m)
I will be waiting for you at eight tomorrow.
In the sentence above, the double underlined /e/ drops, and the /k/ in olacak changes into its voiced form //, and the single underlined consonants
detach from their syllables and attach to the first vowels of the first syllables
of the following inflectional allomorphs:
Yarn bu saat-te al-yor ol-acak-m.
(ya*rn / bu / sa*at*te / a*l**yor / o*la*ca*m)
I will be working at this hour tomorrow. (The /k/ changes into //.)
Yarn bu saat-te ne yap-yor ol-acak-sn?
(ya*rn / bu / sa*at*te / ne / ya*p*yor / o*la*cak*sn)
What will you be doing at this hour tomorrow?
The same verb composition above can also be used in Turkish when The
Future Perfect Continuous Tense verb expression is needed:
Gel-ecek yl bu zaman bir yl-dr Trke ren-iyor ol-acak-m.
(ge*le*cek / yl / bu / za*man ~/ bir / yl*dr / trk*e / *re*ni*yor /
o*la*ca*m)
I will have been studying Turkish for a year by this time next year.
60

Misafir-ler gel-dik-in-de e-im saat-tir mutfak-ta yemek piir-iyor ol-acak.
My wife will have been cooking in the kitchen for three hours by the
time the visitors arrive.
FUTURE PERFECT TENSE

(mi ol-acak)
Both in English and Turkish, this tense expresses an action that will have
been finished before a certain time in the future. To form this tense, one of
the [mi, m, m, mu] allomorphs is attached to a verb root, stem or
frame to produce an adjective, and then, as a separate word, one of the
[ecek or acak] allomorphs is attached to the ol verb root, and finally the
verb composition is ended with one of the personal subject allomorphs:
Saat be-te i-im-i bitir-mi ol-acak-m. (Bitirmi is subj complement.)
(sa*at / be*te / i*i*mi / bi*tir*mi / o*la*ca*m)
I will have finished my work by five.
(The underlined /k/ is replaced by its voiced form //.)
Televizyon-da ben-im favori program-m bala-dk-/n/-da (ben) ev odevim-i yap-m ol-acak-m.
I will have done my homework by the time my favorite program starts
on TV.
Hava alan--/n/a var-dk-n-da uak havalan-m ol-acak.
(sen / ha*va / a*la*n*na / var*d*n*da / u*ak / ha*va*lan*m / o*la*cak)
The plane will have taken off by the time you arrive at the airport.
MODALS
PRESENT MODALS
While English modals are made of auxiliary verbs, Turkish modals are made
either of morphemes, or of words, or of both. They convey nearly the same
concepts as they do in English. Therefore, instead of giving detailed boring
explanations of the Turkish modals, we prefer giving English equivalents of
them, which we think might be more useful. Moreover, the English
sentences given as the equivalents of the Turkish modals can be considered
more satisfactory and precise than detailed English explanations of them,
which may lead to misunderstanding.
(can) (may) [ebil, abil]

The [ebil, abil] allomorphs convey ability, possibility or permission as
can do in English. To form the Simple Present Tense concept of this
61

modal morpheme, one of its allomorphs "[ebil] or [abil]" is attached to a
main verb followed only by [ir] Simple Present Tense time allomorph. The
other Simple Present Tense allomorphs are not used after [ebil] or [abil]
allomorphs due to the vowel harmony rules. The time allomorphs are
naturally followed by suitable personal suject allomorphs:
Yemek piir-ebil-ir-im. (Ability)
(ye*mek / pi*i*re*bi*li*rim)
I can cook.
Bilgisayar-m- kullan-abil-ir-sin. (Permission)
(bil*gi*sa*ya*r*m / kul*la*na*bi*lir*sin)
You can (may) use my computer.
Baz soru-lar zor ol-abil-ir. (Subject complements are underlined brown.)
(ba*z / so*ru*lar / zor / o*la*bi*lir)
Some questions may be difficult.
Siz-e yardm et-ebil-ir-iz. (Ability or possibility) (The /t/ changes into /d/.)
(si*ze / yar*dm / e*de*bi*li*riz)
We can help you.
Dar-/y/a k-abil-ir-sin. (Permission)
(d*a*r / *ka*bi*lir*sin)
You can go out.
To change the [ebil, abil] allomorphs into the negative concept,
[eme(z), ama(z)] allomorphs are used in place of them with some
phoneme removals and changes. They convey the concepts of inability,
impossibility or prohibition. (The [eme, ama] allomorphs are used with
ben and biz.
Piyano al-ama-am. (Inability)
(pi*ya*no / a*la*mam).
I cant play the piano.
Bu kk harf-ler-i gzlk-sz gr-eme-em. (Inability)
(bu / k*k / harf*le*ri / gz*lk*sz / g*re*mem)
I cant see these small letters without glasses.
Bekle-/y/eme-em. (Impossibility or inability)
(bek*le*ye*mem)
I cant wait.
62

In the sentences above, the /y/ glide is put between the successive /e/ vowels. (Impossibility)
Bu leke sabun-la temizlen-emez. (Impossibility) (Passive)
(bu / le*ke / sa*bun*la / te*miz*le*ne*mez)
This stain cant be cleaned with soap.
Bura-da bekle-/y/emez-sin. (Prohibition)
(bur*da / bek*le*ye*mez*sin)
You cant wait here.
Bakteri-ler plak gz-le grl-emez. (Impossibility) (Passive)
(bak*te*ri*ler / p*lak / gz*le / g*r*le*mez)
Germs cant be seen with the naked eye.
Yarn sen-i gr-eme-em. (Impossibility)
(ya*rn / se*ni / g*re*mem)
I cant see you tomorrow.
Ev-de ol-amaz. (Impossibility)
(ev*de / o*la*maz)
He cant be at home. (Brown underlined words are subject allomorphs.)
ocuk-lar bahe-de oyna-uyor ol-amaz. (Impossibility)
(o*cuk*lar / bah*e*de / oy*nu*yor / o*la*maz)
The children cant be playing in the garden.
The same [ebil] modal concept can also be used with The Present
Continuous [YOR] morpheme. In order to form this modal composition,
[ebil] or [abil] allomorphs are attached to main verbs followed by the [iyor]
and the personal subject allomorphs:
Kara tahta-/y/ gr-ebil-iyor-um. Tahta-/y/ gr-.yor-um. (Ability)
(ka*ra / tah*ta*y / g*re*bi*li*yo*rum)
I can see the blackboard.
The Simple Present Tense of this modal form does not express ability. If it
is used, it expresses possibility:
Sen-i yarn gr-ebil-ir-im.
(se*ni / ya*rn / g*re*bi*li*rim)
I can see you tomorrow. (Possibility)
Kenar-a ekil-ir-se-en karatahta-/y/ gr-ebil-ir-im. (Possibility)
(ke*na*ra / e*ki*lir*sen~ / ka*ra*tah*ta*y / g*re*bi*li*rim)
If you move aside, I can see the blackboard.
63

In the negative forms of The Present Continuous modal tenses, the [eme] or
[ama] negative making allomorphs are used followed by the [iyor, iyor]
progressive allomorphs, and naturally suitable subject allomorphs are attached to them:
Sen-i anla-/y/ama-yor-um.
(se*ni / an*la*ya*m*yo*rum)
I cant understand you.
The /y/ glide is placed between the successive /a/ vowels. (Inability) (Seni
anlayamam is impossible here. It can be used in conditional sentences):
Daha yksek ses-le konu-maz-sa-an sen-i anla-/y/ama-am.
(da*ha / yk*sek / ses*le / ko*nu*maz*san / se*ni / an*la*ya*mam)
I can't understand you if you do not speak louder.
Sen-i iit-eme-iyor-um.
(se*ni / i*i*te*mi*yo*rum)
I cant hear you.
(The double underlined /e/ drops as it is in imdi zaman.) (Inability)
Bekle-/y/eme-iyor-um. (Inability)
(bek*le*ye*mi*yo*rum)
I cant wait.
Bekle-/y/eme-em. (Impossibility)
(bek*le*ye*mem)
I cant wait. It is impossible for me to wait.
Sen-i gr-eme-iyor-um. (Inability)
(se*ni / g*re*mi*yo*rum)
I cant see you.
Syle-dik-ler-in anlal-ma-yor. (Passive)
(sy*le*dik*le*rin / an*la*l*m*yor)
What you are saying isn't understood.
The [ebil, abil] modal allomorphs followed by the allomorphs of the
morpheme [YOR] are used attached to verbs in question forms, and finally
mu-/y/um?, mu-sun?, mu?, mu-/y/uz?, mu-sunuz?, lar m?, etc are
separately added:
64

Gzlk-sz televizyon seyret-ebil-iyor mu-sunuz?
(gz*lk*sz / te*le*viz*yon / sey*re*de*bi*li yor / mu*su*nuz)
Can you watch television without glasses?
(The /t/ changes into /d/.) (Ability)
When the intention of request is involved, The Simple Present Tense allomorphs of [R] are used after [ebil or abil] allomorphs, and finally, mi/yim?, mi-sin?, mi?, mi-/y/iz?, mi-siniz?, ler mi? question
allomorphs are separately said or written.
Bana yardm et-ebil-ir mi-siniz? (Yardm et is intransitive in Turksh.)
(ba*na / yar*dm / e*de*bi*lir / mi*si*niz)
Can you help me? (Request) (Help is transitive in English.)
Siz-e yardm et-ebil-ir mi-/y/im?
(si*ze / yar*dm / e*de*bi*lir / mi*yim)
Can I help you? (Request)
Ben-i gr-mek iin yarn bro-um-a gel-ebil-ir mi-sin-(iz)? (Request)
(be*ni / gr*mek / i*in / ya*rn / b*ro*ma / ge*le*bi*lir / mi*sin)
Can (could) you come to my office to see me tomorrow?
The Turkish equivalents of wh question words of English can also be
used with [ebil], [abil] allomorphs:
Bu soru-/y/a kim cevap ver-ebil-ir? (Cevap ver = answer)
(bu / so*ru*ya / kim / ce*vap / ve*re*bi*lir )
Who can answer this question? (Ability)
Nere-de le yemek-i ye-/y/ebil-ir-iz? (Possibility)
(ne*re*de / *le / ye*me*i / yi*ye*bi*li*riz)
Where can we have lunch? (*"Nerede le yemei yiyebiliyoruz?" is not
possible in Turkish.)
Nasl baar-abil-ir-im?
(na *sl / ba*a*ra*bi*li*rim)
How can I succeed?
must [meli, mal]

