The Negative Past Continuous
To say that someone "was not doing" or "used not to do" something, use the negative past continuous ending -mıyordu (or -miyordu, -muyordu, -müyordu, depending on vowel harmony).
Personal suffixes are added to the very end (for example, -m for "I" or -k for "we").
| Pronoun | Example (çalışmak) | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Ben | çalışmıyordum | I was not working |
| Sen | çalışmıyordun | You were not working |
| O | çalışmıyordu | He/she/it was not working |
| Biz | çalışmıyorduk | We were not working |
| Siz | çalışmıyordunuz | You (pl) were not working |
| Onlar | çalışmıyorlardı | They were not working |
| Yesterday there was no electricity and the machine was not working. | Dün elektrik yoktu ve makine çalışmıyordu. |
Obsolete Methods and Past Habits
This tense is perfect for talking about obsolete technology and how things used not to be done in the past.
| In the old days, people used not to get warm with an air conditioner. | Eski zamanlarda insanlar klima ile ısınmıyordu. |
| That night was very cold but coal or wood was not burning in the stove. | O gece çok soğuktu ama sobada kömür veya odun yanmıyordu. |
| People used not to wash laundry with a machine because there was no electricity. | İnsanlar çamaşırları makine ile yıkamıyordu çünkü elektrik yoktu. |
Contrasting Past Actions
When setting a scene in the past, you will often contrast what wasn't happening with what was happening. Notice how the negative (-mıyordu) pairs with the affirmative (-yordu) in the same sentence.
| They were not turning on the air conditioner, they were carrying wood. | Onlar klimayı açmıyordu, odun taşıyordu. |
| We were not lighting the room with a candle, we were just sitting. | Biz odayı mum ile aydınlatmıyorduk, sadece oturuyorduk. |
| I was not repairing the machine myself in the dark, I was looking for a match and a candle. | Ben karanlıkta makineyi kendim tamir etmiyordum, kibrit ve mum arıyordum. |
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