Breakdown of Öğrenci soruyu çözer çözmez öğretmene gösterdi.
göstermek
to show
öğretmen
the teacher
öğrenci
the student
-e
to
Questions & Answers about Öğrenci soruyu çözer çözmez öğretmene gösterdi.
What does the structure çözer çözmez mean, and how is it formed?
It means as soon as (someone) solves (it). It’s built by repeating the same verb:
- verb stem + 3rd person singular aorist: çöz-er
- the same stem + 3rd person singular negative aorist: çöz-mez Together: çözer çözmez = as soon as (he/she) solves. Common parallels: gelir gelmez (as soon as he/she comes), görür görmez (as soon as he/she sees), yapar yapmaz (as soon as he/she does), olur olmaz (as soon as it happens).
Why is the first verb in aorist (çözer) when the main verb is past (gösterdi)?
In the fixed -er -mez structure, the first verb is always in the 3rd person singular aorist form regardless of who the subject is or what tense the main clause uses. The aorist here doesn’t mean “habitual” by itself; within this construction it contributes the meaning “as soon as.” The main clause carries the actual tense: past in gösterdi.
Could I use -ince/-ınca instead of -er -mez? What’s the difference?
Yes, -ince/-ınca means “when/once,” e.g., Soruyu çözünce öğretmene gösterdi (“When he solved the question, he showed it to the teacher”). However, -er -mez specifically adds the idea of immediacy: “as soon as, immediately after.” So çözer çözmez is stronger and more instantaneous than çözünce. Another near-synonym is çözdüğü gibi, also meaning “as soon as (he) solved.”
Is soruyu the object of or ?