This morpheme has two allomorphs; [meli] and [mal], which can be attached to verb roots, stems or frames followed by personal subject
allomorphs. When it is used with the verb "be, it conveys the concepts of
certainty or probability, but when it is used with action verbs like go,
write, do, help, etc., it implies obligation imposed by the speaker:
65

Snav-lar-da baar-l ol-mak iin daha ok al-mal-sn.
(s*nav*lar*da / ba*a*r*l / ol*mak / i*in / ok / a*l*ma*l*sn)
You must study harder to succeed in the examinations.
(Strong advice or obligation imposed by the speaker.)
Anne-en-e ev i-ler-i/n/-de yardm et-meli-sin. (Yardm et is intransitive.)
(an*ne*ne / ev / i*le*rin*de / yar*dm / et*me*li*sin)
You must help your mother with the housework. (Help is transitive.)
(Obligation imposed by the speaker or strong advice)
Ev dev-im-i bitir-mek iin ge vakte kadar otur-mal-/y/m.
(e*v*de*vi*mi / bi*tir*mek / i*in / ge / vak*te / ka*dar / o*tur*ma*l*/y/m)
I must sit up late to finish my homework. (Internal obligation)
Src-ler trafik kural-lar--/n/a uy-mal-dr. (Uy is intransitive.)
(s*r*c*ler / tra*fik / ku*ral*la*r*na / uy*ma*l*dr )
Drivers must obey the traffic rules. (Obey is transitive.)
Yorgun ol-mal-sn. (Yorgun is subject complement.)
(yor*gun / ol*ma*l*sn)
You must be tired. (I am sure you are tired.)
Sabah-leyin erken kalk-l-mal.
(sa*bah*le*yin / er*ken / kal*kl*ma*l)
It is necessary to get up early in the morning. (Passive shaped intransitive)
nem-li evrak-lar kasa-da saklan-mal.
(*nem*li / ev*rak*lar / ka*sa*da / sak*lan*ma*l)
Important documents must be kept in a safe. (It is necessary to keep)
Anne-en fkeli ol-mal. (I am sure she is angry.)
(an*nen / f*ke*li / ol*ma*l)
Your mother must be angry. (Very probability or certainty)
Matematik skc ol-mal. (I am sure it is boring.)
(ma*te*ma*tik / s*k*c / ol*ma*l)
Mathematics must be boring.
The negative form of [meli, ma.l] is [me-meli, ma-mal] (must not), which
conveys the concept of prohibition:
Ben-im-le byle konu-ma-mal-sn. (Benimle byle konu-amaz-sn.)
(be*nim*le / by*le / ko*nu*ma*ma*l*sn)
You mustnt (cant) talk to me like that. (Prohibition)
66

Kz karde-in-in dev yap-ma-/s/-/n/ engelle-me-meli-sin.
(kz / kar*de*i*nin / *dev / yap*ma*s*n / en*gel*le*me*me*li*sin)
You mustnt prevent your sister from do-ing her homework. (Prohibition)
Bir renci televizyon izle-/y/erek zaman--/n/ boa harca-ma-mal-dr.
(bir / *ren*ci / te*le*viz*yon / iz*le*ye*rek / za*ma:*n*n / bo*a / har*ca*ma*ma*l*dr) A student mustnt waste his time watching television.
Another negative form of [ol-mal] (must be) is ol-amaz (cant be).This
form is used with the verbs *be in sentences. Consider the following:
Oul-um sinema-da ol-amaz; okul-da ol-mal.
(o*lum / si*ne*ma*da / o*la*maz / o*kul*da / ol*ma*l)
My son cant be at the cinema; he must be at school. (Impossibility; certainty)
Matematik ilgin ol-amaz; skc ol-mal.
(ma*te*ma*tik / il*gin / o*la*maz / s*k*c / ol*ma*l )
Mathematics cant be interesting; it must be boring. (Impossibility; certainty)
Mehmet hasta ol-amaz; rol yap-.yor ol-mal.
(meh*met / has*ta / o*la*maz / rol / ya*p*yor / ol*ma*l )
Mehmet cant be ill; he must be pretending. (Impossibility; certainty)
Jack ders al-yor ol-amaz, futbol oyna-uyor ol-mal
(jack / ders / a*l**yor / o*la*maz) (fut*bol / oy*nu*yor / ol*ma*l )
Jack cant be studying; he must be playing football.
Karde-in ciddi ol-amaz; aka yap-yor ol-mal.
(kar*de*in / cid*di: / o*la*maz / a*ka / ya*p*yor / ol*ma*l )
Your brother cant be serious; he must be joking.
Bu hediye ben-im iin ol-amaz; siz-in iin ol-mal.
(bu / he*di*ye / be*nim / i*in / o*la*maz / si*zin / i*in / ol*ma*l )
This present cant be for me; it must be for you.
Cidd ol-amaz. Rol yap-iyor ol-amaz m?
(cid*d: / o*la*maz / rol / ya*p*yor / o*la*maz / m )
He cant be serious. Can't he be pretending?
Bu portre gerek ol-amaz; kopya ol-mal.
(bu / por*tre / ger*ek / o*la*maz / kop*ya / ol*ma*l)
This portrait cant be genuine; it must be a reproduction.
67

have to (verb-[mek, mak] + zorunda-subj)
This modal form expresses obligation imposed by an external authority
or circumstances:
-e git-mek iin her sabah saat alt-da kalk-mak zorunda-/y/m.
(i*e / git*mek / i*in / her / sa*bah / sa*at / al*t*da / kalk*mak / zo*run*da*ym) I have to get up at six oclock every morning to go to work.
(The /y/ glide is inserted between /a/ and // vowels.) (External obligation)
Patron-la konu-urken dikkatli ol-mak zorunda-sn.
(pat*ron*la / ko*nu*ur*ken / dik*kat*li / ol*mak / zo*run*da*sn)
You have to be careful when you are talking to the boss.
(External obligation)
Bu yaz dikkat-le yazl-mak zorunda. (Passive)
(bu / ya*z / dik*kat*le / ya*zl*mak / zo*run*da)
This text has to be written carefully.
(Passive; external obligation)
Oda-am- tertiple-mek zorunda-/y/m.
(o*da*m / ter*tip*le*mek / zo*run*da*ym)
I have to tidy my room.
(External obligation)
Bu cmle-ler-i ren-mek zorunda m-/y/m?
(bu / cm*le*le*ri / *ren*mek / zo*run*da / m*ym)
Do I have to learn these sentences?
neednt or dont (doesn't) have to

Lack of necessity neednt or dont (doesnt) have to is expressed in
Turkish with a negative making allomorph "[me, or ma]" attached to a verb
root, stem or a frame such as, git-me, yaz-ma, satn al-ma, al-ma,
"te-mizle-en-me", and then one of the [ebil, or abil] allomorphs is attached to
the preceding [me, ma] negation allomorphs. After the [ebil or abil]
allomorphs, The Simple Present Tense allomorph [ir] is used, and finally
personal subject allomorphs are added:
Okul-a git-me-/y/ebil-ir-im.
(o*ku*la / git*me*ye*bi*li*rim)
I neednt (dont have to) go to school. (Lack of necessity)
68

imdi bala-ma-/y/abil-ir-iz.
(im*di / ba*la*ma*ya*bi*li*riz)
We neednt (dont have to) start now. (Lack of necessity)
Sabah-leyin erken kalk-ma-/y/abil-ir-im.
(sa*bah*le*yin / er*ken / kalk*ma*ya*bi*li*rim)
I neednt get up early in the morning. (Lack of necessity)
Bugn bro temizlen-me-/y/ebil-ir. (Passive)
(bu / gn / b*ro / te*miz*len*me*ye*bi*lir)
The office neednt be cleaned today.
Git-me-/y/ebil-ir-iz.
(git*me*ye*bi*li*riz)
We neednt go.
Gitmesem de olur, balamasak da olur, kalkmasam da olur,
"kalkmama gerek yok", "gelmene gerek yok" expressions can also
be used as alternatives to the sentences above:
Sabah-leyin erken kalk-ma-sa-am da ol-ur.
(sa*bah*le*yin / er*ken / kalk*ma*sam / da / o*lur)
I needn't get up early in the morning. (Lack of necessity)
When a question is asked with [meli, mal], the answer to this question may
be as follows:
Konser-e git-meli mi-/y/im? Git-me-se-en de ol-ur. Git-me-/y/ebil-ir-sin.
Must I go to the concert? No, you neednt."
should or ought to
(Gerek-ir) (Advice)
In order to compose this modal concept, one of the personal possessive
allomorphs is attached to the owned part of a noun + infinitive
compound. In the second parts of this compound, the second type of
infinitives are used, which are made by attaching [me, or ma] allomorphs to
verb roots, stems or frames, such as: git-me, bekle-me, beklen-me,
satn al-ma, satn al-n-ma, ezberle-me, ezberlen-me, sprlme, etc.
The personal possessive allomorphs attached to the infinitive parts of the
noun + infinitive compounds are in the following list:
69

(ben-im)
(sen-in)
(o-/n/un)
(biz-im)
(siz-in)
(onlar-n)
[em, am]
[en, an]
[/s/i, /s/]
[emiz, amz]
[eniz, anz]
[/s/i, /s/] or [leri, lar]
(bekle-me-em) (ko-ma-am)
(bekle-me-en) (ko-ma-an)
(bekle-me-si) (ko-ma-s)
(bekle-me-emiz) (ko-ma-amz)
(bekle-me-eniz) (ko-ma-anz)
(bekle-me-si) (ko-ma-s)
In short, bekle-me-em means ben-im bekle-me-em because the em

attached to bekle-me means ben-m. Therefore, the possessive pronoun
ben-im is generally ignored.
Finally, after the above possessive pronoun + infinitive compounds
gerek-ir verb is used as a separate word:
Daha ok al-ma-an gerek-ir. (Turkish and English sentence structures
are different.) (da*ha / ok / a*l*man / ge*re*kir)
You should (ought to) study harder. (Advice)
Sen-in al-ma-an is a noun + infinitive compound, and daha ok is
an adverial.
renciler-in yeni kelime-ler-i ezberle-me-/s/i gerek-ir. (Advice)
(noun compound) subect
verb
The students should memorize the new words.

