Breakdown of Ben hem sabah hem de akşam çay içiyorum.
içmek
to drink
ben
I
çay
the tea
sabah
the morning
akşam
the evening
hem ... hem de
both ... and
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Questions & Answers about Ben hem sabah hem de akşam çay içiyorum.
What does hem … hem de mean, and how does this structure work in Turkish?
hem … hem de is a correlative conjunction meaning both … and. You place the first hem before the first item and the second hem (often with de) before the second item to link them equally. In your sentence:
- hem sabah … hem de akşam → “both in the morning and in the evening.”
Why is ben used here? Is it always necessary?
ben means I, but it is optional because Turkish is a “pro-drop” language—the verb ending -yorum already shows first-person singular. You include ben only to add emphasis or clarity. Without it, “Hem sabah hem de akşam çay içiyorum” is perfectly correct.
Why do sabah (“morning”) and akşam (“evening”) appear without any suffix?
When time words act as adverbs in Turkish, they often stay in the bare (nominative) form. Here both sabah and akşam function as adverbials of time—no locative or accusative suffix is needed.
Why is the verb in the present continuous form içiyorum (“I am drinking”) instead of the simple aorist içerim (“I drink”)?
Turkish frequently uses the present continuous (içiyorum) to describe habitual or repeated actions, especially alongside time adverbs. The aorist (içerim) also works for habits, but içiyorum with sabah/akşam feels more natural when stressing routine.
Why isn’t çay (“tea”) pluralized to çaylar in this sentence?
çay is an uncountable noun here, referring to tea in general. You use the singular for substances or mass nouns. If you want to count servings, you’d specify a unit (e.g. “birer bardak çay”).
Can I change the word order, for example: Çay içiyorum hem sabah hem de akşam?
Yes. Turkish word order is relatively flexible. The basic order is Subject-Object-Verb, but adverbial phrases like hem sabah hem de akşam can move before or after the object or even the verb for nuance or emphasis.
Could I say sabahları and akşamları instead of sabah and akşam?
Yes. Adding the plural suffix -lar (e.g. sabahları, akşamları) also creates an adverbial meaning “in the mornings” / “in the evenings.” Both forms are accepted:
• hem sabah hem de akşam çay içiyorum
• hem sabahları hem de akşamları çay içiyorum
What’s the difference between “sabah akşam çay içiyorum” and “hem sabah hem de akşam çay içiyorum”?
“Sabah akşam çay içiyorum” simply states “I drink tea morning and evening.”
“hem sabah hem de akşam çay içiyorum” adds the nuance “I drink tea at both times”—emphasizing that neither the morning nor the evening is left out.