Ben günde iki defa çay içiyorum.

I drink tea twice a day.

Breakdown of Ben günde iki defa çay içiyorum.

• içmek: to drink
• ben: I
• çay: the tea
• günde iki defa: twice a day

Questions & Answers about Ben günde iki defa çay içiyorum.

Why is Ben included in this sentence? Is it mandatory?

In Turkish, subject pronouns like Ben (I) are optional because the verb ending already tells you who is performing the action. You could simply say Günde iki defa çay içiyorum and it still means “I drink tea twice a day.” Including Ben adds emphasis or clarity—perhaps to contrast with someone else—but it is not grammatically required.

What does günde mean, and how is it formed?

Günde comes from gün (day) + the locative suffix -de, which literally means “in the day.” Used adverbially, günde means “per day” or “a day.”
• gün → “day”
• günde → “in a day” → “per day”

Why do we say iki defa instead of just iki kere or iki kez?

All three—defa, kez, and kere—mean “time(s)” in the sense of occasions or repetitions.
• defa is somewhat neutral and common in both spoken and written Turkish.
• kez is very similar in usage to defa.
• kere is a bit more colloquial, often used in everyday speech.
So iki defa, iki kez, and iki kere are all correct and interchangeable here: “twice.”

Why isn’t çay marked with the accusative suffix -ı (i.e., çayı)?

In Turkish, definite direct objects take the accusative suffix (-ı/–i/–u/–ü), while indefinite objects do not. Here you’re talking about tea in general (“I drink tea”), not a specific tea that you or someone else already mentioned. Therefore çay remains without -ı. If you meant “I drink the tea (we were talking about),” you’d say çayı içiyorum.

Why is içiyorum in the present continuous tense (-iyor) instead of a simple present?

Turkish normally uses the present continuous (verb + -iyor + person ending) to express habitual or regular actions, not just actions happening right now. So içiyorum covers both “I am drinking” and “I drink (regularly).” If you used the simple present/aorist (içerim), it would sound more like a general truth or a stylistic statement: Ben günde iki defa çay içerim is possible but a bit more formal or literary.

Can I replace günde with her gün?

Yes. Her gün means “every day” and carries the same general idea as günde. So you could say:
• Ben her gün iki defa çay içiyorum.
Both versions are natural and interchangeable, though günde iki defa is slightly more compact.

Is the word order fixed? Could I move günde iki defa elsewhere in the sentence?

Turkish word order is relatively flexible, but the default is Subject–(Adverbials)–Object–Verb. You can move günde iki defa for emphasis:
• Çay günde iki defa içiyorum. (emphasizing tea)
• Günde iki defa çay içiyorum. (neutral)
• Ben günde iki defa çay içiyorum. (emphasizing the subject).
Just remember the main verb usually comes last and objects precede it.