(The /s/ glide is used between /e/ and /i/.)
(Sen-in) baba-an-n t--/n/ (sen-in) iyi dn-me-en gerek-ir.
definite chain noun comp obj of dn
subject
(noun comp) subj
verb
(ba*ba*nn / **d*n / i*yi / d*n*men / ge*re*kir)

You should think well about your fathers advice.
Snav sonu-lar--/n/n beklen-me-/s/i gerek-ir. (Passive)
(s*nav / so*nu*la*r*nn / bek*len*me*si / ge*re*kir)
The examination results should be waited.
To make a negative advice, the [me] or [ma] negative making allomorphs
are inserted between verb roots, stems or frames and the [me, ma]
infinitive making allomorphs:
ok para harca-ma-ma-an gerek-ir. (Advice)
(ok / pa*ra / har*ca*ma*man l ge*re*kir)
You shouldnt spend much money.
70

Bir baba-/n/n ocuk-lar--/n/ ihml et-me-me-/s/i gerek-ir. (Advice)
(bir / ba*ba*nn / o*cuk*la*r*n / ih*ma:l / et*me*me*si / ge*re*kir)
A father shouldnt neglect his children.
Vergi de-me-/n/in ertelen-me-me-/s/i gerek-ir. (Advice) (Passive)
(ver*gi / *de*me*nin / er*te*len*me*me*si / ge*re*kir)
Pay-ing tax shouldnt be postponed.
In the senentence above, the /n/ glide is used between the first "e, i", and
the /s/ glide is used between the last "e and i".
May and can are both expressed in [ebil, abil] allomorphs in Turkish. Therefore, they can be used with the question tag mi in questions.
The subject complements may be adjectives, nouns or prepositional
phrases. Therefore, as all of them are subject complements, they are
underlined brown.
Haber doru ol-abil-ir.
(ha*ber / do*ru / o*la*bi*lir)
The news may (can) be true.
Haber doru ol-abil-ir mi?
(ha*ber / do*ru / o*la*bi*lir / mi )
Can the news be true? (In question forms may cannot be used in English).
ocuk-lar ev-de ol-abil-ir.
(o*cuk*lar / ev*de / o*la*bi*lir)
The children may (can) be at home.
ocuklar ev-de ol-abil-ir mi?
(o*cuk*lar / ev*de / o*la*bi*lir / mi)
Can the children be at home?
Hakl ol-abil-ir-sin.
(hak*l / o*la*bi*lir*sin)
You may (can) be right.
Hakl ol-amaz m-/y/m?
(hak*l / o*la*maz / mi*yim)
Can't I be right?
Bekle-iyor ol-amaz-lar m?
(bek*li*yor / o*la*maz*lar / m)
Can't they be waiting?
71

Tercme yanl ol-abil-ir.
(ter*c*me / yan*l / o*la*bi*lir )
The translation may be incorrect.
PAST MODALS
Could
Could expresses ability in the past. To express the same concept in Turkish,
main verb-[ebil, abil]-[iyor]-[du]-[subj] verb composition should be used:
Yedi ya-m-da/y/-ken yz-ebil-iyor-du-um.

(ye*di / ya*m*day*ken / y*ze*bi*li*yor*dum)
I could swim when I was seven years old. (Ability in the past)
Ahmet okul-a git-me-den nce oku-/y/up yaz-abil-iyor-du.
(ah*met / o*ku*la / git*me*den / n*ce / o*ku*yup / ya*za*bi*li*yor*du)
Ahmet could read and write before he went to school.
The negative form of this modal verb is verb-[eme, ama]-[.YOR]-[du][subj], which expresses both the negative of "could" and "was able to":
Ben okul-a git-me-den nce oku-/y/up yaz-ama-yor-du-um.
(ben / o*ku*la / git*me*den / n*ce / o*ku*yup / ya*za*m*yor*dum)
I couldn't read and write before I went to school.
-im-i bitir-eme-di-im.
(i*i*mi / bi*ti*re*me*dim)
I couldn't finish my work.
(I wasn't able to finish my work.)
Yeni ders-i anla-/y/abil-di-in mi?
(ye*ni / der*si / an*la*ya*bil*din / mi)
Were you able to understand the new lesson? (Could is not used.)
Glk-ler-i a-abil-di-iniz mi?
(g*lk*le*ri / a*a*bil*di*niz / mi)
Were you able to overcome the difficulties?
Tasar-/y/ bitir-ebil-di-iniz mi?
(ta*sa*r*y / bi*ti*re*bil*di*niz / mi)
Were you able to finish the project?
72

was (were) able to (verb- [me-/y/i, ma-/y/] baar-d-m)
When a past success is implied, the verb baar is used in Turkish in
place of the was able to, the succeeded in, or the managed to
expressions of the English language:
Snav-da iyi bir not al-ma-/y/ baar-d-m.
(s*nav*da / i*yi / bir / not / al*ma*y / ba*ar*dm)
I was able to get a good grade in the examination.
(I succeeded in getting a good grade.) (I managed to get a good grade.)
Bizim takm, misafir takm- yen-me-/y/i baar-d.
(bi*zim / ta*km~ / mi*sa:*fir / ta*k*m / yen*me*yi / ba*ar*d)
Our team succeeded in beat-ing the visiting team.
(The /y/ glide is inserted between /e/ and /i/.)
-in-i bitir-me-/y/i baar-d-n m? or -in-i bitir-ebil-di-in mi?
(i*i*ni / bi*ti*re*bil*din / mi)
Were you able to complete your work?
(The /y/ glide is used between [me] and [i].)
As an alternative to the above sentence types, [verb-[e-bil, a-bil]-[di][pers] verb composition could be used:
En son-u/n/-da (en nihayet) i-im-i bitir-ebil-di-im.
(en / so*nun*da / i*i*mi / bi*ti*re*bil*dim)
I was able to finish my work at last.
verb-[eme, ama]-[di, d]-[subject allomorph] verb composition can be
used in place of "couldn't, wasn't able to or didn't succeed in":
Ma- kazan-ama-d-k.
(ma* / ka*za*na*ma*dk)
We couldn't win the match.
Bu problem-i z-eme-di-im.
(bu / prob*le*mi / *ze*me*dim)
I couldnt solve this problem.
As could is used in English conditional clauses, so verb-[EBL]-[ir]-di[pers] verb composition is used in Turkish conditional sentences:
73

Yeter-ince vakit-im ol-sa sana imdi yardm et-ebil-ir-di-im.
(ye*te*rin*ce / vak*tim / ol*sa / im*di / sa*na / yar*dm / e*de*bi*lir*dim)
If I had enough time, I could help you now.
(The /t/ in et changes into the voiced /d/.)
Hava daha iyi ol-sa piknik-e git-ebil-ir-di-ik.
(ha*va / da*ha / i*yi / ol*sa / pik*ni*e / gi*de*bi*lir*dik)
We could go for a picnic if the weather were (was) better.
Would or could (Polite request)

