Learn Hardcore Turkish: Ben notları kopyalayıp yeni dosyaya yapıştırdım. - I copied the notes and pasted them into a new file.

You can drop it. The ending -dım on yapıştırdım already tells us the subject is first-person singular. Including Ben adds emphasis (I, as opposed to someone else) or contrast.

What does the suffix -Ip in kopyalayıp do?

It’s a converb that links verbs, roughly “and (then).” It means the actions are done by the same subject in sequence: “copy (and) paste.” Only the final verb carries tense/polarity/person; the -Ip verb is untensed.

Why is there a y in both kopyalayıp and dosyaya?

It’s a buffer consonant inserted to avoid two vowels colliding:

kopyala + ıp → kopyalayıp
dosya + a → dosyaya Turkish inserts y when a suffix beginning with a vowel follows a vowel-final stem.

Why is it notları and not notlar?

Because the direct object is specific/definite, it takes the accusative: -ı/‑i/‑u/‑ü → not-lar-ı. If the object were indefinite, you would not use the accusative (e.g., birkaç not kopyalayıp…, “copy a few notes…”).

Could notları also mean “his/her notes”?

Yes. notları is ambiguous between:

plural accusative: “the notes”
3rd-person possessive plural: “his/her notes” Context disambiguates. To make possession explicit, use a possessor: onun notları.

Does not mean “notes” or “grades” in Turkish?

Both exist. not commonly means “grade/mark.” For written notes, notlar is fine, but many speakers say ders notları (“lecture/class notes”) to avoid confusion.

Why is it yeni dosyaya (dative) instead of yeni dosyada (locative)?

The verb yapıştırmak (to paste) selects the dative -A for the target: you paste “into/onto” something. The locative -DA means “in/at” and wouldn’t fit here.

Should I say yeni bir dosyaya? What does adding bir do?

bir marks indefiniteness (“a new file”). Without bir, yeni dosyaya can be indefinite or contextually definite (“to the new file”). If you want to clearly mean “to a new file,” adding bir is a good idea: yeni bir dosyaya.

Can I say kopyaladım ve yapıştırdım instead of using -Ip?

Yes: notları kopyaladım ve yeni dosyaya yapıştırdım is correct. Nuances:

-Ip tightly links same-subject actions as one flow (often “and then”).
ve is a plain coordinator and doesn’t enforce same-subject or sequence by itself (though context often implies both).

Why does only the last verb have tense and person (yapıştırdım)?

With -Ip chaining, the first verb is a non-finite converb (no tense/person). The final finite verb (yapıştırdım) carries tense, polarity, and agreement for the whole chain.

How do I negate only one of the actions?

Negate the second (finite) verb: … kopyalayıp … yapıştırmadım (“… copied … but didn’t paste”).
Negate the first action in the converb: use -mAyIp or, more naturally, -madan (“without …ing”):
- Notları kopyalamadan yeni dosyaya yapıştırdım = “I pasted without copying” (odd in meaning, but grammatical).
- Notları kopyalamayıp yeni dosyaya yapıştırdım is also possible but less common in careful style.

Can the object be omitted before the second verb?

Yes. In kopyalayıp … yapıştırdım, the object notları of the first verb is understood as the object of the second. Repeating it (… notları … yapıştırdım) is usually redundant unless you need clarity or contrast. A pronoun (onları) is also possible but generally unnecessary.

Can I change the word order?

Turkish word order is flexible. You can move constituents for emphasis:

Notları kopyalayıp yeni dosyaya yapıştırdım (neutral).
Yeni dosyaya notları kopyalayıp yapıştırdım (emphasizes destination). Keep complements close to their verbs to maintain clarity.

How do I pick -ıp/-ip/-up/-üp in -Ip?

Vowel harmony. Choose the allomorph that matches the last vowel of the stem:

Back vowels (a, ı, o, u) → -ıp/-up
Front vowels (e, i, ö, ü) → -ip/-üp Since kopyala ends with a, we use -ıp, and add buffer y: kopyala-y-ıp.

Why is it dosyaya and not dosyeye?

Dative -A harmonizes to -a/-e. After a vowel-final stem, buffer y is inserted: dosya + y + a → dosyaya. The last vowel is a, so it stays a, not e.

What are the parts of each word?

Ben = I
not-lar-ı = note-PL-ACC (or POSS.3SG-PL; ambiguous without context)
kopyala-y-ıp = copy-VB.buff-AND/SEQ.converb
yeni = new
dosya-ya = file-DAT (with buffer y)
yapış-tır-dı-m = stick-CAUS-PST-1SG → “(I) caused to stick” = “I pasted”

Is kopyalayıp yapıştırmak a fixed expression in Turkish?

Yes. It’s a common pair, and as a noun phrase kopyala‑yapıştır means “copy‑paste” (often used to describe doing something mechanically).

Can I chain more than two actions with -Ip?

Yes: you can stack them before the final finite verb, e.g., … açıp, notları kopyalayıp, yeni dosyaya yapıştırdım (“opened, copied the notes, and pasted them into the new file”). Only the last verb is inflected.