Learn Hardcore Turkish: Sonbahar soğuk.

Sonbahar is a noun meaning autumn. It’s a single word formed from son (“end”) + bahar (“spring”), but in modern usage it’s treated as one noun.

Why isn’t there an English-style verb is in Sonbahar soğuk?

Turkish drops the present-tense copula to be in simple nominal or adjectival sentences. So Sonbahar soğuk literally “Autumn cold,” conveys “Autumn is cold” without a separate “is.”

Why don’t Sonbahar or soğuk have any extra endings here?

Both words are in the nominative case, serving as subject and predicate adjective. Turkish doesn’t require case marking on a predicate adjective— it stays in the bare form.

Is soğuk always an adjective?

No. Soğuk can be either an adjective (cold) or a noun (the cold). In Sonbahar soğuk, it’s adjectival because it describes the noun.

How would you turn Sonbahar soğuk into a question?

Add the question particle -mu with vowel harmony:
Sonbahar soğuk mu?
= “Is autumn cold?”

How do you answer that yes/no question?

You can say Evet (“Yes”) or Hayır (“No”), then repeat the predicate:
Evet, sonbahar soğuk.
Hayır, sonbahar soğuk değil.

Can you add a verb like to be for emphasis?

Yes, you can use the suffix -dur (neutral, slightly formal):
Sonbahar soğuktur.
This sounds more literary or formal, but in everyday speech you’d stick with Sonbahar soğuk.

What about pronunciation of the ğ in soğuk?

The letter ğ (yumuşak g) is not a hard “g.” It lengthens the preceding vowel but has no full “g” sound, so soğuk is pronounced [soːkuk], roughly “soh-oook.”