Questions & Answers about Bugün nakit yok, kartla idare ederim.
What does yok do in this sentence?
Yok is the existential “there isn’t/there aren’t.” Bugün nakit yok means “There’s no cash today (in this context/for me).” The positive counterpart is var (“there is/are”). You can add tense or modality to it: yoktu (there wasn’t), yokmuş (apparently there isn’t/wasn’t), yoksa (if there isn’t).
Why not use değil for negation here?
Değil negates a predicate (“is not”), while yok negates existence/availability. Compare:
- Bu nakit değil. = This is not cash.
- Nakit yok. = There is no cash.
Where is the verb “have”? How do Turks say “I don’t have cash”?
Turkish expresses “have” with var/yok plus a possessor, often as a locative:
- Bende nakit yok. = I don’t have cash. (Literally “On me, cash isn’t.”)
- Bugün yanımda nakit yok. = I don’t have cash on me today. You can also use possessive: Bugün nakitim yok. (“My cash isn’t (there)”).
What does Bugün modify, and can I move it?