Inferred past conditional (-mışsa)

The Inferred Past Conditional (-mışsa)

To express "If it turns out that..." or "If they supposedly did..." based on a clue, rumor, or inference, combine the inferred past suffix -mIş with the conditional suffix -(y)sA.

Verb Stem + -mIş + -sA

Depending on vowel harmony, this forms -mışsa, -mişse, -muşsa, or -müşse.

If someone saw the poster, we have a chance of finding it.
Biri afişi görmüşse onu bulma ihtimalimiz var.
If the cat left paw prints, we have time to follow it.
Kedi pati izleri bırakmışsa onu takip etmek için zamanımız var.

Notice how gör (to see) takes -mişse and bırak (to leave) takes -mışsa.

Deducing Consequences

You can predict what is happening now (or what will happen next) based on what you suspect happened in the past:

If the dog barked, our poor cat is hiding now.
Köpek havlamışsa zavallı kedimiz şimdi saklanıyor.
If the trash can fell, the dog will start barking again.
Çöp tenekesi düşmüşse köpek tekrar havlamaya başlar.
If the car startled it, there is no chance of it returning home.
Araba onu ürkütmüşse eve dönme ihtimali yok.