verb-[R]-[M]/y/-[D]-[pers] verb composition is used to express a polite
request in Turkish:
In this verb composition, V symbolizes a verb root, a verb stem or a
verb frame. [R] is a morpheme that includes all the allomorphs of the
Simple Present Tense [ir, r, r, ur, er, ar]. [M] includes all interrogative
allomorphs [mi, m, m, mu]. [D] represents the simple past tense
allomorphs [di, d, d, du]; and [subj] symbolizes all the personal
subject allomorphs. Consider the following sentences:
Bir saniye ben-i dinle-er mi/y/-di-iniz?
(bir / sa:*ni*ye / be*ni / din*ler / miy*di*niz)
Would you listen to me for a second?
In fact, this sort of request is the second part of a conditional sentence:
Rica et-se-em, bir saniye ben-i dinle-er mi/y/-di-iniz?
(ri*ca: / et*sem / bir / sa:*ni*ye / be*ni / din*ler / miy*di*niz)
Would you listen to me for a second if I asked?
Ben-im-le bir fincan ay i-er mi/y/-di-iniz? (miy*di*niz)
Would you have a cup of tea with me?
Bavul-um-u ta-ma-am-a yardm et-er mi/y/-di-iniz?
(ba*vu*lu*mu / ta**ma*ma / yar*dm / e*der / miy*di*niz)
Would you help me to carry my suitcase?
In the last example above, the /t/ in et changes into /d/, and the /y/ glide is
inserted between [mi] and [di].
If someone wishes to be politer, he can add the [E.BL] and [R] morphemes
to the verb composition above:
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Ben-i bir saniye dinle-/y/ebil-ir mi/y/-di-iniz?
(be*ni / bir / sa:*ni*ye / din*le*ye*bi*lir / miy*di*niz)
Could you listen to me for a second please?
The [R] Simple Present, and [D] Simple Past Tense morphemes are also
used together in Turkish conditional sentences:
Bura-da ol-sa biz-e yardm et-er-di. (Yardm et is an intransitive verb.)
(bur*da / ol*sa / bi*ze / yar*dm / e*der*di)
If he were here, he would help us. (Help is a transitive verb in English.)
(The /t/ changes into the /d/ voiced consonant.)
Sen-in yer-in-de ol-sa-am bu eski araba-/y/ sat-ar-d-m. (Advice)
(se*nin / ye*rin*de / ol*sam / bu / es*ki / a*ra*ba*y / sa*tar*dm)
If I were you, I would sell this old car.
retmen sen-i gr-se/y/-di kz-ar-d. (The verb kz is an action verb.)
(*ret*men / se*ni / gr*sey*di / k*zar*d )
If the teacher saw you, he would get angry.
PERFECT MODALS
must have verb - [mi, m, m, mu] + [ol-mal]-[pers]
This perfect modal verb composition conveys a past concept of certainty.
Consider the following:
Grev-i-/n/i bitir-mi ol-mal. (The brown underlined words are subj complements.)
(g*re*vi*ni / bi*tir*mi / ol*ma*l )
He must have finished his duty. (I am sure he has finished it.)
Ev-den ayrl-m ol-mal. All the brown underlined words are subj complements.
(ev*den / ay*rl*m*ol*ma*l )
He must have left home. (I am sure he has left home.)
Uak in-mi ol-mal. (Liaison)
(u*ak / in*mi*ol*ma*l)
The plane must have landed. (I am sure it has landed. )
Ben-i anla-m ol-mal-sn. (Liaison)
(be*ni / an*la*m*ol*ma*l*sn )
You must have understood me.
(I am sure you (have) understood me.)
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O-/n/u bir yer-de gr-m ol-mal-/y/m. (Liaison)
(o*nu / bir / yer*de / gr*m*ol*ma*l*ym )
I must have seen her somewhere.
(I am sure I saw her somewhere.)
Both certainty and possibility concepts can also be conveyed by
verb-[M]-[DR] verb composition:
Grev-i-/n/i bitir-mi-tir.
(g*re*vi*ni / bi*tir*mi*tir )
He must (may) have finished his duty.
Ev-den ayrl-m-tr. (Ayrl is intransitive.)
(ev*den / ay*rl*m*tr)
He must (may) have left home. (Leave is transitive.)
Haber-i duy-mu mu-dur?
(ha*be*ri / duy*mu / mu*dur)
Is he likely to have heard the news?
Haber-i duy-ma-m-tr.
(ha*be*ri / duy*ma*m*tr)
He cant (couldnt) have heard the news.
Haber duyul-ma-m-tr. (Passive)
(ha*ber / du*yul*ma*m*tr)
The news may not have been heard. (Passive)
Bu saat-te yat-m-tr bile.
(bu / sa*at*te / yat*m*tr / bi*le )
He must have already gone to bed at this hour.
Yamur dur-mu mu-dur?
(ya*mur / dur*mu / mu*dur )
Is it likely to have stopped rain-ing?
The same verb composition may be used in conditional sentences, as well:
Paris-e git-ti/y/-se, Eyfel Kulesi-/n/i gr-m-tr.
(pa*ri*se / git*tiy*se / ey*fel / ku*le*si*ni / gr*m*tr )
If he went to Paris, he must have seen the Eiffel Tower.
Bir yanllk yap-t/y/-sa zr dile-mi-tir.
(bir / yan*l*lk / yap*ty*sa / *zr / di*le*mi*tir )
If he made a mistake, he must have apologized.
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Note: git-ti/y/-se means if he went, but git-se/y/-di means if he
had gone:
Paris-e git-se/y/-di Eyfel Kulesi-/n/i gr-r-d.
(pa*ri*se / git*sey*di / ey*fel / ku*le*si*ni / g*rr*d)
If he had gone to Paris, he would have seen the Eiffel Tower.
(He didnt go, and he didnt see.)
Yeter-ince al-sa/y/-d kt bir not al-maz-d.
(ye*te*rin*ce / a*l*say*d / k*t / bir / not / al*maz*d )
If he had studied hard enough, he wouldnt have got a poor mark.
(He didnt study, so he got a poor mark.)
Oyun-u seyret-se/y/-di-in holan-r-d-n.
(o*yu*nu / sey*ret*sey*din / ho*la*nr*dn)
If you had watched the play, you would have enjoyed it.
cant have verb- [mi, m, m, mu] + ol - [ama(z)] - [pers]

The verb chain above is used to form a verb composition to convey past impossibility. In doing this, [ama] negation allomorphs are attached to the first
person singular ben and to the first person plural biz, and with the other
pronouns sen, o, siz and onlar and in all interrogative sentences
[amaz] are used with negative making allomorphs:
Gr-m ol-ama-am. (gr*m / o*la*mam)
Gr-m ol-amaz-sn. (gr*m / o*la*maz*sn)
Gr-m ol-amaz. (gr*m / o*la*maz)
Gr-m ol-ama-/y/z. (gr*m / o*la*ma*yz)
Gr-m ol-amaz-snz. (gr*m / o*la*maz*s*nz)
Gr-m ol-amaz-lar. (gr*m / o*la*maz*lar)
Example sentences:
O-/n/u yanl anla-m ol-ama-am.
(o*nu / yan*l / an*la*m / o*la*mam)
(o*nu / yan*l*an*la*m*o*la*mam ) (Liason)
I can't (couldnt) have misunderstood it.
Sen-i yanl anla-m ol-amaz m?
(se*ni / yan*l / an*la*m / o*la*maz / m )
Cant he have misunderstood you?
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Sen-i iit-mi ol-amaz.
(se*ni / i*it*mi / o*la*maz)
(se*ni / i*it*mi*o*la*maz) (Liaison)
He cant (couldnt) have heard you
Lastik-i patla-m ol-amaz.
(las*ti*i / pat*la*m / o*la*maz)
He cant (couldnt) have had a flat tire.
Tm soru-lar-a cevap ver-mi ol-amaz-sn.
(tm / so*ru*la*ra / ce*vap / ver*mi / o*la*maz*sn )
You cant (couldnt) have answered all the questions.
Fenerbahe yenil-mi ol-amaz m?
(fe*ner*bah*e / ye*nil*mi / o*la*maz / m)
Cant Fenervahe have been beaten?
should have (ought to have) noun + infinitive + gerek-ir-di

This perfect modal composition is used to express a past obligation or
expectation that was not carried out:
(Sen-in) ev dev-in-i yap-ma-an gerek-ir-di.
noun + infinitive compound (subject)
(ev / *de*vi*ni / yap*man / ge*re*kir*di )

That you had done your homework was necessary.
(You should have done your homework.) (But you didnt.)
Bu araba-/y/ satn al-mak iin daha ok para biriktir-me-en gerek-ir-di.
(bu / a*ra*ba*y / sa*tn / al*mak / i*in / da*ha / ok / pa*ra / bi*rik*tir*men /
ge*re*kir*di )
You should have saved more money to buy this car. (But you didnt.)
Snav-da daha dikkat-li ol-ma-am gerek-ir-di.
(s*nav*da / da*ha / dik*kat*li / ol*mam / ge*re*kir*di)
I should have been more careful in the examination. (But I wasnt.)
Dn bana telefon et-me-en gerek-mez mi/y/-di?
(dn / ba*na / te*le*fon / et*men / ge*rek*mez / miy*di )
Shouldn't you have telephoned me yesterday?
dev-in-i yap-ma-an gerek-mez mi/y/-di?
(*de*vi*ni / yap*man / ge*rek*mez / miy*di )
Shouldn't you have done your homework?
(You haven't done your homework. Why?)
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To change the above modal composition into the negative form, the [me]
or [ma] negative making allomorphs are put after the verb roots, stems or
frames, and then the [me] or [ma] infinitive allomorphs follow them
preceding the personal subject allomorphs:
Ekmek al-ma-ma-an gerek-ir-di.
noun + infinitive compound
(ek*mek / al*ma*man / ge*re*kir*di)

You shouldnt (neednt) have bought bread. (But you did.) (Advice)
Kz karde-in-e bar-ma-ma-an gerek-ir-di.
(kz / kar*de*i*ne / ba*r*ma*man / ge*re*kir*di )
You shouldnt have shouted at your sister. (But you did.) (Advice)
Yalan syle-me-me-/s/i gerek-ir-di.
(o*nun / ya*lan / sy*le*me*me*si / ge*re*kir*di )
He shouldnt have told a lie. (But he did.)
Mehmet-in snav-da kopya ek-me-me-/s/i gerek-ir-di.
(meh*me*din / s*nav*da / kop*ya / ek*me*me*si / ge*re*kir*di )
Mehmet shouldnt have cheated in the examination. (But he did.)
may have verb - [mi, m, m, mu] + ol-abil-ir-[subj]

This modal form adds possibility to verb roots, stems and frames:
Dar-/y/a k-m ol-abil-ir.
(d*a*r *ya / k*m / o*la*bi*lir)
He may have gone out. (Perhaps he has gone out.)
Dar-/y/a k-m-tr.
(d*a*r*ya / k*m*tr)
He must have gone out. (I am sure he has gone out.)
Otobs- kar-m ol-abil-ir.
(o*to*b*s / ka*r*m / o*la*bi*lir)
He may have missed the bus. (I am sure he has missed it.)
Otobs- kar-m ol-abil-ir mi?
(o*to*b*s / ka*r*m / o*la*bi*lir / mi )
Is he likely to have missed the bus?
Sen-i yanl anla-m ol-abil-ir.
(se*ni / yan*l*an*la*m*o*la*bi*lir) (Liaison)
She may have misunderstood you. (Perhaps she misunderstood you.)
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Bro temizlen-mi ol-abil-ir.
(b*ro / te*miz*len*mi / o*la*bi*lir)
The office may have been cleaned. (Perhaps it has been cleaned.)
Haber-i iit-mi ol-abil-ir-ler mi?
(ha*be*ri / i*it*mi / o*la*bi*lir*ler / mi)
Are they likely to have heard the news?
Vazo-/y/u kedi kr-m ol-abil-ir mi?
(va*zo*yu / ke*di / kr*m / o*la*bi*lir / mi)
Is the cat likely to have broken the vase?
Bir anlama-/y/a var-m ol-abil-ir-ler.
(bir / an*la*ma*ya / var*m / o*la*bi*lir*ler)
They may have reached an agreement.
might have verb- [ebil, abil]-[ir]-[di]-[subj]

