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Questions & Answers about Araba sorunsuz çalışıyor.
Why is there no article (like the or a) before Araba?
Turkish does not use articles in the way English does. A noun by itself can be definite or indefinite depending on context. If you need to specify “the car” or “a car,” you would add a demonstrative or numeral:
- Bu araba sorunsuz çalışıyor. (“This car works without problems.”)
- O araba sorunsuz çalışıyor. (“That car works without problems.”)
- Bir araba sorunsuz çalışıyor. (“A car works without problems.”)
What does sorunsuz mean, and how is it formed?
Sorunsuz means “without problems” or “problem-free.” It’s built from the noun sorun (problem) + the suffix -suz (without). The suffix vowel harmonizes with the last vowel of sorun (o → u), giving sorun + suz → sorunsuz.
Why is çalışıyor used here, and what does it mean?
The verb çalışmak literally means “to work,” but with machines or engines it also means “to run” or “to function.” Here çalışıyor is the present-continuous form: “is working” or “is running.” So Araba sorunsuz çalışıyor = “The car is running without problems.”
How do you form the present-continuous tense in Turkish with çalışmak?
You take the stem çalış-, add the progressive suffix -(i)yor (harmonized to -ıyor after “a”), and then any personal ending. For third-person singular there’s no extra ending, so:
• çalış + ıyor → çalışıyor
That gives “he/she/it is working.”
Why is there no subject pronoun like “it” in the sentence?
Turkish verbs conjugate for person and number. The form çalışıyor already implies 3rd person singular (he/she/it). Since araba is the subject and 3rd singular, a separate “o” or “it” is unnecessary.
Is sorunsuz an adjective or an adverb here?
Grammatically it’s an adjective (“without problems”), but adjectives in Turkish can often modify verbs directly without changing form. In this sentence it describes how the car works, so it functions adverbially. If you wanted an explicit adverb you could say:
- sorunsuzca çalışıyor
- sorunsuz bir şekilde çalışıyor
What is the word order in “Araba sorunsuz çalışıyor” and why is sorunsuz placed before çalışıyor?
Basic Turkish word order is Subject–Object–Verb (SOV). Here there’s no object, but an adverbial modifier sorunsuz comes before the verb. So we have Subject (Araba) + Adverb/Modifier (sorunsuz) + Verb (çalışıyor). Placing the modifier right before the verb emphasizes the manner of working.
What case is Araba in, and why is it unmarked?
Araba is in the nominative case (the subject). Turkish marks cases on nouns when they are objects, in locations, etc., but the nominative (subject) is unmarked by default. That’s why you just see Araba with no extra ending.