Ben arkadaşlarımı pikniğe davet ediyorum.

I am inviting my friends to a picnic.

Breakdown of Ben arkadaşlarımı pikniğe davet ediyorum.

• ben: I
• benim: my
• arkadaş: the friend
• -e: to
• piknik: the picnic
• -ı: accusative
• davet etmek: to invite

Questions & Answers about Ben arkadaşlarımı pikniğe davet ediyorum.

Why is ben used in the sentence “Ben arkadaşlarımı pikniğe davet ediyorum.”? Can we leave it out?

In Turkish, subject pronouns (ben, sen, o, etc.) are usually omitted because the verb ending already indicates person and number. Ben here just adds emphasis or clarity. If you drop it, Arkadaşlarımı pikniğe davet ediyorum still means “I am inviting my friends to a picnic.”

What do the suffixes -lar, -ım, and -ı in arkadaşlarımı represent?

Breakdown of arkadaşlarımı:
• arkadaş = “friend”
• -lar = plural marker → “friends”
• -ım = 1st person singular possessive → “my friends”
• -ı = accusative case marker for a definite direct object

Altogether, it means “my (specific) friends” as the object of the verb.

What is the role of the -e ending in pikniğe, and how do we choose between -e or -a?

The suffix -e is the dative case, meaning “to” or “toward.” It indicates you’re inviting someone to the picnic. To decide between -e vs. -a, follow vowel harmony:
• If the last vowel of the noun is front (e, i, ö, ü), use -e.
• If it’s back (a, ı, o, u), use -a.
Since piknik ends in i (a front vowel), we use -e, giving pikniğe.

Why does the final k in piknik become ğ in pikniğe?

Turkish softens certain consonants when you add a vowel-first suffix. Specifically:
• k → ğ
• p → b
• t → d
• ç → c
So piknik + -e doesn’t stay piknike; the k voices to ğ, yielding pikniğe.

Which tense and aspect is davet ediyorum, and how do we form it in Turkish?

davet ediyorum is the present continuous (şimdiki zaman), used for actions happening now or arranged near-future plans. Formation:

1. Take the verb root et- (from etmek, “to do”).
2. Add the continuous suffix -iyor (harmonized to -iyor here).
3. Add the personal ending -um for 1st person singular.
   Result: et- + ‑iyor + ‑um = ediyorum (“I am doing [the invitation]”).

Why do we say davet ediyorum instead of davetiyorum? How do compound verbs like davet etmek work?

davet is a noun meaning “invitation,” not a verb. Turkish turns nouns into verbs by adding etmek (“to do”). When conjugating, you attach tense/person endings to et-, not davet. So:
davet (noun) + etmek (verb) → davet etmek
Conjugate etmek: davet et-iyor-um → davet ediyorum.

Is there a more informal way to say “invite” in Turkish besides davet etmek?

Yes. The verb çağırmak (“to call someone”) is commonly used to mean “invite” in casual speech. For example:
Arkadaşlarımı pikniğe çağırıyorum.
This is more colloquial and perfectly natural in everyday conversation.