……
Questions & Answers about Tavuk bahçede geziyor.
What does the suffix -de in bahçede indicate?
The -de here is the locative case ending. It turns bahçe (garden) into bahçede, meaning “in/at the garden.”
Why is it -de and not -da, -te, or -ta?
Turkish uses vowel harmony and consonant assimilation for locative endings:
- Vowel harmony: bahçe has a front vowel e, so we choose -de rather than -da.
- Consonant assimilation: because bahçe ends in a vowel, there’s no devoicing, so it stays d (not t).
What tense/aspect does geziyor express?
geziyor is the present continuous (progressive) form of gezmek (to wander/stroll). It literally means “is wandering/roaming.”
Why doesn’t geziyor have a personal ending like -um or -sun?
In Turkish the third-person singular present-progressive form drops any extra suffix—stem + -iyor by itself implies “he/she/it is ….” So geziyor already means “he/she/it is wandering.”
Why is the verb at the end of the sentence?
Turkish is a head-final (SOV) language: modifiers and objects come before the verb, and the verb ends the clause. Here we have Subject (Tavuk) – Adverbial (bahçede) – Verb (geziyor).
How would you turn this into a yes/no question?
Add the question particle mi after the element you’re questioning (here bahçede). You get:
Tavuk bahçede mi geziyor?
Literally: “Chicken in‐there question-particle is wandering?” = “Is the chicken wandering in the garden?”
Why isn’t there an article (“a” or “the”) before tavuk?
Turkish has no separate indefinite or definite articles. A bare noun like tavuk can mean “a chicken” or “the chicken” depending on context.
Can you omit tavuk if it’s clear from context?
Yes. Turkish often drops third-person subjects. In a conversation about a chicken, you could just say Bahçede geziyor, and it would mean “(It) is wandering in the garden.”
How would you say “The chickens are wandering in the garden”?
You pluralize both subject and (optionally) verb:
Tavuklar bahçede geziyorlar.
or more colloquially drop the verb plural:
Tavuklar bahçede geziyor.
How do you express past continuous (“was wandering”)?
Use the past-progressive ending -iyordu:
Tavuk bahçede geziyordu.
= “The chicken was wandering in the garden.”
More from this lesson
AI Language TutorTry it ↗
“What's the best way to learn Turkish grammar?”
Turkish grammar becomes intuitive with practice. Focus on understanding the core patterns first — how sentences are structured, how verbs change form, and how words relate to each other. Our course breaks these concepts into small lessons so you can build understanding step by step.
Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor
Start learning TurkishMaster Turkish — from Tavuk bahçede geziyor to fluency
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods.
- ✓ Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
- ✓ Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
- ✓ Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
- ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions