Breakdown of Arabayla giderken otopark bulmak bazen çok zor oluyor.
olmak
to be
çok
very
gitmek
to go
bazen
sometimes
Questions & Answers about Arabayla giderken otopark bulmak bazen çok zor oluyor.
What exactly does arabayla mean, and why is it written that way instead of araba ile?
Arabayla literally means “with/by car” and expresses the means of transportation.
- araba = car
- ile = with / by
- araba ile → arabayla
In everyday Turkish, ile often merges with the preceding noun and becomes -la / -le, attached as a suffix:
- kalem ile → kalemle (with a pen)
- araba ile → arabayla (by car)
Both araba ile and arabayla are correct. Arabayla is more common and sounds more natural in speech. There is no meaning difference; it’s just a contracted form.
What does giderken mean exactly, and what is the function of the suffix -ken?
Giderken roughly means “while going” / “when (someone) goes”.
Breakdown:
- gitmek = to go
- gider- = aorist stem (“go/usually go”)
- -ken = while / when (during)
So giderken = “while (someone) is going / on the way / when (someone) goes”.
The suffix -ken attaches to certain verb forms to form a time clause that describes an action happening at the same time as the main verb:
- Yemek yerken film izliyorum. = I watch a movie while eating.
- Ders çalışırken müzik dinlemem. = I don’t listen to music while studying.
In your sentence, arabayla giderken = “while going by car / when we’re driving (somewhere)”.