Learn Hardcore Turkish: O kadar yorgunum ki bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum. - I am so tired that I don’t even want to go out today.

o kadar yorgunum → I am so tired
ki introduces the result of that intensity:
bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum → that today I don’t even want to go out.

So the whole first part and ki give you:

O kadar yorgunum ki … → I’m so tired that …

This pattern is productive:

O kadar mutluyum ki ağlayacağım.
I’m so happy that I’m going to cry.
O kadar acıktım ki yürüyemiyorum.
I’m so hungry that I can’t walk.

Why is it yorgunum and not just yorgun for “I am tired”?

In Turkish, you often attach personal endings directly to adjectives to say “I am X / you are X / he is X”.

yorgun = tired (adjective)
yorgun + um → yorgunum = I am tired

The -um is the 1st person singular ending (shaped by vowel harmony). So:

mutlu → mutluyum (I am happy)
hazır → hazırım (I am ready)
hasta → hastayım (I am sick)

You can say just yorgun in some contexts, but then it’s usually descriptive, not a full sentence. For example:

Bugün çok yorgun. → He/She is very tired today.
Or in a list: Yorgun, aç ve sinirli. → Tired, hungry and angry.

To clearly say “I am tired” as a full statement, use yorgunum.

What exactly is ki doing here? Is it the same ki as in other sentences?

In this sentence, ki is a conjunction that links a cause and a result, like English “that” in “so … that …”.

O kadar yorgunum (I am so tired)
ki → that
… bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum. (… that I don’t even want to go out today.)

So here ki is part of the pattern o kadar … ki.

You will meet ki in a few different roles in Turkish:

As this conjunction:
- O kadar korktum ki ağlayacaktım.
  I was so scared that I was about to cry.
As an emphatic particle:
- O kadar yorgunum ki! (with exclamation)
  More like: I’m SO tired! (strong emphasis, may not even need a result clause.)
In some fixed expressions (influenced by Persian):
- halbuki (whereas, however)
- mademki (since, given that)

The ki here is not a relative pronoun like English “who/which/that”. It’s mainly just gluing the two parts of the “so … that …” structure together.

What does bile mean here, and why is it next to çıkmak?

Bile means “even” in the sense of “not even / even this”.

In the sentence:

dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum
→ I don’t even want to go out.

The bile emphasizes how strong the feeling is: even going out (which would normally be quite easy or pleasant) is something the speaker doesn’t want.

Placement:
Bile comes right after the word or phrase it is emphasizing:

Ben bile anlamadım. → Even I didn’t understand.
Bugün çay bile içmedim. → I didn’t even drink tea today.
Dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum. → I don’t even want to go out.

If we moved bile, the emphasis changes:

Bugün bile dışarı çıkmak istemiyorum. → I don’t want to go out even today.
(Emphasis is on today, not on going out.)

So in your sentence, bile is next to çıkmak because the speaker is stressing the action of going out.

Why is çıkmak in the infinitive form?

Çıkmak is the infinitive: to go out / to exit / to come out.

Verbs like istemek (to want) usually take another verb in the infinitive as their object:

gitmek istiyorum → I want to go.
uyumak istiyorum → I want to sleep.
dışarı çıkmak istemiyorum → I don’t want to go out.

So structurally:

dışarı çıkmak = to go out (infinitive phrase)
istemiyorum = I don’t want
dışarı çıkmak istemiyorum = I don’t want to go out.

This is the normal way to say “want to do X” in Turkish:
X-mak / -mek + istemek.

How is istemiyorum formed, and why not just istemem?

İstemiyorum is made of several pieces:

iste- → verb root (to want)
-me- → negative marker (not)
-yor- → present continuous/progressive
-um → 1st person singular ending

So:

iste-me-yor-um → istemiyorum
I am not wanting / I don’t want

In modern everyday Turkish, istemiyorum is the default for “I don’t want (now)”, even though it literally looks like a continuous tense.

