Learn Hardcore Turkish: Jeneratör çalışıyor.

The verb çalışıyor breaks down into three parts: the root çalış meaning “to work,” the present continuous suffix -yor, and an implicit third-person singular marker (zero suffix). Altogether, çalışıyor means “he/she/it is working.”

Why does the suffix appear as -ıyor and not -iyor?

Turkish uses vowel harmony. Because the last vowel in the root çalış is a (a back unrounded vowel), the corresponding suffix vowel must be the back unrounded ı, giving you -ıyor. With different root vowels, you’d get -iyor, -uyor or -üyor.

Why is there no explicit subject pronoun “it” in Jeneratör çalışıyor?

In Turkish, subject pronouns are often dropped if they’re clear from the verb suffix. The suffix on çalışıyor is zero-marked for third-person singular, so you know the subject is “he/she/it” without needing o (“he/she/it”).

How do you say “the generators are working” in Turkish?

You pluralize the noun: Jeneratörler. Then you can either keep the verb in third-person singular or explicitly pluralize it:

Jeneratörler çalışıyor. (common, even with plural subject)
Jeneratörler çalışıyorlar. (emphatic plural on the verb)

Why isn’t there an article like “the” before jeneratör?

Turkish doesn’t have indefinite or definite articles (“a”/“the”). Definiteness is shown by context or by using the accusative case on objects, but subjects in nominative position remain unmarked.

How would you turn Jeneratör çalışıyor into a yes/no question?

Add the question particle -mu after the verb, harmonized for vowel: Jeneratör çalışıyor mu?

What case is jeneratör in, and why is there no suffix?

It’s in the nominative case, which is unmarked. Subjects of intransitive sentences take the bare form without any case suffix.

How would you say “I am working” using the same verb?

Attach the first-person singular suffix to the present continuous form: Çalışıyorum. Breakdown: çalış + -ıyor + -um (1st sg).

How do you pronounce çalışıyor, especially the letters ç and ş?

ç is pronounced like English “ch” in chair, ş like “sh” in shoe. So çalışıyor sounds roughly like “cha-lish-yor.”