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Questions & Answers about Semt pazarında çok taze ürün var; semt pazarına erken gidince kalabalıktan kaçıyoruz.
What exactly is “semt pazarı,” and why do we see an n in “pazarında/pazarına”?
- “Semt pazarı” is an indefinite compound noun meaning “neighborhood market/street market.” In such compounds, the second noun gets a 3rd-person possessive suffix: semt pazar-ı.
- When you add a case suffix to a possessed noun, Turkish inserts a buffer n: pazar-ı + -DA → pazar-ın-da; pazar-ı + -(y)A → pazar-ın-a.
- Hence: semt pazarında = “at the neighborhood market” (locative), and semt pazarına = “to the neighborhood market” (dative).
Why is “ürün” singular with “var”? Shouldn’t it be “ürünler var”?
- With existential var/yok, Turkish typically uses the singular for an indefinite quantity: Pazarda taze ürün var = “There are fresh products.”
- (Çok) taze ürünler var is also possible, often with a slightly stronger emphasis on plurality or a more specific set.
- Both are correct; the singular is the most neutral/idiomatic.
Does “çok” mean “very” or “many” here?
- Çok can mean either:
- quantity: “many/much” → “There are many fresh products.”
- degree: “very” → “The product(s) are very fresh.”
- In çok taze ürün var, context/prosody decides. To force the meanings:
- Quantity: Pek çok taze ürün var / Bir sürü taze ürün var.
- Degree: Ürünler çok taze.
What does the suffix -(y)ince in “gidince” do? How is it different from “gidersek” or “gittiğimizde”?