Question 1

Why did we use mi instead of mı, mu, or mü?

Accepted Answer

The yes/no question particle follows 4-way vowel harmony. You look at the last vowel of the word right before it. The last vowel in polis is i, so the matching question particle is mi.

Question 2

Where is the "is" in this sentence? Why doesn't mi have a personal suffix attached?

Accepted Answer

The "is" is naturally understood! In Turkish, the third-person singular ("he", "she", or "it") doesn't take a personal suffix. If you were asking "Are you a police officer?", you would add the "you" suffix to the question particle (polis misin?). But because we are asking about "that young woman" (she), it is just polis mi?.

Question 3

Why use şu for "that" instead of o?

Accepted Answer

Both o and şu can mean "that". However, şu is used when you are actively pointing someone or something out to the listener, or if they are in your immediate line of sight. By saying Şu genç kadın, the speaker is likely directing the listener's eyes right to her.

Question 4

The translation says "a police officer", but there is no bir (a/an) in the Turkish sentence. Why?

Accepted Answer

When stating or asking about someone's profession in Turkish, you generally do not use bir. You simply use the noun for the job. So, instead of "bir polis mi?", you just ask polis mi?.

Şu genç kadın polis mi?

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