The "As If Doing" Converb: -casına / -cesine
To describe an action done with extreme intensity or in a dramatic manner, Turkish uses the converb -casına or -cesine (with -çasına / -çesine variants after voiceless consonants). It translates directly to "as if doing [verb]."
To form this converb for an ongoing action, attach the suffix to the aorist (simple present) form of the verb. Because the aorist always ends in the consonant -r, you will exclusively use -casına (back vowels) or -cesine (front vowels).
| Verb | Aorist | Converb | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| uçmak | uçar | uçarcasına | as if flying |
| yarışmak | yarışır | yarışırcasına | as if racing |
| tüketmek | tüketir | tüketircesine | as if consuming |
| The competitive team is running as if flying to finish the presentation on time. | Rekabetçi takım, sunumu yetiştirmek için uçarcasına koşuyor. |
| The competitive candidates were answering the questions as if racing. | Rekabetçi adaylar, soruları yarışırcasına cevaplıyordu. |
Extreme Ambition and Effort
Because this structure emphasizes intense degree and manner, it is the perfect tool for describing a busy, highly driven environment. It turns a standard verb into a vivid metaphor for hard work.
| The ambitious student was reading the book as if devouring it to finish the assignment on time. | Hırslı öğrenci, ödevi yetiştirmek için kitabı yutarcasına okuyordu. |
| The ambitious employees are working as if fighting the enemy to finish the project on time. | Hırslı çalışanlar, projeyi yetiştirmek için düşmanla savaşırcasına çalışıyorlar. |
Chaos and Tension
This converb is equally useful for describing chaotic, overwhelming, or stressful situations—such as working under pressure or wrestling with difficult problems.
| The engineer was coding as if going crazy in order to increase productivity. | Mühendis, verimliliği artırmak için çıldırırcasına kodluyordu. |
| Because of the tension, the competitive teams are working as if struggling with each other. | Gerginlik yüzünden rekabetçi takımlar birbiriyle boğuşurcasına çalışıyor. |
| I realized that the boss was exploiting the workers as if consuming all their energy. | Patronun, işçileri bütün enerjilerini tüketircesine sömürdüğünü fark ettim. |