Breakdown of Domatesleri salatada kullanmadan önce suda birkaç dakika bekletmeliyim.
su
the water
kullanmak
to use
dakika
the minute
önce
before
-da
in
salata
the salad
domates
the tomato
-madan
without
bekletmek
to soak
birkaç
a few
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Questions & Answers about Domatesleri salatada kullanmadan önce suda birkaç dakika bekletmeliyim.
Why does domatesleri have the suffix -i?
It’s the accusative case marking a definite direct object. In Turkish, when you talk about a specific thing (“the tomatoes”), you add -ı/-i/-u/-ü to the noun. So domates (tomato) → domates-leri (the tomatoes) + -i (accusative) = domatesleri.
What does salatada mean, and why is there a -da at the end?
-da/-de is the locative case suffix meaning “in,” “at,” or “on.” Here salata (salad) + -da = salatada, which means “in the salad.”
How is kullanmadan önce formed, and what does it mean?
It means “before using.” Breakdown:
• kullan- = verb stem “use”
• -ma = negative/verbal noun building (so “not using”)
• -dan = ablative case (“from/not-using”)
Together kullanmadan literally “from not using,” but when followed by önce (“before”), it functions as “before using.”
Why is suda used here instead of just su?
Again the locative -da is used. su = “water,” so su-da = suda means “in water.” It tells you where the tomatoes are being soaked.
What does birkaç dakika mean?
birkaç = “a few,” “several”
dakika = “minute”
So birkaç dakika = “a few minutes.”
Why is it bekletmeliyim and not beklemeliyim?
Because you’re not waiting yourself, you’re letting the tomatoes wait/soak. Turkish uses the causative form:
• bekle- = “to wait”
• -t- = causative (“to make/let wait”) → beklet-
Then you add the necessity suffix -meli/-malı (“must/should”) and the personal ending -yim (“I”).
So beklet- + ‑meli + ‑yim = bekletmeliyim (“I must let [them] soak”).
Why isn’t ben (I) used in the sentence?
Turkish verbs carry person information. The ending -yim on bekletmeliyim already shows “I.” Pronouns like ben are optional and usually dropped unless you need emphasis.