The Past Copula: Saying "Was" or "Were"
To describe how things were in the past, attach the past copula directly to nouns and adjectives. The base suffix is -dı / -di / -du / -dü, which follows 4-way vowel harmony.
If the noun or adjective ends in a vowel, insert a buffer y first (-ydı / -ydi / -ydu / -ydü).
| Yesterday the weather was very beautiful. | Dün hava çok güzeldi. |
| The match was very boring. | Maç çok sıkıcıydı. |
Consonant Assimilation
If a word ends in a voiceless consonant (such as ç, f, h, k, p, s, ş, t), the d in the suffix hardens into a t. The suffix becomes -tı / -ti / -tu / -tü.
| Yesterday the meeting was very crowded. | Dün toplantı çok kalabalıktı. |
| The film was wonderful, but the cinema was empty. | Film harikaydı ama sinema boştu. |
| The answer was wrong. | Cevap yanlıştı. |
Adding Personal Suffixes
To say "I was," "you were," or "we were," add the corresponding personal ending right after the past suffix. Note that the past tense uses slightly different personal endings than the present tense:
- Ben (I): add -m (e.g., -dım)
- Sen (You): add -n (e.g., -dın)
- O (He/She/It): no ending (e.g., -dı)
- Biz (We): add -k (e.g., -dık)
| Yesterday the exam was difficult and I was very sick. | Dün sınav zordu ve ben çok hastaydım. |
| We were very tired yesterday. | Biz dün çok yorgunduk. |
| You were lucky because the exam was easy. | Şanslıydın çünkü sınav kolaydı. |
| The answer was wrong, I was right. | Cevap yanlıştı, ben haklıydım. |
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