Learn Hardcore Turkish: Müdür, resepsiyon görevlisine odaları konuklara göstertti. - The manager had the receptionist show the rooms to the guests.

It says the subject didn’t do the showing; they caused someone else to do it. Here, the manager caused the receptionist to perform the act of showing.

Why is it göstertti and not gösterdi?

Gösterdi means the subject themselves showed. Göstertti means the subject had someone else show (made/got someone to show).

How is göstertti formed morphologically?

Base idea: gör- (to see)
Derived verb: göster- (to show; historically “make see”)
Causative of that: göstert- (to have someone show)
Past 3sg: göstert-
- -di → spelling/voicing gives göstertti.

Why are there two Ts in göstertti?

The stem already ends in a causative -t (göstert-). Adding past -di after a voiceless consonant turns it into -ti, so you get -tt-: göstert-ti → göstertti.

Who is doing what to whom in terms of roles and cases?

Müdür: causer/subject.
resepsiyon görevlisine (dative, -e): causee (the person made to act).
odaları (accusative, -ı): direct object (the rooms being shown).
konuklara (dative, -a): recipient/goal (the guests to whom the rooms are shown).

Why is the receptionist in the dative (resepsiyon görevlisine) instead of the accusative?

In Turkish causatives, the person who is made to do the action (the causee) is typically marked with dative -e/-a. Using accusative (resepsiyon görevlisini) would imply the receptionist is the direct object (the one being shown), which is not intended.

Is it okay to have two dative phrases (resepsiyon görevlisine, konuklara) in one sentence?

Yes. They have different roles: one is the causee (who does the showing), the other is the recipient/goal (who is shown to).

Why does odaları have the accusative -ı?

Because the rooms are definite/specific. In Turkish, definite direct objects take the accusative. If you meant nonspecific rooms, you’d normally say odalar (no accusative).

Could odaları also mean “their rooms”?

Yes, odaları is ambiguous between “the rooms” (plural + accusative) and “his/her/their rooms” (3rd person possessed). Context usually clarifies. If you need to force the possessed reading, include the possessor: e.g., konukların odalarını.

What’s going on in resepsiyon görevlisine with -si and the extra n?

Resepsiyon görevlisi is a compound noun (“reception” + “officer/staff”) that uses the 3rd person possessive -si on the head. When you add a case to a 3rd-person-possessed form, Turkish inserts buffer -n-: görevlisi + -e → görevlisine.

Can I change the word order?

Yes. Turkish is flexible. Common and clear: Müdür, resepsiyon görevlisine odaları konuklara göstertti. You can front what you want to emphasize: Müdür, odaları konuklara resepsiyon görevlisine göstertti. Keep the verb last, and avoid splitting closely related phrases too much.

Is the comma after Müdür necessary?

No. It’s optional and often omitted. It just marks a slight pause/topic.

How would I say “The manager let the receptionist show the rooms (didn’t force, just allowed)”?

Use an “allow” construction: Müdür, resepsiyon görevlisinin odaları konuklara göstermesine izin verdi. (Nominalized verb göstermesine after the possessor resepsiyon görevlisinin + “gave permission”.)

How could I paraphrase this without the causative verb, using a passive?

A natural paraphrase is: Müdür, odaların konuklara resepsiyon görevlisi tarafından gösterilmesini sağladı/istedi/emretti. This uses the passive gösterilmek and a matrix verb like sağladı (“made sure/ensured”).

How would the verb change with a different subject or tense?

Plural subject: Müdürler … gösterttiler (they had [someone] show).
Present continuous: Müdür … göstertiyor (is having [someone] show).
Future: Müdür … göstert(e)cek. Personal and tense/aspect markers attach to the causative stem göstert-.