Sign inSign up

Tesadüfen eski arkadaşımı parkta gördüm.

Tesadüfen eski arkadaşımı parkta gördüm.
By chance, I saw my old friend in the park.

Breakdown of Tesadüfen eski arkadaşımı parkta gördüm.

benim
my
arkadaş
the friend
park
the park
eski
old
görmek
to see
-ta
in
tesadüfen
by chance
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Turkish grammar and vocabulary.

Start learning Turkish now

Questions & Answers about Tesadüfen eski arkadaşımı parkta gördüm.

What exactly does the word arkadaşımı consist of?

It’s built from three parts:

  • arkadaş = friend
  • -ım = my (1st person singular possessive)
  • -ı = the accusative case (marks a specific/definite direct object)

So arkadaşımı means “my friend” as a definite object. Other useful forms:

  • arkadaşım = my friend (no case)
  • arkadaşıma = to my friend (dative)
  • arkadaşımdan = from my friend (ablative)
  • arkadaşımla = with my friend (comitative -la/-le)
Is the mı in arkadaşımı the yes/no question particle?

No. The -mı you see is not the question particle; it’s part of the possessive + accusative ending (-ım + -ı → -ımı).
The yes/no question particle (mı/mi/mu/mü) is a separate word and is written separately:

  • Onu gördün mü? = Did you see him/her?
  • Arkadaşımı mı gördün? = Was it my friend that you saw? (Here mı is separate.)
Why is the object marked with the accusative (-ı)?

In Turkish, a direct object takes the accusative if it’s specific/definite.

  • Eski arkadaşımı gördüm. = I saw my old friend. (specific)
  • Eski bir arkadaş gördüm. = I saw an old friend. (indefinite, not necessarily “my” friend)
  • Bir arkadaşımı gördüm. = I saw one of my friends. (indefinite within my set of friends)
Does eski mean “old in age” or “former/longtime”?
  • eski usually means “former/old (from long ago),” not about age.
    • eski arkadaşım = an old/longtime/former friend (often someone you’ve known for a long time)
  • For age, use yaşlı (elderly): yaşlı bir adam = an old man (elderly).
  • If you want to avoid implying you’re no longer friends, çok eski bir arkadaşım (a very old/longtime friend) is common.
  • For “no longer my friend,” you can clarify with context, e.g., artık arkadaşım olmayan biri.
Why is there no ben (“I”) in the sentence?

Turkish marks the subject on the verb. gördüm already encodes “I saw.”
You may add Ben for emphasis or contrast: Ben tesadüfen… gördüm (I, as opposed to someone else).

Can I move tesadüfen to other positions? Does the meaning change?

Yes. Word order is flexible; the core meaning stays, but emphasis shifts.

  • Tesadüfen eski arkadaşımı parkta gördüm. (neutral, adverb early)
  • Parkta tesadüfen eski arkadaşımı gördüm. (mild focus on the circumstance)
  • Eski arkadaşımı parkta tesadüfen gördüm. (stronger focus on “by chance,” since it’s near the end) Generally, elements near the end of the sentence receive more focus.
Is there a more idiomatic verb than görmek for a chance encounter?

Yes, two very common ones:

  • rastlamak (to come across) + dative: Parkta eski arkadaşıma rastladım.
  • karşılaşmak (to run into) + comitative: Parkta eski arkadaşımla karşılaştım. These already imply it was by chance, so tesadüfen is optional for extra emphasis.
Why is it parkta and not parkda?

The locative suffix is -DA but it harmonizes and also switches to -TA after a voiceless consonant.
Since “park” ends with voiceless k, you get -ta → parkta (“in the park”).
Compare: evde (in the house), okulda (at school), but köprüde (on the bridge), sokakta (in the street).

Could I say parka instead of parkta?

No; they mean different things.

  • parkta = in the park (locative)
  • parka = to the park (dative, direction) Your sentence needs the locative: the seeing happened in the park.
How is gördüm formed?
  • Verb root: gör- (to see)
  • Simple past suffix: -DI, which becomes -dü by vowel harmony (last vowel of the root is front/rounded “ö” → “ü”)
  • 1st person singular: -m Result: gör-dü-m = “I saw.”
    After voiceless consonants, the past suffix uses -t (e.g., git-ti = “(he) went”).
    Negative: görmedim (I didn’t see).
    Question: Gördün mü? (Did you see?)
How would I say “I saw my old friends” (plural)?

Use the plural and keep the accusative:

  • Eski arkadaşlarımı parkta gördüm.
    Here: arkadaşlar-ım-ı = my friends (accusative).
How do I say it with a pronoun instead of “my old friend”?
  • Onu parkta tesadüfen gördüm. = I saw him/her in the park by chance.
  • Onları parkta tesadüfen gördüm. = I saw them in the park by chance.
    Turkish pronouns are gender-neutral: o/onu can mean he or she.
Can I use yanlışlıkla or kazara instead of tesadüfen?

Not here.

  • tesadüfen / şans eseri = by chance, coincidentally (appropriate for running into someone).
  • yanlışlıkla / kazara = by mistake, accidentally (for doing something unintentionally, like dropping or breaking something).
    Saying you “accidentally saw” someone sounds odd in Turkish too.
Is park the same as bahçe?

No.

  • park = a public park.
  • bahçe = a garden/yard (private or part of a house/school).
    So your sentence specifically means it happened in a public park.