Kaza geir-ebil-ir-di-ik.
(ka*za: / ge*i*re*bi*lir*dik)
We might have had an accident. (It was probable, but we didnt.)
Pencere-/y/i kr-abil-ir-di-in.
(pen*ce*re*yi / k*ra*bi*lir*din)
You might have broken the window.
(It was probable, but you didnt.)
Ma kaybetil-ebil-ir-di. (It was probable, but it wasnt lost.)
(ma / kay*be*di*le*bi*lir*di)
The match might have been lost. (Passive)
(The /t/ changes into /d/.)
n-n-de-ki araba-/y/a arp-abil-ir-di-in.
(*nn*de*ki / a*ra*ba*ya / ar*pa*bi*lir*din)
You might have hit the car in front of you. (But you didn't hit it.)
n-n-de-ki araba-/y/a carp-ma-/y/abil-ir-di-in.
(*nn*de*ki / a*ra*ba*ya / arp*ma*ya*bi*lir*din)
You might not have hit the car in front of you. (But you hit it.)
neednt have noun + infinitive-[e, a] + gerek yok-tu

This modal composition is used to express absence of obligation or necessity. The noun compounds used in the following sentences are showed
between inverted commas.
80

Aye-/n/in acele et-me-/s/i-/n/e gerek yok-tu.
noun + infinitive comp - [e] (adverbial)
(ay*e*nin / a*ce*le / et*me*si*ne / ge*rek / yok*tu)

Aye neednt have hurried. (But she did.)
Btn soru-lar-a cevap ver-me-en-e gerek yok-tu.
(b*tn / so*ru*la*ra / ce*vap / ver*me*ne / ge*rek / yok*tu)
You neednt have answered all the questions. (But you did.)
Ma- ertele-me-ler-i-/n/e gerek yok-tu.
(on*la*rn / ma* / er*te*le*me*le*ri*ne / ge*rek / yok*tu )
They neednt have postponed the match. (But they did.)
iek-ler-i sula-ma-anz-a gerek yoktu.
(i*ek*le*ri / su*la*ma*n*za / ge*rek / yok*tu)
You neednt have watered the flowers. (But you did.)
ift ayakkab al-ma-an-a gerek yoktu.
( / ift / a*yak*ka*b / al*ma*na / ge*rek / yok*tu )
You needn't have bought three pairs of shoes.
Note: git-me-se de olurdu, sula-ma-sa-lar da olurdu sentence types can
also be used as alternatives to the sentences above. The noun compounds
in the sentences above and below are all showed between inverted commas.
didnt need to noun + infinitive-[e, a] + gerek kal-ma-d

This modal form is used to express unfulfilled necessity in the past:
Uzun zaman bekle-me-em-e gerek kal-ma-d.
noun + infinitive comp -[e] (adverbial)
(u*zun / za*man / bek*le*me*me / ge*rek / kal*ma*d)

It was not necessary for me to wait for a long time.
I didn need to wait for a long time.
Okul-a yr-/y/e.rek git-me-emiz-e gerek kal-ma-d.
(o*ku*la / y*r*ye*rek / git*me*mi*ze / ge*rek / kal*ma*d)
We didnt need to walk to school.
iek-ler-in sulan-ma-/s/-/n/a gerek kal-ma-d.
(i*ek*le*rin / su*lan*ma*s*na / ge*rek / kal*ma*d )
The flowers didnt need to be watered. (Passive infinitive)
Bir araba kirala-ma-amz-a gerek kal-ma-d.
(bir / a*ra*ba / ki*ra:*la*ma*m*za / ge*rek / kal*ma*d)
We didnt need to hire a car.
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Toplant yap-ma-amz-a gerek kal-ma-d.
(top*lan*t / yap*ma*m*za / ge*rek / kal*ma*d )
We didnt need to hold a meeting.
Yardm iste-me-emiz-e gerek kal-ma-d.
(yar*dm / is*te*me*mi*ze / ge*rek / kal*ma*d )
We didnt need to ask for help.
Bekle-me-emiz-e gerek kal-ma-d.
(bek*le*me*mi*ze / ge*rek / kal*ma*d )
We didnt need to wait.
LINKING VERBS IN ENGLISH AND TURKISH
Linking verbs are the verbs that carry information about the subject
describing who, what, how, and where the subject is, was, can be, etc.
The following are all linking verbs: is, are, was, were, has been, have
been, will be, had been, must be, may be, etc. The information that the
linking verbs carry to the subjects are called subject complements.
Present positive:
The compulsory subject allomorphs used with present be are as follows:
(ben): [im, m, m, um]; (sen): [sin, sn, sn, sun]; (o): []; (biz): [iz, z, z,
uz]; (siz): [siniz, snz, snz, sunuz]; (onlar): [() (ler, lar)]
Although the subject complements that give information about the subjects may be nouns, pronouns, adjectives or prepositional phrases, they are all brown underlined to show that they are all subject complements:
1. Nouns: (Ben) retmen-im (*ret*me*nim) I am a teacher. (Sen)
doktor-sun (dok*tor*sun) You are a doctor. O bir doktor (dok*tor).
She is a doctor. Biz doktor-uz (dok*to*ruz) We are doctors. Siz bir
retmen-siniz (siz / *ret*men*si*niz) You are a teacher. Onlar
asker (on*lar / as*ker) They are soldiers.
(No time allomorphs are used when the linking verbs are present in
Turkish.)
2. Adjectives: (Ben) tembel-im (tem*be*lim) I am lazy. (Sen) alkansn (a*l*kan*sn) You are hardworking. O mutlu(dur) (o / mut*lu).
She is happy. Biz iyi-/y/iz (biz / i*yi*yiz) We are all right. Yorgunsunuz (yor*gun*su*nuz) You are tired. Onlar isteksiz. (on*lar /
is*tek*siz) They are unwilling.
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3. Postpositional adverbial phrases: The Turkish place allomorphs [de,
da, te, ta] are expressed in English in the prepositions of in, at,
on, behind, in front of such as, ev-de, okul-da, sokakta, rnek-te, bura-da, alt-n-da, yan-n-da, n-n-de, arka-/s/n-da, st-n-de yakn-n-da. These Turkish adverbials
are used as subject complements when they are used with be linking verbs. If they are used with action verbs, they become adverbials.
ev-de (at home); okul-da (at school, in school); masa-da (on the
table, at the table); kap-da (at the door); kutu-da (in the box); bahede (in the garden); hastane-de (in hospital, in the hospital); uak-ta
(on the plane), kap-/n/n n-/n/-de (in front of the door).
The other [e, a] and [den, dan, ten, tan] allomorphs, which turn nouns into
adverbials, are not used with the linking verbs be; they are used together
with action verbs like go, come, wait, sleep, jump, etc.
When the subject complements above end with vowels, they are linked to
the personal subject allomorphs by the /y/ glides:
Postac kap-da. The postman is at the door. Onlar imdi uak-ta. They
are on the plane now. Ben kap-da-/y/m. I am at the door. Sen okul-dasn. You are at school. O mutfak-ta. She is in the kitchen. Biz hakl-/y/z.
We are right. iek-ler vazo-da. The flowers are in the vase.
The [E], [DE] and [DEN] morphemes are also used attached to n, arka,
yan, st, kar, sol, sa, alt, bitiik nouns, such as n-e, arka/y/a, yan-a, st-e, kar-/y/a, yukar-/y/a, n-de, arka-da, yan-da,
alt-ta, st-te, kar-da, sa-da, sol-da, bitiik-te, n-den, arkadan, yan-dan, st-ten, kar-dan, sa-dan, yakn-dan.
These words are all nouns when they are without suffixes; if they were not,
the [E], [DE] and [DEN] morphemes would not be attached to them. When
they are together with these suffixes, they function either as adverbials, or
when the [de, da, te, ta] allomorphs are used with the verbs be they are
used as subject complements in sentences.
Consequently, as these words are all nouns, they are also used in noun
compounds like the simple noun compounds, such as oda-/n/n kap-/s/;
perde-/n/in arka-/s/; ayna-/n/n n-; vazo-/n/un yan-; yatak-n alt-
(ya*ta*n / al*t); bakkal-n bitiik-i (bak*ka*ln / bi*ti*i*i); koltuk-un
sa- (kol*tu*un / sa*); bakkal-n kar-/s/; ev-in arka-/s/.
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When the [de, da] allomorphs are attached to the noun compounds above,
they take the /n/ glides attached to the noun compounds to maintain a
harmonious link between the noun compounds and the [de, da] allomorphs.
The noun compounds attached to the [de, da] allomorphs function as subject complements when be verbs are used. The brown underlined
parts are all subject complements whether they are adjectives, nouns
or prepositional phrases.
Kedi perde-/n/in arka-/s//n/-da.
subj
noun compound - /n/da

(subj complement) predicate
(ke*di / per*de*nin / ar*ka*sn*da)

The cat is behind the curtain. (Behind the curtain is subject complement.)
Gzlk-ler-im ayna-/n/n n-/n/-de. (ay*na*nn / *n)
(gz*lk*le*rim / ay*na*nn / *nn*de )
My glasses are in front of the mirror. (The im, m, m, um, em, am Turkish possessive subject allomorphs all mean ben-im: my.)
Terlikler-in karyola-/n/n alt-/n/-da.
(ter*lik*le*rin / kar*yo*la*nn / al*tn*da )
Your slippers are under the bed. (The in, n, n, un, en, an allomorphs
mean sen-in: your.)
Ben-im ev-im bakkal-n bitiik-i/n/-de.
(be*nim / e*vim / bak*ka*ln / bi*ti*i*in*de)
My house is next to the grocer.
Sen-in dkkn-n bakkal-n kar-/s//n/-da.
(se*nin / dk*k*nn / bak*ka*ln / kar**sn*da)
Your shop is opposite the grocer.
stasyon sol-da.
(is*tas*yon / sol*da )
The station is on the left.
stasyon bakkal-n sol-u/n/-da.
(is*tas*yon / bak*ka*ln / so*lun*da)
The station is on the left of the grocer.
Kar-m ev-de.
(ka*rm / ev*de)
My wife is at home.
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Postane-/n/in n-/n/-de-/y/im. (The im means ben: I.)
(ben / pos*ta:*ne*nin / *nn*de*yim)
I am in front of the post office.
In the sentences above, there are no time morphemes attached to the
words arka-/s//n/-da, n-/n/-de, kar-/s//n/-da, ev-de, etc. The
absence of these time morphemes in the sentences above the zero
morphemes imply that the time is present.
Present Negative:
To change the positive be linking verbs into negative forms, the negative
making adverb deil is used after a subject complement, such as:
Mutlu deil-im.
(mut*lu / de*i*lim)
I am not happy.
stekli deil-siniz. (is*tek*li / de*il*si*niz)
You are not willing. (The siniz, snz, snz, sunuz personal subject
allomorphs all mean siz: you.)
Yakkl deil-sin. (The sin, sn, sn, sun subject allomorphs all mean
singular sen: you)
(ya*k*k*l / de*il*sin)
You are not handsome.
Ev-de deil-ler. (The ler, lar subject allomorphs mean onlar: they.)
(ev*de / de*il*ler)
They are not at home.
Baba-am ev-de deil.
(ba*bam / ev*de / de*il)
My father is not at home.
Present Positive Question:

