Okul müdürü, yeni kuralları resmen duyurdu.

The school principal officially announced the new rules.

Breakdown of Okul müdürü, yeni kuralları resmen duyurdu.

• okul: the school
• yeni: new
• kural: the rule
• resmen: officially
• müdür: the principal
• duyurmak: to announce

Questions & Answers about Okul müdürü, yeni kuralları resmen duyurdu.

What does “Okul müdürü” literally mean, and why does “müdürü” have a suffix attached?

“Okul müdürü” translates to “the school principal.” In Turkish, the noun “müdür” (meaning principal or director) takes a third-person possessive suffix (‑ü) to indicate that this principal is specifically associated with the school. The possessor (“okul”) precedes the main noun without any additional marker—a common feature of the Turkish construct state.

Why is “kuralları” written with an accusative ending, and what does that indicate?

In Turkish, when a direct object is definite or specific, it takes the accusative case. “Kuralları” comes from “kurallar” (rules) with the accusative suffix attached (‑ı/‑ü according to vowel harmony). This marking tells us that the speaker is referring to a particular set of new rules known in the context.

How is the adverb “resmen” formed and what is its function in the sentence?

The word “resmen” means “officially.” It is derived from the adjective “resmi” (official) and is used adverbially to modify the verb “duyurdu” (announced). In Turkish, many adverbs are formed from adjectives—often with little or no change to their form—which is why “resmen” clearly conveys the manner in which the announcement was made.

How does the word order in this sentence differ from typical English sentence structure?

Turkish commonly uses a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) order. In this sentence, “Okul müdürü” is the subject, “yeni kuralları” is the object, and “duyurdu” is the verb. In contrast, English normally follows a Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) order (as in “The school principal officially announced the new rules”). Notice how the adverb “resmen” can be flexibly positioned in Turkish but the verb always comes at the end.

What is the purpose of the comma after “Okul müdürü” in this sentence?

The comma after “Okul müdürü” is used to create a slight pause, drawing attention to the subject before presenting the rest of the information. While not always grammatically necessary, such punctuation in Turkish can help with clarity and emphasize the subject, enhancing the natural rhythm of the sentence.