Learn Hardcore Turkish: Yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlık, öğrenciler rahat ediyor. - The new classroom is spacious and bright; students feel comfortable.

Derslik specifically means “classroom” (the physical room). Sınıf can mean both “classroom” and “class” (the group or grade level). Using derslik avoids ambiguity. For example: Yeni derslik geniş = the new classroom is spacious. Yeni sınıf might be understood as a new class (group) or a new classroom, depending on context.

Why is there no explicit “is” in Yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlık?

Turkish drops the verb “to be” in the 3rd person present for simple noun/adjective predicates. So Yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlık literally reads “The new classroom wide and bright.” You may add the formal/generalizing copula -dır/-dir if needed: Yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlıktır (more formal/categorical).

What tense/aspect is rahat ediyor, and why use etmek here?

Rahat ediyor is the present progressive: verb stem + -iyor. The expression rahat etmek means “to be/feel comfortable, to be at ease.” Compare:

Öğrenciler rahat. = The students are comfortable (a simple state).
Öğrenciler rahat ediyor. = The students are (currently) feeling comfortable / are at ease (more dynamic or situational).

Why does etmek become ediyor instead of “etiyor”?

With vowel-initial suffixes like -iyor, the t in et- voices to d: et- + -iyor → ediyor. This is regular in Turkish. Other examples: hak etmek → hak ediyor, dikkat etmek → dikkat ediyor, affetmek → affediyor.

Shouldn’t it be rahat ediyorlar because öğrenciler is plural?

With a third-person plural noun subject like öğrenciler, both are possible:

Öğrenciler rahat ediyor. (common, neutral, especially in writing)
Öğrenciler rahat ediyorlar. (also correct; can sound more colloquial/emphatic) If the subject is the pronoun onlar, the plural on the verb is expected in careful speech: Onlar rahat ediyorlar (not usually “Onlar rahat ediyor”).

Is the comma between the two clauses okay in Turkish?

Yes. Turkish often links closely related independent clauses with a comma, where English might use a semicolon or add a conjunction. The comma here can suggest a loose cause-effect: “The new classroom is spacious and bright, (so) the students feel comfortable.” You could also use ;, ve, bu yüzden, or çünkü.

How can I make the cause–effect explicit?

Possible rewrites:

Yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlık, bu yüzden öğrenciler rahat ediyor.
Öğrenciler rahat ediyor çünkü yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlık.
Yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlık olduğundan/olduğu için öğrenciler rahat ediyor.

Could I just say Öğrenciler rahat instead of rahat ediyor?

Yes. Öğrenciler rahat states a simple property. Öğrenciler rahat ediyor implies they are experiencing comfort now or as a result of something (like the new room). Both are natural; choose based on nuance.

What about rahat hissetmek or rahatlamak?

Rahat hissetmek = “to feel comfortable” (more explicitly about inner feeling): Öğrenciler kendilerini rahat hissediyor(lar).
Rahatlamak = “to relax, to become relieved”: Öğrenciler rahatlıyor(lar).
Rahat etmek is idiomatic and broad (“to be/feel comfortable”). All are valid with slightly different shades.

Why is yeni before derslik, but geniş ve aydınlık come after?

Attributive adjectives come before the noun: yeni derslik (new classroom). Predicative adjectives (after “to be”) come after the subject: derslik geniş ve aydınlık. If you want all as attributes, say: geniş ve aydınlık bir derslik.

Do adjectives take plural endings? Why not genişler or rahatlar?

Attributive adjectives never pluralize: geniş derslik, not “genişler derslik.” With 3rd-person plural human subjects, predicate adjectives can optionally take -lar for emphasis: Öğrenciler rahat (neutral) vs Öğrenciler rahatlar (also used, a bit more colloquial/emphatic). The version without -lar is more standard in writing.

Why is it -ler (öğrenciler) and not -lar?

Vowel harmony. Öğrenci has front vowels (ö, e, i), so the front plural -ler is used: öğrenciler (not “öğrencilar”).

How do you pronounce öğrenciler and aydınlık?

ö is a front rounded vowel (like German “ö” or French “eu” in “peur”).
ğ (soft g) lengthens the preceding vowel; in öğ you basically get a long ö.
c is like English “j” in “jam.”
Stress is typically on the final syllable: öğrenciLER, aydınLIK, derSLİK.

What exactly does aydınlık mean? How is it different from aydın?

Aydınlık means “bright, well-lit” (also “brightness” as a noun). It’s what you use for rooms: aydınlık bir oda. Aydın can mean “enlightened/intellectual” or a proper name; it’s not the usual choice for “well-lit room.”

Should I use var/yok in a sentence like this?

No. Var/yok expresses existence/absence: Yeni bir derslik var = “There is a new classroom.” Your sentence is descriptive, not existential, so var/yok isn’t used there.

Can I change the word order or the linkage?

Yes, Turkish is flexible:

Öğrenciler rahat ediyor; yeni derslik geniş ve aydınlık. (semicolon, reversed order)
Yeni derslik çok geniş ve aydınlık, öğrenciler de çok rahat ediyor. (added emphasis with çok, de)
For a single clause with attributes: Geniş ve aydınlık bir derslikte öğrenciler rahat ediyor. (adds location with locative “in a spacious, bright classroom”)