Learn Hardcore Turkish: Fiyatlar ciddi oranda arttı. - Prices have increased significantly.

Fiyatlar is the plural form of fiyat (price), so it simply means “prices.” Because it’s the subject of the sentence, it stands in the nominative case with no additional suffix.

Why is there no article (“the” or “a”) in Fiyatlar?

Turkish does not use definite or indefinite articles like the or a. Nouns appear without those words. Here, Fiyatlar just means “prices” in general or “the prices,” depending on context.

What does ciddi oranda mean, and how does it modify the sentence?

ciddi means “serious” and oranda comes from oran (“ratio” or “extent”) plus the locative -da, giving “in the extent.” Together ciddi oranda functions as an adverbial phrase meaning “to a significant degree” or “significantly.” It modifies the verb arttı.

Why is it ciddi oranda instead of ciddi bir oranda or ciddi ölçüde?

You can say ciddi bir oranda (literally “in a serious extent”), but dropping bir is more concise and idiomatic when describing how much something changed.
ciddi ölçüde (“to a serious measure/degree”) is also correct and very close in meaning. Different speakers might prefer oranda, ölçüde, or even miktarda depending on style.

What case is oranda, and why is it used that way?

oranda is the locative form of oran (“ratio, extent”), formed by adding -da. As a locative it literally means “in the extent,” but in practice it’s used adverbially to describe the degree to which an action takes place—hence “significantly.”

What does arttı mean, and what is its grammatical structure?

arttı is the simple past tense of the verb artmak (“to increase”). Grammatically, it is:
• root: art- (“increase”)
• past tense suffix (third-person singular): -tı (vowel‐harmonized as -tı)
Together art+tı becomes arttı, meaning “(it) increased.”

Why does arttı have two “t” letters instead of one?

The verb root art- ends in t. When you add the suffix -tı, Turkish consonant‐doubling (or assimilation) triggers art + tı → arttı. You see the root’s final consonant plus the suffix’s initial consonant both pronounced.

What is the word order in Fiyatlar ciddi oranda arttı, and why?

Turkish is generally Subject-Object-Verb (SOV). Here you have:
• Subject: Fiyatlar
• Adverbial phrase: ciddi oranda
• Verb (with tense/person): arttı
Adverbials normally come before the verb, so Fiyatlar ciddi oranda arttı means literally “Prices significantly increased.”

How would you ask “By how much did prices increase?” in Turkish?

You could say: Ne kadar arttı? (“How much did it increase?”) or more clearly: Fiyatlar ne kadar arttı? (“By how much did prices increase?”).