Questions & Answers about Yetmiş dört öğretmen çok çalışkan.
How do we combine numbers to make yetmiş dört? Do we need a word for "and"?
To make numbers like seventy-four, you simply state the tens word (yetmiş) followed by the ones word (dört) with a space in between. You never use a word for "and" when combining numbers in Turkish.
Why doesn't öğretmen have the plural suffix -ler if there are 74 of them?
This is a golden rule in Turkish: whenever you use a specific number or quantity word before a noun, the noun must stay singular. So it translates literally as "seventy-four teacher". Using yetmiş dört öğretmenler would be grammatically incorrect.
How does the sentence mean "are very hardworking" if there is no word for "are"?
Turkish does not have a separate word for "is" or "are". Sometimes it is added as a suffix to the end of the sentence, but for third-person subjects, it is very common to just leave it implied. Saying the subject and the adjective is enough to make a complete sentence.
Is the word çalışkan related to the verb çalışmak (to work)?
Yes! It is built from the verb root çalış- (work). The suffix -kan is added to verbs to describe someone who does that action habitually, creating the adjective "hardworking".