When adopting a timid rescue animal, patience is key. You'll often need to talk about ongoing behaviors, actions that haven't happened yet, and changing states. Turkish uses three common phase adverbs to express these timelines: hâlâ, henüz, and artık.
Hâlâ (Still)
Use hâlâ to describe a situation, action, or state that is continuing without change. It corresponds exactly to "still" in English and can be used directly with verbs, adjectives, or nouns.
| We adopted this timid cat, but it is still restless. | Bu ürkek kediyi sahiplendik ama hâlâ huzursuz. |
| It still growls and scratches. | Hâlâ hırlayıp tırmalıyor. |
Henüz (Not yet)
When an action hasn't happened up to the present moment but is expected to, use henüz. It is almost always paired with a negative verb, translating to "not yet."
| We haven't accustomed the cat to the house yet. | Kediyi henüz eve alıştırmadık. |
| The dog is timid, but it hasn't growled yet. | Köpek ürkek ama henüz hırlamadı. |
Artık (Anymore / From now on)
Artık marks a boundary where a situation has changed. Its English translation changes based on whether the verb is positive or negative:
- With a positive verb, it means "from now on" or "now" (implying the state is new).
- With a negative verb, it means "not anymore" or "no longer."
| Now, we approach the dog calmly and show affection. | Artık köpeğe sakince yaklaşıp şefkat gösteriyoruz. |
| It doesn't growl and scratch anymore. | Artık hırlamıyor ve tırmalamıyor. |
Putting It All Together
You can easily contrast different states of progress by using these adverbs together in a sentence. Notice how henüz pairs with a negative verb to show what hasn't happened, while hâlâ shows the ongoing result:
| The cat has not gotten used to it yet, it is still meowing. | Kedi henüz alışmadı, hâlâ miyavlıyor. |