Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin var mı?

Is the dog allowed to go out onto the balcony?

Breakdown of Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin var mı?

• köpek: the dog
• çıkmak: to go out
• balkon: the balcony
• -a: to
• var: to be
• -in: of
• izin: the permission

Questions & Answers about Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin var mı?

What does the structure izin var mı literally mean, and why does it mean “Is it allowed?”

• izin = permission
• var = there is/exists
• mı = yes/no question particle (harmonized form) So the sentence literally asks “Is there permission (for …)?” This is the standard Turkish way to ask about permission, not ability. Typical answers: Evet, var. (Yes, there is.) / Hayır, yok. (No, there isn’t.)

Why is köpeğin in the genitive case?

With verbal nouns, Turkish marks the doer (agent) in the genitive and puts a possessive suffix on the verbal noun. Pattern:

• [Agent-GEN] [V-mA-3SG.POSS] Here, köpeğin = “the dog’s,” and çıkması = “its going out,” together meaning “the dog’s going out.”

What exactly is inside çıkmasına?

It’s built step by step:

• çık- (go out)
• -mA → çıkma (verbal noun: going out)
• -(s)I → çıkması (3sg possessive, agreeing with the genitive agent)
• -(n)A → çıkmasına (dative, “to/for its going out”) Notes: The s appears because the base ends in a vowel, and the n is a buffer added before a case suffix after a 3rd person possessive.

Why do we have two datives: balkona and çıkmasına?

They serve different roles:

• balkon-a: dative of destination required by the motion verb çıkmak (go out onto the balcony).
• çıkma-sı-na: dative marking the target of permission in the construction X’e izin var (“there is permission for X”). So one dative is for motion (onto the balcony), the other is for permission (for the act of going out).

Could I say Köpeğin balkona çıkmaya izni var mı? instead?

Yes. That variant attaches possessive to izin instead of the verbal noun:

• Köpeğin [balkona çıkmaya] izni var mı? = “Does the dog have permission to go onto the balcony?” Both this and Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin var mı? are natural. The first highlights “the dog’s permission,” the second “permission for the dog’s going out.”

Why not use the infinitive çıkmak here?

The infinitive -mak/-mek doesn’t take possessive and case the way -mA verbal nouns do. Because you need to mark whose action and add a case (dative), Turkish uses -mA: çıkmasına, not çıkmak.

Can I just say Köpek balkona çıkabilir mi?

Yes. -bilir can mean “can/may,” so this asks about permission (or ability) more directly: “Can the dog go out onto the balcony?” The izin var mı version is a bit more formal/explicitly about permission rather than ability.

Where does the question particle go, and why is it mı (not mi)?

• The particle mi/mı/mu/mü is written separately but cliticizes to the preceding word. Here it attaches to var: var mı.
• Its vowel follows harmony with the word it attaches to. var has a back vowel, so we use mı (not mi).

Why is it balkona and not balkonda?

• balkon-a (dative): motion toward/onto → with çıkmak (to go out onto).
• balkon-da (locative): static location → would fit with olmak/kalmak (to be/stay). For example: Balkonda olmasına izin var mı? = “Is there permission for it to be on the balcony?”

How would I make the question negative, like “Isn’t the dog allowed …?”

Use yok instead of var:

• Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin yok mu? Answers typically match the polarity: Hayır, yok. (No, there isn’t.) / Evet, var. (Yes, there is.)

Does köpeğin ever mean “your dog,” and is that a problem here?

Yes, köpeğin can be “your dog” (2sg possessive, nominative). But in this sentence it’s clearly genitive (“the dog’s”) because it stands before a possessed verbal noun (çıkması). If you needed to be crystal clear, you could say:

• O köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin var mı? (that dog’s)
• Senin köpeğinin balkona çıkmasına izin var mı? (your dog’s)

How do I say it for my dog or for multiple dogs?

• My dog: Köpeğimin balkona çıkmasına izin var mı?
• Plural (dogs): Köpeklerin balkona çıkmalarına izin var mı? (Note the plural possessive on the verbal noun: çıkmalarına.)

What’s going on with the consonant change in köpeğin?

It’s consonant softening (ünsüz yumuşaması). Many nouns ending in -k change k → ğ before a vowel-initial suffix:

• köpek → köpeğin / köpeği / köpeğe

Is there a more explicit way to ask “Do you allow…?” to a person?

Yes:

• Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin veriyor musunuz? (Do you allow it?)
• More formal: Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına izin verir misiniz?

Any near-synonymous, more polite alternative?

You can ask about objections instead of permission:

• Köpeğin balkona çıkmasına sakınca var mı? = “Is there any objection to the dog going onto the balcony?” This can sound slightly softer/politer.