To turn the positive linking verbs into the positive question forms, the [mi, m]
interrogative allomorphs are attached to the personal subject allomorphs,
which are used followed by the subject complements:
Deli mi-/y/im?
(de*li / mi*yim)
Am I crazy?
85

Ev-de mi-sin?
(ev*de / mi*sin)
Are you at home?
Fatma-/n/n gz-ler-i mavi mi?
(fat*ma*nn / gz*le*ri / ma*vi / mi)
Are Fatmas eyes blue?
Dikkatsiz mi-/y/iz? (The iz, z, z, uz subject allomorphs mean biz: we.)
(dik*kat*siz / mi*yiz)
Are we careless?
Hazr m-snz?
(ha*zr / m*s*nz)
Are you ready?
yi-ler mi?
(i*yi*ler / mi)
Are they all right?
Present Negative Question:

To turn a positive linking verb form into a negative linking verb form, the
negative making adverb deil is used after the subject complement:
alkan deil mi-/y/im?
(a*l*kan / de*il / mi*yim)
Am I not hardworking?
Sorumlu deil mi-siniz?
(so*rum*lu / de*il / mi*si*niz)
Arent you responsible?
Anne-en ev-de deil mi?
(an*nen / ev*de / de*il / mi)
Isnt your mother at home?
steksiz degil-ler mi?
(is*tek*siz / de*il*ler / mi)
Arent they unwilling?
Hazr deil mi-/y/iz?
(ha*zr / de*il / mi*yiz)
Arent we ready?
86

Gzel deil mi-/y/im?
(g*zel / de*il / mi*yim)
Am I not beautiful?
The Question Words Used With the Linking Verbs
Nere-de-siniz? Ev-de-/y/im. (One word)
(ne*re*de*si*niz)
Where are you? I am at home.
Nasl-snz? yi-/y/im.
(na*sl*s*nz)
How are you? I am quite well.
Niin hazr deil-/s/in?
(ni*in / ha*zr / de*il*sin)
Why arent you ready?
Kim-sin? (Ben) Ahmet-im.
(kim*sin)
Who are you? I am Ahmet.
Nerede-/y/iz? stanbul-da-/y/z.
(ne*re*de*yiz)
Where are we? We are in stanbul.
English does not have enough suffxes or prefixes to turn all adjectives into
verbs. Therefore, this deficiency is fulfilled by some linking verbs such as
get, grow, look, turn, smell, sound, become, which are followed by nouns
or adjectives (subject complements). As some Turkish adjectives can be
turned into verbs by attaching some suffixes to adjectives, some English
linking verbs are not used in Turkish. Therefore, verbs are used instead. In
the following examples, you can see how Turkish adjectives or nouns turn
into verbs by attaching some suffixes to them:
Gzel gzel-le, yal ya-lan, soguk sou, uzun uza, ksa
ksal, yorgun yorul, hazr hazr-lan, sar sarar, sinirli sinir-len, scak sn, phe phe-len, sakin sakin-le, krmz
kzar, g g-le, koku kok, sar sarar.
Example sentences:
87

Herkes yalan-r. (Yalan is an intransitive verb which means grow old.)
(her*kes / ya*la*nr)
Everybody grows old. (Grow is a linking verb, old is an adjective.)
Hava sou-uyor. (Sou is an intransitive verb which means get cold)
(ha*va / so*u*yor)
It is getting colder. (Get is a linking verb, cold is an adjective.)
Yorgun grn-yor-sun. (Grn is a reflexive verb; yorgun is an adjective)
(yor*gun / g*r*n*yor*sun)
You look tired. (Look is a linking verb; tired is an adjective.)
Yaprak-lar sonbahar-da sarar-r. (Sarar is an action verb.)
(yap*rak*lar / son*ba*har*da / sa*ra*rr)

Leaves turn yellow in the autumn.
orba nefis kok-uyor. (Kok is an intransitive verb; nefis is an adverb.)
(o*ba / ne*fis / ko*ku*yor)
The soup smells delicious. (Smell is a linking verb; delicious is an adjective.)
renci-ler sessiz kal-d-lar. (Kal is an intransitive verb; sessiz is an adverb.)
(*ren*ci*ler / ses*siz / kal*d*lar)
The students remained silent. (Remain is a linking verb; silent is an adjective.)
Kendim-i iyi hisset-iyor-um. (Hisset is a transitive verb; iyi is an adverb.)
(ken*di*mi / i*yi / his*se*di*yo*rum)
I feel good. (Feel is a linking verb; good is an adjective.)
Aptallk et-iyor-sun. (Et is a transitive verb; aptallk is its indefinite object.)
(ap*tal*lk / e*di*yor*sun)
You are being foolish. (Are being is a linking verb; foolish is an adjective.)
-d/y/-se-en ceket-in-i giy. ( is an intransitive action verb.)
(**dy*sen / ce*ke*ti*ni / giy)
If you feel cold, put your coat on. (Feel is a linking verb; cold is an adj.)
Fatma gn-den gn-e gzel-le-iyor. (Gzelle is an action verb.)
(fat*ma / gn*den / g*ne / g*zel*le*i*yor)

Fatma is getting more beautiful day by day.
Bu yumurtalar pis kok-u.yor. (pis is an adverb because kok is an action verb.)
(bu / yu*mur*ta*lar / pis / ko*ku*yor)
These eggs smell nasty. (Smellis a linking verb, and nasty is subject complement.)
88

Proje-en ilgin grn-yor.
(pro*jen / il*gin / g*r*n*yor)
Your project seems (sounds) interesting.
Note: Nearly all adjectives in Turkish can be used as adverbs without
changing their forms. For instance:
O iyi bir kz-dr. (Adjective) She is a good girl. (Adjective)
O iyi yz-er. (Adverb) She swims well. (Adverb)
Bu yava bir araba-dr. (Adjective) This is a slow car. (Adjective)
Bu araba yava gider. (Adverb) This car goes slowly. (Adverb)
O gzel bir kz-dr. (Adjective) She is a beautiful girl. (Adjective)
O gzel ark syler. (Adverb) She sings beautifully. (Adverb)
LINKING VERBS
Simple Past
The simple past tense allomorphs of the verb be are [di, d, d, du, ti, t,
t, tu], which are attached to the personal subject allomorphs below:
(ben) [im, m, m, um], (sen) [in, n, n, un], (o) [], (biz) [ik, k, k, uk], (siz)
[iniz, nz, nz, unuz], (onlar) [ler, lar]
Positive:
Ev-de/y/-di-im. (One word)
(ev*dey*dim)
I was at home. (Four words)
Hazr-d-nz. (One word)
(ha*zr*d*nz)
You were ready. (Three words)
.
Mutlu/y/-du-uk.
(mut*luy*duk)
We were happy.
Sarho-tu-lar.
(sar*ho*tu*lar)
They were drunk.
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renci-ler neeli/y/-di.
(*ren*ci*ler / ne*e*liy*di)
The students were cheerful.
Araba-am kap-/n/n n-/n/-de/y/-di.
(a*ra*bam / ka*p*nn / *nn*dey*di)
My car was in front of the door.
Negative:
To turn a positive linking verb into a negative statement, the negative
making adverb deil is used after the subject complement, which is
attached to past time and personal subject allomorphs:
Yorgun deil-di-im.
(yor*gun / de*il*dim)
I was not tired. (I wasnt tired.)
Sorumlu deil-di-iniz.
(so*rum*lu / de*il*di*niz)
You were not responsible. (You werent responsible.)
Ev-de deil-ler-di.
(ev*de / de*il*ler*di)
They were not at home. (They werent at home.)
Megul deil-di-ik.
(me*gul / de*il*dik)
We were not busy. (We werent busy.)
Positive question:
To turn a positive linking verb into a positive question form, one of the [mi,
m, m, mu] question allomorphs is attached to time and personal allomorphs separately:
Dn okul-da m/y/-d-n?
(dn / o*kul*da / my*dn)
Were you at school yesterday?
Miting kalabalk m/y/-d?
(mi*ting / ka*la*ba*lk / my*d)
Was the meeting crowded?
90

