Learn Hardcore Turkish: Yelkenli tekneyle gölün ortasına açıldıkça su sesi ve rüzgar huzur veriyor. - As we sailed into the middle of the lake with a sailboat, the sound of water and the wind was soothing.

yelkenli tekne literally means sail-boat. The suffix -yle (which appears as -yle after a vowel, -le after a consonant) is the instrumental case marker meaning “with” or “by”. So yelkenli tekneyle = “with a sailboat” or “by sailboat.”

What does açıldıkça mean and how does the suffix -dıkça work?

The verb açılmak (from açmak, “to open”) is used idiomatically here as “to set sail” or “to move out.” The suffix -dıkça attaches to a verb stem to create an adverbial clause meaning “as [we] …, the more [we] …” or simply “as ….”

açıl- = verb stem
-dıkça = “as [we] open/sail out”
So açıldıkça = “as we sail out.”

Why does the sentence use gölün ortasına and what do the suffixes -ün and -a do?

göl = “lake”
-ün = genitive suffix (“of the lake”)
orta = “middle”
-sı = 3rd-person possessive (“its middle”)
-na (written -na/-ne with vowel harmony) = dative case (“to”)
Putting it together:
gölün = “of the lake,”
ortasına = “to its middle,”
so gölün ortasına = “to the middle of the lake.”

Why is it su sesi instead of suyun sesi for “sound of the water”?

Turkish often forms compound nouns by directly juxtaposing two nouns, dropping the explicit genitive. So su sesi is a standard compound meaning “water sound.” You could say suyun sesi (“the sound of the water”) for extra clarity, but native speakers commonly use the shorter su sesi.

What does huzur veriyor mean and why is vermek used here?

huzur = “peace,” “tranquility”
vermek = “to give”
Together huzur vermek is an idiom meaning “to give peace,” i.e. “to soothe,” “to bring tranquility.”
So su sesi ve rüzgar huzur veriyor means “the sound of the water and the wind bring peace.”

Why is there no subject pronoun before veriyor, and why isn’t the verb plural?

Turkish is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns (like o, “he/she/it/they”) are dropped when they’re clear from context. Also, in the present continuous tense (-iyor), the 3rd-person verb form does not distinguish singular vs. plural. So veriyor works whether the subject is singular or multiple. Here the subjects are su sesi ve rüzgar, and no extra pronoun or plural marking is needed.

Is açılmak always used to mean “to set sail”?

No, açılmak is the passive/middle form of açmak (“to open”) and generally means “to be opened” or “to open oneself.” In nautical contexts it takes on the specialized sense “to set sail,” as if the sails themselves are opening. Outside of that, you’ll see açılmak in meanings like “the shop opens,” “to unfold,” or “to expand.”