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Questions & Answers about Erken kalkmayı seviyorum.
What are the parts of the sentence, morphologically?
- Erken: adverb meaning early.
- kalk-ma-y-ı: kalk (to get up) + -ma (verbal-noun maker “the act of V-ing”) + -y- (buffer letter) + -ı (accusative case). Together: the act of getting up as a direct object.
- sev-iyor-um: sev (to like/love) + -iyor (present continuous) + -um (1st person singular ending) = I am liking → I like.
What does the ending -mayı mean here?
It turns the verb kalkmak (to get up) into a noun phrase in the accusative: kalkmayı = (the act of) getting up as a direct object of another verb (here, sevmek).
Why is there a y in kalkmayı?
It’s a buffer letter. The verbal noun kalkma ends in a vowel, and the accusative -ı starts with a vowel. Turkish inserts -y- to avoid a vowel clash: kalkma + y + ı → kalkmayı.
Why is the accusative used on the verbal noun?
With verbs like sevmek (to like/love), the action-as-noun is treated as a direct object and is marked with the accusative. The natural pattern is: X yapmayı seviyorum = I like doing X. Leaving off the accusative here sounds wrong/unidiomatic.
Can I say Erken kalkmak seviyorum?
No. With sevmek, use the -mA + (y)I form: Erken kalkmayı seviyorum. The bare infinitive -mak/-mek does not work as a direct object of sevmek.
When do I use -mak instead of -mayı?
- Use -mak/-mek commonly when the verb phrase is the subject or after certain verbs/adjectives:
- Erken kalkmak zor. (Getting up early is hard.)
- Erken kalkmak istiyorum. (I want to get up early.)
- Use -mayı/-meyi/-mayı/-müyü (accusative) when it’s the direct object of verbs like sevmek, tercih etmek, denemek:
- Erken kalkmayı tercih ediyorum.
Why seviyorum and not severim?
Both can translate as “I like,” but:
- Severim (aorist) states a general/habitual preference: “I (generally) like…”
- Seviyorum (present continuous) can sound more immediate/current or emotionally engaged. In everyday speech, many people still use seviyorum for preferences.
Can I move words around? What about word order?
Turkish prefers the verb at the end. The default is object-before-verb:
- Neutral: Ben erken kalkmayı seviyorum.
- Focus on “I”: Erken kalkmayı ben seviyorum. Keeping the verb final is safest; putting seviyorum earlier is marked and usually for special emphasis.
What’s the difference between kalkmak and uyanmak?
- uyanmak = to wake up (become awake).
- kalkmak = to get up (get out of bed/stand up).
So Erken uyanmayı seviyorum = I like waking up early; Erken kalkmayı seviyorum = I like getting out of bed early.
How do I pronounce the dotless ı in kalkmayı?
Turkish ı is a close back unrounded vowel, like the “uh” in “sofa” but shorter and more central. It is not the English “i” sound. So kalkmayı sounds roughly like “kalk-muh-yuh.”
Do I need to say ben?
No. The ending -um in seviyorum already shows “I.” Ben is optional and adds emphasis/contrast: Ben erken kalkmayı seviyorum (as opposed to someone else).
How do I negate the sentence?
- Neutral negation: Erken kalkmayı sevmiyorum. (I don’t like getting up early.)
- Habitual negation (aorist): Erken kalkmayı sevmem. (I don’t like getting up early, generally.)
Do other “like/dislike” type verbs use different cases?
Yes, case requirements vary:
- hoşlanmak, nefret etmek, korkmak take ablative -DAn:
- Erken kalkmaktan hoşlanmıyorum / nefret ediyorum.
- başlamak, devam etmek, çalışmak (try to) take dative -A with the verbal noun:
- Erken kalkmaya başladım / devam ediyorum / çalışıyorum.
How do I ask “Do you like getting up early?”
Erken kalkmayı seviyor musun?
- mi is a question particle and harmonizes: mu/mü/mı/mi.
- musun = are you (2nd person singular).
How can I explicitly say whose “getting up” I like?
Use genitive + possessive on the -mA noun:
- Senin erken kalkmanı seviyorum. (I like your getting up early.)
- senin (your) + kalkman (your getting up) + -ı (accusative). If the subject is the same as the main clause (I like to get up), you normally don’t mark it: Erken kalkmayı seviyorum.
Is kalkma ever ambiguous?
Yes. Kalkma! (with imperative intonation) means Don’t get up! But in kalkmayı, the accusative makes it clearly a verbal noun (not an imperative).
Is there another natural way to say this idea?
Yes: Erken kalkmak hoşuma gidiyor.
Here erken kalkmak (with -mak) is the subject, and hoşuma gidiyor literally means “it goes to my liking,” i.e., “I like it.”