Yorgun mu/y/-du-unuz?
(yor*gun / muy*du*nuz)
Were you tired?
Sorular zor mu/y/-du?
(so*ru*lar / zor / muy*du)
Were the questions difficult?
Negative question:
In negative question forms, the negative making adverb deil follows the
subject complement as they are in the following examples:
Dn okul-da deil mi/y/-di-in?
(dn / o*kul*da / de*il / miy*din)
Were you not at school yesterday? (Werent you at school?)
Masal ilgin deil mi/y/-di?
(ma*sal / il*gin / de*il / miy*di)
Wasnt the story interesting?
renci-ler ren-mek iin istekli deil mi/y/-di-ler?
(*ren*ci*ler / *ren*mek / i*in / is*tek*li / de*il / miy*di*ler)
Werent the students eager to learn?
Hazr deil mi/y/-di-iniz?
(ha*zr / de*il / miy*di*niz)
Weret you ready?
Have been, has been, had been, will be
Kz karde-im on yl-dr retmen.
(kz / kar*de*im / on / yl*dr / *ret*men)
My sister has been a teacher for ten years.
Hava gn-dr ok souk.
(ha*va / / gn*dr / ok / so*uk)
It has been very cold for three days.
Oul-um yaknda doctor ol-acak.
(o*lum / ya*kn*da / dok*tor / o*la*cak)
My son will be a doctor soon.
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Modal Verbs with Liking Verbs
Modal verbs can be used both with action verbs and liking verbs in English
and Turkish. We will show only the modal verbs that are used with linking
verbs in the following example sentences.
Present Modals
Positive:
ol-[abil-ir]-[personal subject allomorph] = can be or may be
Turkish modal verbs are used followed by subject complements attached
by one of the personal subject allomorphs: (ben) [im], (sen) [sin], (o) [],
(biz) [iz], (siz) [siniz], [onlar) [ler]:
Yorgun ol-abil-ir-im. (Possibility)
(yor*gun / o*la*bi*li*rim)
I may be tired.
Sorumlu ol-abil-ir-sin.
(so*rum*lu / o*la*bi*lir*sin)
You may be responsible.
Jack bahe-de ol-abil-ir.
(jack / bah*e*de / o*la*bi*lir)
Jack may be in the garden.
Megul ol-abil-ir-iz.
(me*gul / o*la*bi*li*riz)
We may be busy.
steksiz ol-abil-ir-siniz.
(is*tek*siz / o*la*bi*lir*si*niz)
You may be unwilling.
Turist ol-abil-ir-ler.
(tu*rist / o*la*bi*lir*ler)
They may be tourists.
Negative:
ol-ma-/y/abil-ir-[personal subject allomorph] = may not be
92

Ev-de ol-ma-/y/abil-ir-im.
(ev*de / ol*ma*ya*bi*li*rim)
I may not be at home.
Mutlu ol-ma-/y/abil-ir-sin.
(mut*lu / ol*ma*ya*bi*lir*sin)
You may not be happy.
Ankara-da hava gneli ol-ma-/y/abil-ir.
(an*ka*ra*da / ha*va / g*ne*li / ol*ma*ya*bi*lir)
The weather may not be sunny in Ankara.
Okul-un n-/n/-de ol-ma-/y/abil-ir-iz.
(o*ku*lun / *nn*de / ol*ma*ya*bi*li*riz)
We may not be in front of the school.
Hakl ol-ma-/y/abil-ir-siniz.
(hak*l / ol*ma*ya*bi*lir*si*niz)
You may not be right.
Holan-m ol-ma-/y/abil-ir-ler.
(ho*lan*m / ol*ma*ya*bi*lir*ler)
They may not be pleased.
Positive question:
Can is used in question forms in English In place of may:
Baarl ol-abil-ir mi-/y/im?
(ba*a*r*l / o*la*bi*lir / mi*yim)
Can I be successful?
Yarn bro-um-da ol-abil-ir mi-sin?
(ya*rn / b*rom*da / o*la*bi*lir / mi*sin)
Can you be in my office tomorrow?
Anne-en fkeli ol-abil-ir mi?
(an*nen / f*ke*li / o*la*bi*lir / mi)
Can your mother be angry?
Saat be-te hazr ol-abil-ir mi-/y/iz?
(sa*at / be*te / ha*zr / o*la*bi*lir / mi*yiz)
Can we be ready at five?
93

Dikkatli ol-abil-ir mi-siniz?
(dik*kat*li / o*la*bi*lir / mi*si*niz)
Can you be careful?
Birazdan hazr ol-abil-ir-ler mi?
(bi*raz*dan / ha*zr / o*la*bi*lir*ler / mi)
Can they be ready soon?
Negative question:
To turn the ol-abil-r modal form into negative, ol-amaz modal form is
used:
Hakl ol-amaz m-/y/m?
(hak*l / o*la*maz / m*ym)
Cant I be right?
Drst ol-amaz m-sn?
(d*rust / o*la*maz / m*sn)
Cant you be honest?
Jack futbol oynuyor ol-amaz m?
(jack / fut*bol / oy*nu*yor / o*la*maz / m)
Cant Jack be playing football?
Susuz ol-amaz m-/y/z?
(su*suz / o*la*maz / m*yz)
Cant we be innocent?
Dikkatli ol-amaz m-snz?
(dik*kat*li / o*la*maz / m*s*nz)
Cant you be careful?
Sabrl ol-amaz-lar m?
(sa*br*l / o*la*maz*lar / m)
Cant they be patient?
Ol-mal = must be
Positive:
To arrange a must be model form in Turkish, a subject complement +
ol-mal-[subject allomorph] verb phrase should be used, which expresses
either certainty or necessity or both. Here are some example sentences:
94

Hazr ol-mal-sn. (Certainty or necessity)
(ha*zr / ol*ma*l*sn)
You must be ready. (Certainty or necessity)
The Turkish and English sentences above are ambiguous because they may
both mean I am certain that you are ready or It is necessary for you to be
ready.
O-/n/a inan-dk-m iin aptal ol-mal-/y/m. (Certainty)
(o*na / i*nan*d*m / i*in / ap*tal / ol*ma*l*ym)
I must be stupid to believe him. (I am sure that I am stupid.)
Sinirli ol-mal-sn. (Certainty)
(si*nir*li / ol*ma*l*sn)
You must be nervous. (I am sure that you are nervous.)
Baba-an dahi ol-mal. (Certainty)
(ba*ban / da*hi / ol*ma*l)
Your father must be genius. (I am sure your father is genius.)
Dikkatli ol-mal-/y/z. (Necessity)
(dik*kat*li / ol*ma*l*yz)
We must be careful. (It is necessary for us to be careful.)
Cesur ol-mal-snz.
(ce*sur / ol*ma*l*s*nz)
You must be brave. (I am sure you are brave, or I want you to be brave.)
Sabrsz ol-mal-lar. (Certainty)
(sa*br*sz / ol*ma*l*lar)
They must be impatient. (I am sure that they are impatient.)
Negative:
In the negative form, the negative making allomorph [ma] attaches to the
verb ol:
Sabrsz ol-ma-mal-/y/m. (Necessity)
(sa*br*sz / ol*ma*ma*l*ym)
I mustnt be impatient.
zl-me-meli-sin. (I dont want you to be sorry.) (Action verb) (Necessity)
(*zl*me*me*li*sin)
You mustnt be sorry.
95

zl-me-meli-sin. (I advise you not to be sorry.) (Action verb) (Necessity)
(*zl*me*me*li*sin)
You mustnt feel sad.
Tertipsiz ol-ma-mal. (Necessity)
(ter*tip*siz / ol*ma*ma*l)
He mustnt be untidy.
Dikkatsiz ol-ma-mal-/y/z. (Necessity)
(dik*kat*siz / ol*ma*ma*l*yz)
We mustnt be careless.
Kaytsz ol-ma-mal-snz. (Necessity)
(ka*yt*sz / ol*ma*ma*l*s*nz)
You mustnt be indifferent.
Ge kal-ma-mal-lar. (Action verb) (Necessity)
(ge / kal*ma*ma*l*lar)
They mustnt be late.
Positive question:
In question forms, the [m] interrogative allomorph attaches to the subject
allomorphs, and they follow the [ol-mal] verb together as a separate word:
Hazr ol-mal m-/y/m? (Is it necessary?)
(ha*zr / ol*ma*l / m*ym)
Must I be ready?
Sabah-leyin okul-da ol-mal m-sn? (Is it necessary?)
(sa*bah*le*yin / o*kul*da / ol*ma*l / m*sn)
Must you be at school in the morning?
Balklar kzar-m m ol-mal? (Is it necessary?)
(ba*lk*lar / k*zar*m / m / ol*ma*l)
Must the fish be fried?
Sabrl m ol-mal-/y/z? (Is it necessary?)
(sa*br*l / m / ol*ma*l*yz)
Must we be patient?
Kukulu ol-mal m-snz? (Is it necessary?)
(ku*ku*lu / ol*ma*l / m*s*nz)
Must you be doubtful?
96

Uak-ta ol-mal-lar m? (Is it necessary?)
(u*ak*ta / ol*ma*l*lar / m)
Must they be on the plane?
Interrogative Words Used with Linking Verbs:

Question words can be put in the beginning of all interrogative sentences
using linking verbs in Turkish and English. Additionally, the modal verbs
change their places and they are put before the subjects in English. In
Turkish, the rest of the sentences are either in positive or negative form as
they are in the example sentences below:
Ne zaman hazr ol-mal-/y/z?
(ne / za*man / ha*zr / ol*ma*l*yz)
When must we be ready?
Nere-de ol-mal-lar?
(ne*re*de / ol*ma*l*lar)
Where must they be?
ol-ama(z) = cant be (Impossibility)

When the subject allomorphs attach to the ol-ama(z) modal verbs, they
change as follows:
(ben) ol-ama-am (o*la*mam), (sen) ol-amaz-sn (o*la*maz*sn), (o) olamaz (o*la*maz), (biz) ol-ama-/y/z (o*la*ma*yz), (siz) ol-amaz-snz
(o*la*maz*s*nz), (onlar) ol-amaz-lar (o*la*maz*lar).
Sen-siz ol-ama-am.
(sen*siz / o*la*mam)
I cant be without you.
Ciddi ol-amaz-sn; aka yap-iyor ol-mal-sn.
(cid*di / o*la*maz*sn / a*ka / ya*p*yor / ol*ma*l*sn)
You cant be serious; you must be joking.
Jack ders al-yor ol-amaz; futbol oyna-u.yor ol-ma.l.
(jack / ders / a*li*i*yor / o*la*maz / fut*bol / oy*nu*yor / ol*ma*l)
Jack cant be studying; he must be playing football.
Hatal ol-ama-/y/z.
(ha*ta*l / o*la*ma*yz)
We cant be wrong.
97

