Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.

I remember that you like this film.

Breakdown of Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.

• bu: this
• film: the film
• senin: your
• hatırlamak: to remember
• sevmek: to like

Questions & Answers about Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.

Why is senin used here instead of sen?

In this sentence, senin is in the genitive case (the “of” form: of you), not the normal subject form sen.

The structure senin bu filmi sevdiğini is a nominalized clause – it behaves like a noun phrase, meaning “your liking this movie / that you like this movie”.

In Turkish, when a verb is turned into a noun-like form with -dik/-dık/-duk/-dük (here: sevdiğin), its subject is marked with the genitive:

• senin sevdiğin = what you like (lit. “the one liked by you” / “your liking”)
• onun sevdiği = what he/she likes
• bizim sevdiğimiz = what we like

So:

• sen bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum → ungrammatical (subject of sevdiğini is wrong)
• senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum → grammatical

You can omit senin in casual speech if it’s obvious from context, but if you say it, it must be senin, not sen.

What exactly does sevdiğini consist of? Why does it look so long?

sevdiğini is made of several pieces:

• sev- → verb root: to love / to like
• -di- → part of the -dik nominalization pattern
• -ğ- → buffer consonant (appears because of vowel/consonant rules)
• -in (-in / -ın / -un / -ün) → 2nd person singular possessive: your
• -i → accusative case marker: the thing that is…

So:

• sev-diğ-in → “that you like / loved” (literally “your liked” or “the thing liked by you”)
• sev-diğ-in-i → that entire clause as the object of hatırlıyorum:
  • (senin bu filmi sevdiğin) = that you like this movie
  • (senin bu filmi sevdiğin)-i = you remember that (accusative)

In other words, sevdiğini is the “that-clause”: “that you like this movie” functioning as a noun, the thing being remembered.

Why does the sentence have two -i endings: in filmi and in sevdiğini?

They actually mark two different accusatives in two different layers of the sentence.

1. bu filmi

   • bu film = this movie
   • bu film-i = this movie (in accusative, as the object of sevmek)
   • Inside the clause senin bu filmi sevdiğin, bu filmi is what is liked: you like this movie.

2. sevdiğini

   • The whole phrase (senin bu filmi sevdiğin) turns into a noun-like object clause.
   • Then it takes -i to become the object of hatırlıyorum:
     • (senin bu filmi sevdiğin)-i hatırlıyorum = I remember that you like this movie.

So:

• Inner object: bu filmi → object of sevmek
• Outer object: sevdiğini → object of hatırlıyorum

Can I drop senin and just say Bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum?

Yes, this is very natural and common:

• Bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.

Turkish frequently drops pronouns if they are clear from context. The subject of sevdiğini is you (2nd person singular), which is already indicated by the -in in sevdiğin:

• sev-diğ-in → “that you like”

So if context makes it obvious we are talking about you, senin can be omitted and the sentence is still perfectly correct and idiomatic.

However, when you do use the pronoun, it must be in the genitive form senin, not sen.

Why is the subject of sevdiğini in the genitive (senin) instead of just being a normal subject?

Because Turkish treats many embedded clauses (like “that you like this movie”) as if they were possessed nouns rather than full finite clauses.

The pattern is:

[GENITIVE] + [VERB -dik + POSSESSIVE]

Examples:

• senin geldiğini duydum.
  I heard that you came.
  (lit. I heard your coming)

• onun başaracağını sanmıyorum.
  I don’t think that he/she will succeed.
  (lit. I don’t think his/her succeeding)

• bizim kazandığımızı biliyorsun.
  You know that we won.
  (lit. You know our winning)

In this structure, the subject is expressed as the “possessor” of the nominalized verb, hence the genitive (senin, onun, bizim, etc.).

Is sevdiğini really past tense? The English translation is “that you like this movie,” which is not past.

Formally, sevdiğini is based on the -dik form, which historically contains a past marker (-di-). However, when used as a nominalization in this kind of embedded clause, it does not always express simple past in the English sense.

The tense-aspect meaning depends on context and the main verb:

• Senin bu filmi sevdiğini biliyorum.
  I know you like this movie. (general present fact)

• Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.
  I remember (that) you like(d) this movie.
  → Could refer to a past state (you used to like it) or to a known characteristic.

• Senin dün geldiğini biliyorum.
  I know that you came yesterday.
  → Clearly past, because of dün (“yesterday”).

