Learn Hardcore Turkish: Toplantı bir saat sürdü, ara hariç her şey planlandığı gibiydi. - The meeting lasted an hour; except for the break, everything was as planned.

Here sürmek means “to last.” With a time expression, it gives duration: bir saat sürdü = “lasted one hour.” The same verb can also mean “to drive” (e.g., araba sürmek) or “to apply/spread” (e.g., krem sürmek), but in this sentence it’s the intransitive “to last.”

Why is bir saat bare (no case ending)? Shouldn’t it be accusative?

Duration/measure phrases in Turkish are used adverbially without a case ending: bir saat sürdü = “(it) lasted one hour.” It’s not a direct object, so no accusative is needed.

Can I say bir saat boyunca sürdü or bir saat kadar sürdü? What’s the difference?

bir saat boyunca sürdü: “It lasted for a whole hour” (emphasizes the span; a bit more formal).
bir saat kadar sürdü: “It lasted about an hour” (approximation).
You can also say yaklaşık bir saat sürdü (about an hour) or tam bir saat sürdü (exactly one hour).

How does hariç work in ara hariç?

hariç is a postposition meaning “except (for), excluding” and follows the noun directly:

X hariç = “except X”
It does not require a case ending: ara hariç = “except (for) the break.” Word order: placing it up front as an adverbial is normal: Ara hariç, her şey… or without the pause: Ara hariç her şey…

Is ara hariç the same as ara dışında? Which sounds more natural?

They mean the same (“except for the break”). hariç can sound a touch more formal; dışında is extremely common and neutral. Both are fine: ara hariç / ara dışında. You’ll also hear mola hariç / mola dışında (“except the break/pause”).

Why isn’t there anything like “the” in ara hariç? Should it be arayı?

Turkish has no articles like “the” or “a.” Definiteness comes from context. ara hariç naturally refers to “the break” everyone knows about. You do not use accusative here; X hariç takes a bare noun.

Is it herşey or her şey?

Correct spelling is two words: her şey (“everything”). Writing herşey is a common mistake. Capitalize only at sentence start: Her şey.

Can you break down planlandığı gibiydi morphologically?

planla-: “to plan” (verb derived with -la from the noun “plan”)
Passive -n-: planlan- = “to be planned”
Nominalizer -DIK: planlan-dık- → “the fact that (it) was planned”
3sg possessive -I: planlandığı (the k of -dık softens to ğ before the vowel -ı)
gibi: “as/like”
Past copula idi: after a vowel it fuses as -ydi, with buffer y → gibiydi Overall: planlandığı gibiydi = “(it) was as (it was) planned.”

Why is there a y in gibiydi?

It’s a buffer consonant to avoid two vowels clashing: gibi + idi → gibiydi. The same happens with gibiymiş, gibiyse.

Why the passive planlandığı and not planladığı?

planlandığı = “(as it was) planned” (passive, planner unspecified).
planladığı = “(as) he/she planned.” If you want to specify who planned, you’d say, for example, onun planladığı gibi (“as he/she planned”). Using the passive keeps it impersonal.

How do I say “as we planned”?

Use a genitive subject + -DIK with possessive:

bizim planladığımız gibi or simply planladığımız gibi Other persons: benim planladığım, senin planladığın, ekibin planladığı, etc.
You can also use şekil(le): planladığımız şekilde (“in the way we planned”).

What’s the difference between planlandığı gibiydi and planlandığı gibi oldu?

… gibiydi states a past state: “it was as planned.”
… gibi oldu focuses on the outcome/event: “it turned out as planned.” Both are natural; oldu is a bit more eventive/result-oriented.

Can I drop idi and just say Her şey planlandığı gibi?

Yes, especially in speech, headlines, or informal writing. It’s an elliptical sentence with an understood copula (“was/turned out”). For fully explicit, finite narration, include idi/oldu.

How does the -DIK suffix change with vowel harmony?

It harmonizes as -dık, -dik, -duk, -dük. With 3sg possessive, you’ll see -dığı, -diği, -duğu, -düğü. Examples:

beklediği (from bekle-)
okuduğu (from oku-)
gördüğü (from gör-)
yaptığı (from yap-, note the root-final consonant stays voiceless t, then k→ğ before the possessive vowel in similar patterns)

Why is there a possessive ending in planlandığı? Who “owns” it?

In -DIK nominalized clauses, the subject is marked in the genitive, and the verb takes a matching possessive suffix. If the subject isn’t stated, Turkish defaults to 3rd person singular possessive (-ı/-i/-u/-ü). So planlandığı means “its being planned,” where “its” refers to the understood 3rd-person subject of that clause.

Any pronunciation tips for tricky letters here?

ü in sürdü: front rounded vowel (like French “u”).
ğ in planlandığı: lengthens the preceding vowel; between ı vowels it’s very soft/almost silent.
ı (dotless i) in bir, planlandığı: a back unrounded vowel (not like English i).
ş in şey: “sh.”

Is the comma between the two parts correct? Could I use a semicolon or ve?

Yes, a comma can separate two closely related independent clauses in Turkish. A semicolon is also fine for a stronger break. You could also write two sentences or add a linker:

Toplantı bir saat sürdü. Ara hariç her şey planlandığı gibiydi.
Toplantı bir saat sürdü; ara hariç her şey planlandığı gibiydi.
Toplantı bir saat sürdü ve ara hariç her şey planlandığı gibiydi.

Should there be a comma after ara hariç?

Optional. With short fronted adverbials, many writers omit it: Ara hariç her şey…
Adding a comma (Ara hariç, her şey…) simply marks a pause/emphasis; both are acceptable.

Is ara the only word for “break” here?

You can also use mola. Both are common in meeting contexts:

Mola hariç her şey planlandığı gibiydi.
Mola dışında her şey planlandığı gibiydi.