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Questions & Answers about Pasaport geçerli.
Why is there no verb in Pasaport geçerli?
In Turkish, the copula -dir (which would make it Pasaport geçerlidir) is often omitted in everyday speech. The adjective geçerli itself serves as the predicate, so Pasaport geçerli is understood as “The passport is valid.”
What is the grammatical case of pasaport here?
Pasaport is in the nominative case (no suffix) because it functions as the subject of the sentence. Subjects in Turkish typically remain unmarked.
Why is geçerli placed after pasaport? Aren’t adjectives before nouns in Turkish?
When an adjective modifies a noun directly (attributive use), it comes before the noun (geçerli pasaport = “valid passport”). However, here geçerli is used predicatively (as part of the predicate), so the noun (subject) appears first, followed by the adjective.
Can I add the copula -dir to make the sentence more formal?
Yes. In formal or written contexts, you can say Pasaport geçerlidir. The suffix -dir adds formality or completeness, but omitting it is standard in everyday conversation.
How would I make this sentence negative?
Use değil after the adjective: Pasaport geçerli değil. This means “The passport is not valid.”
How can I turn it into a question?
Add the question particle mi (with vowel harmony) right after geçerli: Pasaport geçerli mi? This translates as “Is the passport valid?”
Why are there no articles like “a” or “the”?
Turkish does not have definite or indefinite articles. Context or word order conveys definiteness. So Pasaport geçerli can mean either “A passport is valid” (general statement) or “The passport is valid,” depending on context.
How do I say “My passport is valid”?
Attach the first-person singular possessive suffix to pasaport: Pasaportum geçerli. Here -um indicates “my.”