Questions & Answers about Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor.
Why is Onlar there? Can Turkish leave it out?
Yes. Turkish often drops subject pronouns when the subject is clear from context.
So Çok pahalı görünüyor. can also be a perfectly natural sentence.
Adding Onlar can:
- make the subject clearer
- add contrast, like they in They look very expensive, not the others
- help if you are pointing out which things you mean
So Onlar is possible, but not always necessary.
What does görünüyor come from?
Görünüyor comes from the verb görünmek.
A simple breakdown is:
- görün- = appear / be seen / look
- -üyor = present continuous-style ending
So görünüyor means something like:
- is appearing
- appears
- looks
- seems
In natural English for this sentence, looks or seems is usually best.
Also, görünmek is related to görmek (to see), but it does not mean to see here.
Why is it görünüyor and not görünüyorlar if Onlar means they?
This is a very common question.
In Turkish, third-person plural agreement is often looser than in English. When the subject is already clearly plural, the verb may stay in the third-person singular form.
So Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor is natural, especially if onlar refers to things, not people.
You may also hear görünüyorlar, especially:
- with people
- when the speaker wants to stress the plural subject
- in more explicit or careful speech
So:
- Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor. = very natural
- Onlar çok pahalı görünüyorlar. = also possible in some contexts
What does çok mean here?
Here, çok means very.
It is modifying the adjective pahalı.
So:
- çok pahalı = very expensive
In other contexts, çok can also mean:
- many
- much
- a lot
But before an adjective like pahalı, it usually means very.
What kind of word is pahalı? Does it change for plural?
Pahalı is an adjective meaning expensive.
Turkish adjectives do not change for singular/plural or gender.
So the same form is used with:
- one thing
- many things
- masculine/feminine subjects
Examples:
- Bu pahalı. = This is expensive.
- Bunlar pahalı. = These are expensive.
So even though onlar is plural, pahalı stays pahalı.
How is Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor different from just Onlar çok pahalı?
The difference is about certainty and appearance.
Onlar çok pahalı. = They are very expensive.
This is a direct statement.Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor. = They look / seem very expensive.
This is based on appearance or impression.
So görünüyor adds the idea of it seems that...
Is görünmek the same as görmek or bakmak?
No, they are different verbs:
- görmek = to see
- bakmak = to look at
- görünmek = to appear / to be visible / to look / to seem
In this sentence, the subject is the thing giving an impression, so görünmek is the right verb.
A rough comparison:
- Onlara bakıyorum. = I am looking at them.
- Onları görüyorum. = I see them.
- Onlar pahalı görünüyor. = They look expensive.
Does görünüyor literally mean a present continuous form like is looking?
Grammatically, -yor is the Turkish present continuous marker, but its meaning is often broader than the English -ing form.
So görünüyor can mean:
- is appearing
- appears
- looks
- seems
In this sentence, English usually uses look or seem, not are looking.
That is normal. Turkish -yor does not always match English -ing exactly.
Could onlar mean those instead of they?
Yes, depending on context.
Onlar can function like:
- they
- those
- those ones
If you are talking about some visible items, Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor could feel like Those look very expensive.
If you are referring back to previously mentioned people or things, it may feel more like They look very expensive.
Context decides which English version sounds best.
Can the word order change?
Yes. Turkish word order is flexible, though some orders sound more neutral than others.
Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor is a normal, neutral order.
You might also hear different orders for emphasis, such as:
- Çok pahalı görünüyorlar.
- Pahalı görünüyor onlar.
This is more marked and depends on context.
For learners, the safest version is the original:
- Onlar çok pahalı görünüyor.
Why is there no separate word for are, like in English?
Turkish often does not use a separate present-tense to be word the way English does.
In this sentence, the main verb is görünüyor, so there is no need for a separate are.
Even in a sentence without görünüyor, Turkish often leaves the present-tense copula unspoken:
- Onlar çok pahalı. = They are very expensive.
So Turkish handles to be very differently from English.
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