Deniz suyu tuzlu.

Sea water is salty.

Breakdown of Deniz suyu tuzlu.

• olmak: to be
• tuzlu: salty
• deniz suyu: the sea water

Questions & Answers about Deniz suyu tuzlu.

Why is there no to be verb like is in Deniz suyu tuzlu?

In Turkish, the present-tense copula ("to be") is usually omitted in simple nominal sentences.
So Deniz suyu tuzlu literally reads "sea water salty" but is understood as "sea water is salty."
If you want to be more formal or explicit, you can add the suffix -dur: Deniz suyu tuzludur ("Sea water is salty").

What does the suffix -lu in tuzlu mean?

The suffix -lu (with vowel harmony: -lı/-li/-lu/-lü) attaches to nouns to form adjectives meaning "with" or "having."
For example:
• tuz (salt) + -lu → tuzlu ("salty," literally "having salt")
• şeker (sugar) + -li → şekerli ("sweet," "having sugar")

Why is it suyu instead of just su?

Here Deniz suyu is a noun-noun compound meaning "water of the sea." In Turkish compounds like this:

1. The second noun takes the 3rd person possessive suffix -(s)ı/-(s)i/-(s)u/-(s)ü (here su → suyu).
2. The first noun remains in its bare form (deniz).
   So deniz suyu = "its (the sea’s) water."

Why doesn't deniz take a genitive suffix (like denizin)?

In standard noun-noun compounds, you don’t add the genitive suffix to the first noun. Instead the relationship is shown by adding the possessive suffix to the second noun.
However, you can express the same meaning more explicitly with a true genitive + possessive construction:
Deniz+in (genitive) → denizin, then su+yu (possessive) → suyu → Denizin suyu.
Both mean "the sea’s water," but deniz suyu is the common compound form.

Why are there no articles like the or a?

Turkish does not have separate words for definite (the) or indefinite (a/an) articles.
Definiteness is often inferred from context or indicated by case endings.
Here Deniz suyu tuzlu makes a general statement ("Sea water is salty") without needing an article.

What is the word order in Deniz suyu tuzlu?

Turkish generally follows Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) order, but in a sentence with a predicate adjective, you have:
Subject + (Object) + Predicate.
Since tuzlu is the predicate adjective, it comes at the end:
Deniz suyu (subject) + tuzlu (predicate).

How do I turn this into a question?

Add the question particle -mu/-mü/-ma/-me (with vowel harmony) after the predicate adjective:
Deniz suyu tuzlu mu?
Literally: "Sea water salty, yes/no?"

How do I negate this sentence?

Use değil after the predicate adjective to make a negative nominal sentence:
Deniz suyu tuzlu değil.
Literally: "Sea water salty not," meaning "Sea water is not salty."

Can I also say Denizin suyu tuzlu instead of Deniz suyu tuzlu?

Yes. Denizin suyu tuzlu uses the explicit genitive (denizin) + possessive (suyu) construction. It’s grammatically correct but more formal or emphatic. The compact compound deniz suyu tuzlu is more common in everyday speech.