Learn Hardcore Turkish: Müdürüm toplantıyı yarına ertelemek istedi. - My manager wanted to postpone the meeting to tomorrow.

It’s the 1st-person possessive: müdür + -(I)m → müdürüm = my manager/boss. Note: out of context, müdürüm can also mean I am a manager (copular personal ending), but here the verb is third person (istedi), so it clearly means my manager.

Can müdürüm also be a form of address (like “Sir/Ma’am”)?

Yes. With a comma, Müdürüm, … is a polite vocative (“My manager, … / Sir/Ma’am, …”). In your sentence there’s no comma and it functions as the subject: Müdürüm … istedi.

Why is toplantıyı in the accusative (-ı)?

Because the meeting is definite/specific and it’s the direct object of ertelemek. In Turkish, definite direct objects take the accusative: toplantı + y + ı → toplantıyı. The -y- is a buffer consonant used because the word ends in a vowel.

Could I drop the accusative and say toplantı instead of toplantıyı?

You can, but the meaning changes.

toplantı ertelemek = to postpone a/any meeting (indefinite)
toplantıyı ertelemek = to postpone the meeting (definite)
So your sentence with toplantı would imply an unspecified meeting.

Why is it yarına and not just yarın?

With verbs of moving something in time (postpone, move, bring forward), Turkish uses the dative case to mean “to (a time)”: yarın + a → yarına = “to tomorrow.” Bare yarın is a time adverb meaning “tomorrow” (when something happens), but yarına is “to tomorrow” (a target time).

Can I say yarın için instead of yarına?

Sometimes, yes, but yarına ertelemek is the most idiomatic for “postpone to tomorrow.” Yarın için = “for tomorrow” is common with planning (e.g., yarın için bir toplantı ayarlamak), and you can hear yarın için ertelemek, but yarına is crisper and more standard with ertelemek.

Why is it ertelemek and not ertelemeyi after istedi?

Both forms exist with istemek:

ertelemek istedi = wanted to postpone (default, very common)
ertelemeyi istedi = wanted the act of postponing (more nominal/explicit, sometimes used for contrast/emphasis or when modified: özellikle yarına ertelemeyi istedi).
With sevmek, başlamak, etc., the -meyi/-mayı form is far more common; with istemek, the bare infinitive is the default.

What tense is istedi, and how do I make it negative or a question?

istedi is 3rd person singular simple past (root iste- + past -DI with vowel harmony).

Negative: istemedi
Yes/no question: istedi mi?
Applied to your sentence:
Negative: Müdürüm toplantıyı yarına ertelemek istemedi.
Question: Müdürüm toplantıyı yarına ertelemek istedi mi?

Can I use other tenses like “wants” or “will want”?

Yes:

Present: Müdürüm … ertelemek istiyor. (wants)
Future: Müdürüm … ertelemek isteyecek. (will want)
Past progressive: … istiyordu. (was wanting/used to want)

Why is the finite verb (istedi) at the end? Can I move things around?

Turkish is typically SOV, so the finite verb comes last. You can front or shuffle constituents for emphasis/topic:

Müdürüm toplantıyı yarına ertelemek istedi. (neutral)
Yarına, müdürüm toplantıyı ertelemek istedi. (emphasis on “to tomorrow”)
Müdürüm yarına toplantıyı ertelemek istedi. (also fine)
Keep the finite verb last and avoid separating tightly bound elements unnaturally.

Do I need the pronoun o (“he/she”)?

No. Person is already clear from the verb and the subject noun phrase. O is optional and used for emphasis or contrast. Your sentence is natural without it.

If a different person is supposed to do the postponing (e.g., “He wanted us to postpone…”), how do I say that?

Use a nominalized verb with a possessive marker indicating the doer:

“He wanted us to postpone the meeting to tomorrow.” → Toplantıyı yarına ertelememizi istedi.
“He wanted me to postpone …” → … ertelememi istedi.
Here ertelememizi/ertelememi is the object of istedi.

How do I say “He wanted the meeting to be postponed to tomorrow” (passive, no specific agent)?

Use the passive and nominalization: Toplantının yarına ertelenmesini istedi.

toplantının (genitive) + ertelenmesini (nominalized passive verb + 3sg poss + acc).

Can you break down the forms in the sentence?

Müdürüm = müdür (manager) + -(I)m (1sg possessive) → “my manager”
toplantıyı = toplantı (meeting) + y (buffer) + -(y)ı (accusative) → “the meeting” (definite DO)
yarına = yarın (tomorrow) + -(y)a (dative) → “to tomorrow”
ertelemek = ertele- (postpone) + -mek (infinitive)
istedi = iste- (want) + -DI (past) → “wanted”

Why is there a “y” in toplantıyı?

It’s a buffer consonant inserted between vowels to avoid hiatus: toplantı + ı would give two vowels in a row, so Turkish uses y: toplantıyı. Same with words like araba → arabayı.

Do I need apostrophes with these suffixes (e.g., yarına, toplantıyı)?

No. Apostrophes are used with proper names: Ankara’ya, Ali’yi. Common nouns and ordinary time words do not take an apostrophe: yarına, toplantıyı.

What if the subject is plural, e.g., Müdürlerim? Does the verb have to be plural?

Both are possible:

Müdürlerim … ertelemek istedi. (singular verb; common, treats the group as a unit)
Müdürlerim … ertelemek istediler. (plural verb; emphasizes plurality)

Any quick pronunciation/stress tips?

Turkish typically stresses the last syllable of each word: mü-dü-RÜM, top-lan-TI-yı, ya-RI-na, er-te-le-MEK, is-TE-Dİ. In fluent speech, the main sentence stress usually falls near the finite verb (istedi), unless you front something for emphasis.