Bilet gişesi önünde neredeyse herkes uzun kuyrukta bekler.

long

Breakdown of Bilet gişesi önünde neredeyse herkes uzun kuyrukta bekler.

• herkes: everyone
• beklemek: to wait
• önünde: in front

Questions & Answers about Bilet gişesi önünde neredeyse herkes uzun kuyrukta bekler.

What does neredeyse mean in this sentence and how is it used?

Neredeyse translates as “almost” or “nearly.” It’s an adverb that modifies the subject (herkes) to show that the statement applies to the vast majority, but not literally 100%. You can place it before or after the subject:

• Neredeyse herkes uzun kuyrukta bekler.
• Herkes neredeyse uzun kuyrukta bekler.
  Both are grammatically correct, though the first (adverb + subject) is more common for emphasis on “almost everyone.”

Why is the verb bekler in the simple present tense rather than bekliyor?

Turkish uses the simple present (-r suffix) for general truths or habits. Here it states what people typically do at the ticket booth:

• bekler = “(they) wait” (habitual/general)
  If you want to describe right now, in progress, you’d use the present progressive:
• bekliyor = “(they) are waiting” (right now).

The subject is neredeyse herkes (almost everyone), which seems plural. Why isn’t the verb beklerler?

In Turkish, herkes (“everyone”) is grammatically singular, so it takes a singular verb (no -ler). You always say:

• Herkes geliyor. (Everyone is coming.)
  Not herkes geliyorl ar.

What exactly does bilet gişesi mean, and why isn’t it biletin gişesi or bilet-ın gişesi?