Learn Turkish: Lütfen geç kalma, çabuk gel. - Please do not be late, come quickly.

Lütfen geç kalma, çabuk gel.

Please do not be late, come quickly.

Breakdown of Lütfen geç kalma, çabuk gel.

to stay / to be left / to remain (in a state)

Questions & Answers about Lütfen geç kalma, çabuk gel.

How does the negative imperative work in kalma?

To tell someone not to do something, we add the suffix -ma or -me to the verb root. Since the root kal (stay) has the back vowel 'a', vowel harmony tells us to use -ma to make kalma (do not stay).

Why is 'do not be late' translated as geç kalma?

In Turkish, 'to be late' is expressed with the set phrase geç kalmak. Geç means 'late' and kalmak means 'to stay' or 'to remain'. So, literally, you are telling them 'do not stay late'.

How do we know çabuk means 'quickly' here and not 'quick'?

In Turkish, you usually do not need a special ending (like the English '-ly') to turn an adjective into an adverb. You can just put the adjective directly in front of the verb. So çabuk (quick) in front of gel (come) naturally translates to 'come quickly'.

Is it normal to use lütfen (please) with the informal commands kalma and gel?

Absolutely! Lütfen can be used in both formal and informal situations. Here, the speaker is using the informal singular imperative form to talk to a friend or family member, but they are still adding 'please' to soften the request.