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Ses sistemi iyi çalışıyor.

Ses sistemi iyi çalışıyor.
The sound system works well.
FromLesson 66inHardcore Turkish
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Breakdown of Ses sistemi iyi çalışıyor.

çalışmak
to work
iyi
well
ses sistemi
the sound system

Questions & Answers about Ses sistemi iyi çalışıyor.

Why don’t we use any suffix between ses and sistemi? Is this a compound noun?
Yes. In Turkish, many noun–noun compounds are unmarked: the first noun simply modifies the second. We don’t need genitive or possessive endings. So ses sistemi literally means “sound system.”
What case is ses sistemi in? Why doesn’t it have a case ending?
It’s the subject of the sentence, so it appears in the nominative case, which is unmarked in Turkish. Unless you want to emphasize or specify direction, subjects remain without extra endings.
Can iyi modify a verb? I thought iyi was an adjective.
While iyi primarily means “good” as an adjective, it also functions as an adverb meaning “well.” When placed before a verb, it describes the manner of the action: iyi çalışıyor = “is working well.”
Why is the word order ses sistemi iyi çalışıyor instead of ses sistemi çalışıyor iyi?
In Turkish, adverbs and adverbial modifiers typically precede the verb they modify. So iyi (“well”) must come right before çalışıyor (“is working”), not after.
Why is the verb çalışıyor and not çalışır or çalıştı?

The suffix -ıyor/-iyor/-uyor/-üyor marks the present continuous tense (an action happening now).
• çalışır is simple present (“he/she/it works [regularly]”).
• çalıştı is simple past (“he/she/it worked”).

How does -ıyor attach to çalış-? Why -ıyor and not another vowel?
Turkish vowel harmony determines the vowel in the continuous suffix. The last vowel in çalış is a (a back vowel), so you choose -ıyor. Thus çalış + ıyor → çalışıyor.
How would I make this sentence negative?

Insert the negative suffix -ma/-me before the tense suffix:
çalış + ma + ıyor → çalışmıyor
Full sentence: Ses sistemi iyi çalışmıyor. (“The sound system isn’t working well.”)

How do I turn it into a question?

Add the question particle -mı/-mi/-mu/-mü (with vowel harmony) after the verb or as a separate word:
Ses sistemi iyi çalışıyor mu? (“Is the sound system working well?”)

How would I say “The sound system worked well” in Turkish?

Use the past tense suffix -dı/-di/-du/-dü:
çalış + tı → çalıştı
So: Ses sistemi iyi çalıştı. (“The sound system worked well.”)

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