So -dik nominalizations are not a direct past tense equivalent; they’re more like “the fact that / the event that”, and the precise time is inferred from context.

Why is there a ğ in sevdiğini? Where does that come from?

The ğ here is a buffer consonant added for phonological reasons.

The nominalization suffix is -dik but it undergoes changes:

• After vowels, -dik becomes -dık / -dik / -duk / -dük or -tık / -tik / -tuk / -tük, and a ğ often appears as a buffer between vowels and suffixes.

In sevdiğini:

• Root: sev-
• Nominalization: -dik → -diğ- (with softening and buffer ğ)
• Then comes the possessive -in → sev-diğ-in

The ğ makes the transition between vowels smoother and is a regular part of how this suffix behaves.

What is the role of hatırlıyorum, and what tense is it?

hatırlıyorum is:

• Root: hatırla- → to remember
• Suffix: -yor → present continuous / present progressive
• Ending: -um (1st person singular) → I

So hatırlıyorum literally means “I am remembering”.

However, in natural English, we usually translate it as “I remember” (simple present), because English rarely uses the progressive with stative verbs like “remember”.

So:

• hatırlıyorum → grammatically present continuous in Turkish
• translated as simple present in English: “I remember”

Why don’t we use ki here, like hatırlıyorum ki?

In Turkish, there are two main ways to say “that …” clauses:

1. Using nominalized clauses with -dik/-dık/-duk/-dük and possessive endings:

   • Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.
     I remember that you like this movie.

2. Using ki:

   • Hatırlıyorum ki sen bu filmi seviyorsun.
     (I remember that you like this movie.)

The -dik type is more typical and more natural with verbs like bilmek, sanmak, duymak, hatırlamak, etc. The ki construction is possible but often sounds more formal, explanatory, or stylistically heavier.

So Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum is the default, most natural form.

Could I say Bu filmi seviyorsun diye hatırlıyorum instead? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say:

• Bu filmi seviyorsun diye hatırlıyorum.

Here diye introduces a clause that roughly means “I remember (it) as / I remember (thinking) that…”. The nuance:

• Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.
  Neutral statement: I remember that you like(d) this movie.
  → Focus on the fact remembered.

• Bu filmi seviyorsun diye hatırlıyorum.
  More like: I remember you as liking this movie / I have the impression you like this movie.
  → Slight nuance of “as far as I remember / I recall it this way”, sometimes with a hint of uncertainty.

Grammatically, both are correct; the -dik form is more directly factual.

Why is it bu filmi, not bunu film or bu film?

Because bu here is a determiner (like “this” before a noun), not a standalone pronoun.

• bu film = this movie (subject form)
• bu film-i = this movie (accusative object form)

You cannot say bunu film; that would be mixing a pronoun (bunu = “this (thing)” as object) with a noun incorrectly.

Correct possibilities:

• Bu film güzel. → This movie is good. (subject)
• Bu filmi seviyorum. → I like this movie. (object; accusative -i)

In your sentence, bu film is the object of sevmek, so it takes -i: bu filmi.

Could I change the word order, like Bu filmi senin sevdiğini hatırlıyorum or Ben senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum?

Yes. Turkish word order is relatively flexible, and you can move elements around for emphasis:

• Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.
  Neutral, slightly emphasizing you as the liker of the movie.

• Bu filmi senin sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.
  Emphasizes this movie in contrast to other things:
  I remember that it’s *you who likes this movie (as opposed to someone else or something else).*

• Ben senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum.
  Adds ben for extra emphasis:
  I (as opposed to someone else) remember that you like this movie.

The core grammar (cases, suffixes) does not change; word order mainly affects focus/emphasis, not basic meaning.

Is there any difference between sevmek as “to love” and “to like” in this sentence?

sevmek can mean both “to love” and “to like”, depending on context and object.

With things like films, music, food, sevmek usually corresponds to English “to like”:

• Bu filmi seviyorum. → I like this movie.
• Kahveyi seviyorum. → I like coffee.

It can also be strong, like “to love”, but English often prefers “like” for objects.

So Senin bu filmi sevdiğini hatırlıyorum can be translated as:

• I remember you like this movie.
• I remember you loved this movie.

The choice between “like” and “love” depends on nuance and context in English, not on a different Turkish verb here.