Geri dönüp kapıyı kapattı.

the door

Breakdown of Geri dönüp kapıyı kapattı.

• kapatmak: to close
• -ip: and
• geri: back

Questions & Answers about Geri dönüp kapıyı kapattı.

What does each word and suffix in Geri dönüp kapıyı kapattı mean, literally?

• geri: back, backwards (adverb)
• dön-: to turn/return
• -üp: converb suffix (-ıp/-ip/-up/-üp) meaning “and (then) …,” linking to the next verb with the same subject → dönüp “(having) turned back and …”
• kapı: door
• -(y)ı: accusative case (specific/definite direct object). Buffer -y- appears because the noun ends in a vowel → kapı + y + ı = kapıyı
• kapat-: to close (something)
• -tı: simple past, 3rd person singular; d/t alternates by voicing → kapattı (“he/she closed”)

Why is there no subject pronoun? Who is doing the action?

Turkish is a pro-drop language: the subject is normally omitted because person/number are on the verb. Kapattı is 3rd person singular, so the subject is “he/she/it.” You can add o for emphasis or clarity (O geri dönüp kapıyı kapattı), but it isn’t required.

What does geri add, and how is it different from arka?

• geri is an adverb meaning “back/backwards,” used with motion verbs: geri dönmek “to turn back,” geri gitmek “to go back.”
• arka is a noun meaning “the back/rear.” To say “turn one’s back,” Turkish uses arkasını dönmek (literally “turn his/her back”), not “arka dönmek.”