Büyük şehirde ulaşım sorunu var.

There is a transportation problem in the big city.

Breakdown of Büyük şehirde ulaşım sorunu var.

• olmak: to be
• büyük: big
• şehir: the city
• -de: in

Questions & Answers about Büyük şehirde ulaşım sorunu var.

What does şehirde mean, and what does the ending -de do?

Şehirde means in the city or at the city depending on context.

The ending -de is the locative case suffix. It shows location and often corresponds to English in, on, at.

• şehir = city
• şehirde = in the city

In Turkish, case endings are attached directly to the noun, so it is written as one word.

Why is it -de here and not -da, -te, or -ta?

This suffix changes form because of two sound rules:

1. Vowel harmony decides between -de / -te and -da / -ta
   The last vowel of şehir is i, which is a front vowel, so the suffix uses e:

   • şehir + de

2. Consonant harmony decides between d and t
   Since şehir ends in r, which is a voiced consonant, the suffix uses d, not t.

So:

• şehirde = correct

Why does büyük come before şehir?