To express that a basic task is impossible—making a more ambitious goal completely out of the question—use the Turkish equivalents of "let alone" or "never mind".
"Let Alone" with Nouns
There are two main phrases used to express this dismissive contrast:
| let alone / aside | bir yana |
| let alone / never mind (much less) | şöyle dursun |
When dismissing physical objects or people, place the noun immediately before bir yana or şöyle dursun. The second part of the sentence often includes bile (even) to emphasize the failure of the more basic expectation.
| Let alone philanthropists, nobody came to the hall. | Hayırseverler bir yana, salona kimse gelmedi. |
| Let alone the banners, they didn't even bring the chairs. | Pankartlar şöyle dursun, sandalyeleri bile getirmediler. |
"Let Alone" with Verbs
To express "let alone doing [action]", attach the infinitive -mAk suffix (following 2-way vowel harmony) to the verb stem before bir yana or şöyle dursun:
Verb Stem + -mAk + bir yana / şöyle dursun
Both phrases function exactly the same way:
| Let alone preventing the chaos, we could not even coordinate the event. | Kaosu önlemek bir yana, etkinliği bile koordine edemedik. |
| Let alone thanking the philanthropists, I am very embarrassed towards them. | Hayırseverlere teşekkür etmek şöyle dursun, onlara karşı çok mahcubum. |
The clause before bir yana or şöyle dursun represents the higher, more difficult expectation that has been abandoned.
| Let alone hanging the banners, we completely messed up. | Pankartları asmak bir yana, tamamen çuvalladık. |
| Let alone coping with this disgrace, we won't even be able to open the doors. | Bu rezaletle başa çıkmak bir yana, kapıları bile açamayacağız. |