Simple present for vowel roots (-r)

The Aorist (Simple Present)

To talk about timeless facts, habits, routines, and statements about the nature of the world, Turkish uses a tense called the aorist (often referred to as the simple present or geniş zaman).

Because it is used for universal truths, it is the perfect tense for talking about geography.

Verbs Ending in a Vowel

The suffix you use to form the aorist depends on the verb root. For verb stems ending in a vowel, simply add -r.

InfinitiveVerb StemAorist Form (He/She/It/They)
kaplamak (to cover)kaplakaplar (covers)
bağlamak (to connect)bağlabağlar (connects)
başlamak (to start)başlabaşlar (starts)

For third-person subjects ("he/she/it" or "they"), the verb just takes the tense suffix with no extra personal ending.

Oceans cover the Earth.
Okyanuslar Dünya'yı kaplar.
Oceans connect continents to each other.
Okyanuslar kıtaları birbirine bağlar.
Rivers start in high mountains.
Nehirler yüksek dağlarda başlar.

Other Vowels

This rule works exactly the same for verb stems ending in any vowel. For example, etkilemek (to affect) becomes etkiler, and ilerlemek (to advance) becomes ilerler.

Big mountains affect the climate a lot.
Büyük dağlar iklimi çok etkiler.
The climate determines the Earth's nature.
İklim, Dünya'nın doğasını belirler.
Time advances like a river.
Zaman bir nehir gibi ilerler.