Both -(y)ArAk and -(y)Ip attach to a verb stem, both require the same subject, and both leave tense and person to the final verb. Yet they say very different things. -(y)ArAk describes the manner or means of the main action — "by doing", "while doing". -(y)Ip describes sequence — "and then". The remarkable thing is that the same pair of verbs flips meaning depending on which converb you pick. This page makes that contrast sharp. For each form in full, see the -(y)ArAk converb and the -(y)Ip converb.
The core distinction
- -(y)ArAk answers "how?" — it turns the first verb into the manner, method, or accompanying circumstance of the main verb. The two actions are simultaneous and fused: one is the way the other happens.
- -(y)Ip answers "and then what?" — it lists actions in order. The first finishes (or at least is a separate step) and the second follows.
Koşarak geldi.
He came running. (running = how he came)
Koşup geldi.
He ran and (then) came.
In koşarak geldi, there is one arrival, and running is its manner — he arrived in a running fashion. In koşup geldi, there are two steps: he ran, and then he came. English even forces a different translation: "came running" vs "ran and came".
The minimal pair: gülerek vs gülüp
This is the cleanest illustration in the whole language. Take gülmek ("to laugh") and konuşmak ("to speak") and watch the meaning swing on the converb alone.
Gülerek konuştu.
She spoke while laughing / with a laugh. (laughing = how she spoke)
Gülüp konuştu.
She laughed and then spoke. (two separate actions, in order)
Gülerek konuştu paints one act of speaking, coloured by laughter throughout — manner. Gülüp konuştu gives two actions in sequence — first the laugh, then the speech. Nothing else in the sentence changes. This is -(y)ArAk vs -(y)Ip in its purest form, and internalizing it is what B2 control of converbs feels like. Because -(y)ArAk produces a manner expression, it belongs to the same family as ordinary manner adverbs.
A second minimal pair
To prove the pattern generalizes, here is another verb pair, bakmak ("to look") and cevap vermek ("to answer").
Gözlerime bakarak cevap verdi.
She answered looking into my eyes. (looking = how she answered)
Saatine bakıp cevap verdi.
She glanced at her watch and then answered. (two steps)
In bakarak cevap verdi, the looking is simultaneous with and characterizes the answering — manner. In bakıp cevap verdi, the glance is a discrete prior step — sequence. The same logic, the same swing.
-(y)ArAk as "means / by doing"
Beyond pure manner, -(y)ArAk very often expresses the means by which a result is achieved — English "by doing X".
Çok çalışarak sınavı kazandı.
By working hard, he passed the exam.
Otobüse binerek şehir merkezine gidebilirsin.
You can get to the city centre by taking the bus.
You could not swap in -(y)Ip here without changing the meaning: çok çalışıp sınavı kazandı would read "he worked hard and then passed the exam" — two events — rather than "passing was achieved by working hard". When the first verb is the method, it must be -(y)ArAk.
Where they overlap — and where they don't
Both converbs share a subject and both leave the grammar to the final verb, so beginners sometimes treat them as interchangeable. They are not. The overlap is only superficial: when two actions happen close together, either converb might appear, but they frame the relationship differently. -(y)ArAk says the actions are one event seen two ways; -(y)Ip says they are two events in order. When you genuinely just want to list steps ("got up and left", "showered and ate"), -(y)Ip is the plain default — see -(y)Ip vs ve for why that beats ve. When you want to colour how an action was performed, only -(y)ArAk will do.
Şarkı söyleyerek yürüdük.
We walked along singing. (singing = how we walked)
Markete gidip biraz süt aldık.
We went to the market and bought some milk. (two steps)
Form notes: -(y)ArAk vs -(y)Ip harmony
The two converbs harmonize differently, which is a useful spelling tell.
-(y)ArAk is two-way (low vowels a / e), with a buffer -y- after a vowel:
| Last stem vowel | Suffix | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a, ı, o, u | -arak | koş-arak (running), bak-arak (looking) |
| e, i, ö, ü | -erek | gül-erek (laughing), gör-erek (seeing) |
| vowel-final | -yarak / -yerek | bekle-yerek, oku-yarak |
-(y)Ip is four-way (high vowels ı / i / u / ü), also with a buffer -y- after a vowel: koş-up, gül-üp, bak-ıp, gel-ip, oku-yup.
Düşünerek karar verdim.
I decided after thinking it over / by thinking it through.
So gülerek (e/i set, two-way) and gülüp (high vowel, four-way) differ in both vowel and length — a reliable way to spot which converb you are using.
Common mistakes
The central error is swapping manner and sequence — using -(y)Ip when you mean "how", or -(y)ArAk when you mean "and then".
❌ Koşup geldi
Wrong if you mean 'came running' (manner): koşup geldi reads 'ran and then came' — two steps. For the manner reading use koşarak geldi.
✅ Koşarak geldi
He came running.
The reverse mistake — manner converb where you mean a sequence of steps:
❌ Markete giderek süt aldım
Wrong if you mean two steps: this reads 'I bought milk by going to the market'. For the sequence use gidip → markete gidip süt aldım.
✅ Markete gidip süt aldım
I went to the market and bought milk.
Using -(y)Ip for a clear means/method ("by doing"):
❌ Çok çalışıp sınavı kazandı
Wrong if you mean 'by working hard' (means): this reads 'worked hard and then passed' — two events. For the means reading use çok çalışarak sınavı kazandı.
✅ Çok çalışarak sınavı kazandı
He passed the exam by working hard.
Wrong vowel harmony — applying four-way -(y)Ip vowels to two-way -(y)ArAk:
❌ Gülürek konuştu
Wrong: -(y)ArAk is two-way; after the e/ü class it's -erek → gülerek.
✅ Gülerek konuştu
She spoke while laughing.
Dropping the buffer -y- on a vowel-final stem:
❌ Bekleerek söyledi
Wrong: a buffer -y- is needed after the vowel → bekleyerek.
✅ Bekleyerek söyledi
He said it while waiting.
Key takeaways
- -(y)ArAk = manner / means ("by/while doing"): koşarak geldi (came running), çalışarak kazandı (passed by working).
- -(y)Ip = sequence ("and then"): koşup geldi (ran and came), gidip aldı (went and bought).
- The same verbs swing on the converb: gülerek konuştu (spoke laughing) vs gülüp konuştu (laughed and then spoke).
- English test: "by doing" → -(y)ArAk; "and then" → -(y)Ip.
- Form tell: -(y)ArAk is two-way (-arak / -erek); -(y)Ip is four-way (-ıp / -ip / -up / -üp). Both take a buffer -y- after a vowel.
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Start learning Turkish→Related Topics
- The Converb -(y)ArAk ('by / while doing')B1 — How -(y)ArAk marks the manner or means of a same-subject action — answering 'how?' rather than sequencing events like -(y)Ip.
- The Converb -(y)Ip ('and then / -ing')B1 — How -(y)Ip joins same-subject actions into one chain, dropping tense and person from every verb but the last.
- -(y)Ip vs ve: Linking VerbsB1 — To chain two same-subject actions, native Turkish uses the converb -(y)Ip — not ve, which belongs to nouns and full clauses.
- Manner AdverbsA2 — How Turkish expresses 'how' an action is done — bare adjectives, reduplicated pairs like yavaş yavaş, and -(y)ArAk converbs.