İstemem is also correct but sounds different:

istemem = iste- + -me- + -m
→ simple present, often used for general habits / rules, or in a more formal or neutral style:
- Ben kahve istemem. → I (generally) don’t want coffee / I don’t (usually) take coffee.

In daily conversation, if you mean right now / today / in this situation, you almost always use:

istemiyorum → I don’t want (now / in this situation).

So in the sentence bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum, the progressive form sounds natural and conversational.

Can I change the word order, for example to Bugün o kadar yorgunum ki… or Bugün dışarı bile çıkmak istemiyorum?

Yes, Turkish word order is flexible, and both of those variants are natural, with slight shifts in emphasis.

Bugün o kadar yorgunum ki dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum.
- Emphasis at the start on today.
- Today, I’m so tired that I don’t even want to go out.
O kadar yorgunum ki bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum. (original)
- Slightly more neutral, still clear that today is the relevant time.
Bugün dışarı bile çıkmak istemiyorum.
- This drops the o kadar yorgunum ki part.
- Means simply: Today I don’t even want to go out.
- More focused on the refusal to go out today; the reason (being tired) is no longer stated.

With bile, remember: its position changes the emphasis:

Bugün dışarı bile çıkmak istemiyorum.
→ I don’t even want to go *outside today.*
Bugün bile dışarı çıkmak istemiyorum.
→ I don’t want to go out *even today.*

What’s the difference between O kadar yorgunum ki… and Çok yorgunum?

Both express being very tired, but they feel different:

Çok yorgunum.
→ I’m very tired.
- Simple intensity.
- No automatic expectation of a result or consequence.
O kadar yorgunum ki …
→ I’m so tired that …
- Suggests a consequence is coming: something you can’t / don’t want to do because of that tiredness.
- Naturally followed by a result clause, like in your sentence.

Compare:

Çok yorgunum, ama yine de gelirim.
I’m very tired, but I’ll come anyway.
O kadar yorgunum ki gelemem.
I’m so tired that I can’t come.

So o kadar … ki is stronger and more dramatic, and it invites a “therefore …” part.

Why is bugün placed before dışarı çıkmak and not at the very beginning of the whole sentence?

Both are possible, but the chosen position slightly shapes the rhythm and focus.

Original:

O kadar yorgunum ki bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum.

If you put bugün at the very start:

Bugün o kadar yorgunum ki dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum.

Meaning-wise, there’s almost no difference. Subtle points:

Bugün o kadar yorgunum ki…
→ Sets “today” as the frame for the whole feeling (today I’m so tired that…).
O kadar yorgunum ki bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum.
→ First highlights how tired you are, then specifies that the result applies to today’s going out.

Both are natural. Turkish doesn’t rely on word order for basic grammar as much as English does; it uses it more for information structure and emphasis.

Could I split this into two sentences in Turkish, like: O kadar yorgunum. Bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum. Is that natural?

Yes, that is natural and often done in speech:

O kadar yorgunum. Bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum.

This sounds like two separate but clearly related statements:

I’m so tired.
Today I don’t even want to go out.

Using ki in a single sentence makes the relationship more explicit and tighter:

O kadar yorgunum ki bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorum.
→ I’m so tired that I don’t even want to go out today.

So:

One long sentence with ki → more formal/connected, classic written style.
Two shorter sentences → slightly more casual / conversational, but perfectly correct.

How would this sentence change if the subject were we or they instead of I?

You mainly change the personal endings on yorgun- and istemiyor-.

We (biz):

O kadar yorgunuz ki bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyoruz.

Breakdown:

yorgun-uz → we are tired
istemiyor-uz → we don’t want

They (onlar):

O kadar yorgunlar ki bugün dışarı çıkmak bile istemiyorlar.

Breakdown:

yorgun-lar → they are tired
istemiyor-lar → they don’t want

So the pattern is:

yorgun + personal ending
istemiyor + personal ending

While everything else (o kadar … ki, bugün, dışarı çıkmak bile) stays the same.