İlk açıklama akla yatkın geldi.

A natural breakdown is:

• İlk = first, initial
• açıklama = explanation, statement, account
• akla yatkın = plausible, reasonable, believable
• geldi = came, but here more naturally seemed or struck someone as

So the whole sentence means something like:

• The first explanation seemed plausible.
• The initial explanation sounded reasonable.

That is a very common question. Yes, gelmek basically means to come, but Turkish often uses it in patterns where it means to seem, to feel, or to strike someone as.

For example:

• Tuhaf geldi. = It seemed strange.
• İyi geldi. = It felt good / It did me good.
• Mantıklı geldi. = It seemed logical.

So in İlk açıklama akla yatkın geldi, the idea is not physical movement. It means the explanation came across as plausible.

Because the expression is akla yatkın, and akıl takes the dative ending here.

• akıl = mind, reason
• akla = to the mind / to reason

This phrase literally suggests something like:

• suited to the mind
• acceptable to reason

That is why the meaning becomes plausible or reasonable.

Also, notice that akıl changes to akla, not akıla. This is because akıl is one of the nouns that drop a vowel before certain suffixes.

So:

• akıl → akla
• not akıla

Akla yatkın is a set phrase meaning:

• plausible
• reasonable
• believable
• making sense

Literally, it is something like inclined toward the mind/reason or fitting to reason.

The adjective yatkın by itself can mean:

• inclined to
• prone to
• suitable for
• disposed toward

But in this fixed expression, you should mostly learn akla yatkın as a whole phrase meaning plausible.

They are similar, but not always identical.

• mantıklı = logical
• akla yatkın = plausible, reasonable, believable

A rough difference:

• mantıklı focuses more on logic.
• akla yatkın focuses more on whether something sounds convincing or makes sense to reason.

So İlk açıklama mantıklı geldi and İlk açıklama akla yatkın geldi are both possible, but the nuance is a little different.

Turkish often leaves that out when it is obvious, unimportant, or meant generally.

So:

• İlk açıklama akla yatkın geldi. = The first explanation seemed plausible.
• Bana ilk açıklama akla yatkın geldi. = The first explanation seemed plausible to me.

If the speaker wants to make the personal viewpoint explicit, they can add bana.

Because Turkish does not have definite and indefinite articles like English the and a/an.

So ilk açıklama can mean:

• the first explanation
• first explanation

English usually needs an article, so in most contexts the first explanation is the natural translation.

The definiteness comes from context, not from a separate word.

Yes. This is a very normal Turkish order.

• İlk açıklama = subject
• akla yatkın = predicate complement
• geldi = verb

Turkish often puts the main verb at the end, so this sentence follows a common pattern.

You may see other word orders for emphasis, but this version is neutral and natural.

Yes, but the nuance changes.

• İlk açıklama akla yatkındı. = The first explanation was plausible.
• İlk açıklama akla yatkın geldi. = The first explanation seemed plausible.

So:

• -dı / -di states a quality more directly.
• geldi presents it more as an impression or judgment.

In many situations, geldi sounds more natural if you mean it seemed to me rather than making an absolute statement.

Because here açıklama is the subject of the sentence, so it stays in its basic form.

• İlk açıklama = the first explanation
• no case ending is needed here

The marked form in this sentence is akla, because that expression requires the dative.

So the important grammar point is:

• açıklama is the thing being judged
• akla is part of the phrase meaning reasonable/plausible to the mind