Questions & Answers about Odada sigara içmiyoruz.
Why is the negative suffix -mi- used in içmiyoruz instead of -me- or -ma-?
In the present continuous tense, the negative suffix narrows to fit the -yor suffix. The standard negative endings -me and -ma turn into -mi, -mı, -mu, or -mü. Because the verb root iç- (to drink/smoke) has the front vowel 'i', it takes -mi-, giving us içmiyoruz.
Why is the verb for 'drinking' (içmek) used here for smoking?
In Turkish, you literally 'drink' cigarettes (sigara içmek). There is no separate verb for smoking, so sigara içmiyoruz literally means 'we are not drinking cigarettes.'
What does the -da ending do in Odada?
The -da ending is the locative suffix, which translates to 'in,' 'on,' or 'at.' Since oda means 'room,' adding -da makes it odada ('in the room').
Where is the word for 'we' in this sentence?
The word for 'we' (biz) is left out because the -uz ending on içmiyoruz already shows who is doing the action. You could say Biz odada sigara içmiyoruz, but dropping the pronoun is much more common and natural in Turkish.
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