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Questions & Answers about Bu terim önemli.
What does bu mean in this sentence?
Bu is a demonstrative adjective (or pronoun when used alone) meaning this. Here it directly modifies terim to specify this term.
Why is there no separate word for “is”?
In Turkish, the present‐tense copula “is” is usually omitted. Sentences like Bu terim önemli are called nominal sentences: the verb “to be” is implied. In more formal or written Turkish you can add the suffix -dir (Bu terim önemlidir) but it is often dropped in everyday speech.
What case is terim in?
Terim is in the nominative case (the base form), because it acts as the subject/predicate noun in this nominal sentence. No additional suffix is needed for singular, unmarked usage.
What part of speech is önemli, and what does it mean?
Önemli is an adjective meaning important. In this sentence it describes the state of the noun terim.
Why does the adjective önemli come after terim, when in English we say “important term”?
Here önemli is used predicatively (with an implied “is”), so the structure is Noun + (implied copula) + Adjective. If you wanted to use önemli attributively (directly describing a noun), you would say önemli terim for “important term.”
How would you pluralize this sentence to say “These terms are important”?
You have two main options:
- Bu terimler önemli.
(Add the plural suffix -ler to terim; bu remains the same.) - Bunlar önemli terimler.
(Use the plural demonstrative bunlar for “these,” then the phrase önemli terimler.)
Why is there no article “a” or “the” in Bu terim önemli?
Turkish does not use indefinite or definite articles like a, an, or the. Definiteness or indefiniteness is understood from context, word order, and other particles rather than separate words.