Sabrl ol-amaz-snz.
(sa*br*l / o*la*maz*s*nz)
You cant be patient.
steksiz ol-amaz-lar.
(is*tek*siz / o*la*maz*lar)
They cant be unwilling.
Question:
yi bir yzc ol-amaz m-/y/m?
(i*yi / bir / y*z*c / o*la*maz / m*ym)
Cant I be a good swimmer?
Yardmc ol-amaz m-snz?
(yar*dm*c / o*la*maz / m*s*nz)
Cant you be helpful?
Syle-dik-i doru ol-amaz m?
(sy*le*di*i / do*ru / o*la*maz / m)
Cant what he said be true?
Baarl ol-amaz m-/y/z?
(ba*a*r*l / o*la*maz / m*yz)
Cant we be successful?
Bro-da ol-amaz m-siniz?
(b*ro* da / o*la*maz / m*s*nz)
Cant you be in the office?
Sorumsuz ol-amaz-lar m?
(so*rum*lu / o*la*maz*lar / m)
Cant they be irresponsible?
Perfect Modals
should have been
Although past modals are used with action verbs, they are not much used
with linking verbs. However, perfect modals may be used with linking verbs
as follows.
98

Positive:
(Sen) daha dikkatli ol-mal/y/-d-n.
subj subj complement
verb
(da*ha / dik*kat*li / ol*ma*ly*dn)

You should have been more careful.
Saat sekiz-de okul-da ol-mal/y/-d-n.
(sa*at / se*kiz*de / o*kul*da / ol*ma*ly*dn)
You should have been at scool at eight.
Ge kal-abil-ir-di-in. (Action verb)
(ge / ka*la*bi*lir*din)
You might have been late.
Some sensory verbs are used in English as linking verbs:

Jack is looking tired.
Jack yorgun grn-yor. (Reflexive verb)
In the Turkish sentence above, the verb gr (see) is used in place of the
verb look (bak), and the verb gr has turned into grn verb, which is
a reflexive verb in Turkish.
This cake smells delicious.
Bu kek lezzetli kokuyor. (Action verb)
The verb smell is both a linking and an action verb in English. For instance, in the sentence Jack is smelling the cake, the verb smell is an
action verb. However, in the sentence The cake smells delicious, the
verb smell is a linking verb.
Although the verb smell is both an action verb and a linking verb in English, there is a verb that is only used as a liking verb kok smell in Turkish,
and there is another action verb kokla (smell) in Turkish, too.
Jack is smelling the cake.
Jack pastay kokla-uyor. (kok*lu*yor)
This cake smells delicious. (Delicious is an adjective.)
Bu pasta lezzetli kok-uyor. (Lezzetli is an adverb.)
As a general rule in Turkish, when a verb ends with a vowel, this last vowel
drops, and the consonant preceding the vowel detaches from its syllable,
and attaches to the following vowel. In the verb kokla-u.yor, the last vowel
of the verb root is a, which is double underlined, drops and the single un-
99

derlined l detaches from its syllable and attaches to the vowel u to form
an oral sequence. In short, kokla-u.yor becomes (kok*lu*yor) in speech.
Additionally, if a word ends with a consonant, this last consonant also detaches from its syllable and attaches to the first vowel of the following word
or allomorph. Therefore, in kok-u.yor, the single underlined consonant k
detaches from its syllable and attaches to the following vowel u when the
Turkish sound system produce an oral sequence. In short, kok-u.yor
becomes (ko*ku*yor) in speech.
Although there are a limited number of adjectives that can turn into verbs by
attaching suffixes in English, most of the Turkish adjectives can be turned
into verbs by attaching several allomorphs to these adjectives. These verbs
are used in place of the linking verbs of the English language.
There are some linking verbs that are used both as linking verbs and action
verbs in English. These linking and action verbs and their Turkish equivalents are as follows:
Grow:
My uncle grows vegetables. (Action verb)
Amca-am sebze yetitir-iyor. (Action verb)
Everything is growing difficult. (Linking verb)
Herey gle-iyor. (Action verb)
Look:
Jack is looking at Mary. (Action verb)
Jack Mary-/y/e bak-yor. (Action verb)
Mary always looks beautiful. (Linking verb)
Mary hep gzel grn-r. (Linking verb is a reflexive verb in Turkish.)
Turn:
The engine turns the wheels. (Action verb)
Motor tekerler-i dndr-r. (Action verb)
Leaves turn yellow in october. (Linking verb)
Yaprak-lar sonbahar-da sarar-r. (Action verb)
In place of the linking verb + adjective formation of the English language,
the verb forms of the adjectives are used in Turkish instead.
Most English linking verbs help to produce action concepts when they are
used together with adjectives. You can see a list of common Turkish linking
verbs and their English equivalents in the following pages:
100

adjective
verb
adjective
ack
hungry get (feel) hungry
Aptal
aptalla
foolish become confused
Bulutlu
bulutlan
cloudy cloud, get cloudy
irkin
irkinle ugly
get ugly
Deli
delir
go crazy
crazy
verb + adjective
Deerli
deerlen precious increase in value
Derin
derinle deep
get deep, deepen
Dikkatli
dikkat et careful
be careful
Dzgn
dzelt
straight correct, fix
Eri
eril
bent
bend
Eki
eki
sour
turn sour
Fakir
fakirle
poor
become (get) poor
Gen
genle young
get younger
gerekle true
come true
Gerek
G
gle
difficult grow difficult
Gl
glen
strong
Gzel
gzelle
beautiful become beautiful
Hazr
hazrlan
ready
Islak
slan
wet
yi
iyile
good, well get better
Kaba
kabala
impolite become impolite
grow stronger, strengthen
get ready
get wet
Kalabalk kalabalkla crowdedget crowded

Karanlk karar
dark
get dark
101

adjective
verb
adjective
verb + adjective
Kaygl
kayglan worried
worry, feel anxious
Kirli
kirlen
become (get) dirty
dirty
Krmz krmzla, kzar red redden, blush

Ksa
ksal
short
get shorter, shorten
Kskan kskan
envious
envy
Kzgn
kz
angry
be angry
Kolay
kolayla easy
get easy
Kt
ktle
bad
grow worse
Kuru
kuru
dry
dry
Kk
kl
small
decrease, become smaller
Mor
morar
purple
become purple
Neeli
neelen
cheerful
cheer up
Olgun
olgunla
ripe
Pahal
pahalan
expensive become more expensive
Parlak
parla
shiny
Rahat
rahatla
comfortable relax
Renkli
renklen
colorful
become colorful
Sakin
sakinle
calm
calm down
Serin
serinle
cool
become cooler
Sert
sertle
solid, hard become hard, harden
Sinirli
sinirlen
nervous, angry get angry
ripen
shine
Sklm skl
bored
be bored
Souk
cold
become (get) cold
sou
102

adjective
Tembel
verb
tembelle
adjective
verb + adjective
lazy
grow lazier
Umutlu umutlan
hopeful
become hopeful
Uslu
uslan
well-behaved become well-behaved
Uzun
uza
long
get (grow) longer, lengthen
zgn
zl
sorry
be (feel) sorry
Yanl
yanl
wrong
be mistaken
Yaramaz yaramazla naughty get naughtier

Yal
yalan
old
grow older
Yeil
yeillen
green
turn green
Yoksul
yoksulla
poor
get poor
Zayf
zayfla
weak
lose weight
Zengin
zenginle
rich
get rich
Zor
zorla
difficult get difficult
Note: The adjectives, nouns and prepositional phrases that are used
following the linking verbs are all subject complements.
103

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Turkish Tenses, Modals, Linking Verbs and Their English Equivalents Yüksel Göknel

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TURKISH TENSES,

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

Note: The aim of this colored revised version of this

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

(k*zm / sa*at / do*kuz*da / o*ku*la / gi*der ).

(ben / ge*nel*lik*le / ye*di*de / kal*ka*rm )

definite object transitive verb

(kar*de*im / her / sa*bah / o*da*s*n / ter*tip*ler )

(Ben) kitap oku-ur-um.

verb indef obj

As it is noticed, in the Turkish sentences above, the words elma and

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

VERBS ENDING WITH VOWELS OR CONSONANTS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

ET, YAP, OL, LE, KAYDET, SALA

indef obj trans verb subj def obj

subj def obj indef obj verb

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

ol: This transitive verb generally takes indefinite objects:

ile, kaydet, sala, gir, kazan:

NEGATIVE FORM OF THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

(gel*mem) I do not come. (The em and am mean I.)

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

(tar*t*mam) I dont discuss.

(a*l*maz) He does not work.

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

(gel*mez*ler) They do not come.

SIMPLE PRESENT POSITIVE QUESTION

: mi-/y/im?, m-/y/m?, m-/y/m?, mu-/y/um?

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

(ge*lir / mi) Does he come?

SIMPLE PRESENT NEGATIVE QUESTION

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

QUESTION WORDS USED IN THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

THE VERBS THAT ARE NOT USED IN SIMPLE TENSES

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

Ben-i hatrla-yor mu-sunuz?

Bana gven-me-iyor mu-sun?

Ben-i anla-yor mu-sunuz?

Ben-i anla-ma-yor mu-sunuz?

Bir fincan kahve iste-iyor-um.

TURKISH TENSES, MODALS AND LINKING VERBS

TURKISH VERB FRAMES

TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE VERB FRAMES

def obj tran verb

subject tran verb definite obj

Ahmet bir hikye kitab- okuyor Ahmet is reading a story book.

(Ben) her sabah odam- tertipler-im. I

tidy my room every morning.

subj tran verb

Intransitive verb frames do not take objects:

bazen nehir-de yz-er-im. I sometimes

(kzm / saat / dokuzda / okula / gi*der ).

(ben / genellikle / yedide / kalka*rm )

(kardeim / her / sabah / odasn / tertipler )

(tartmam) I dont discuss.

(almaz) He does not work.

(gelmezler) They do not come.

(annenle / baban / ne / sklkta / ziya:ret / et*tin)

(ahmet / geldiinde~/ ben / onu / iki / saattir / otobs / duranda /bekliyordum)