Breakdown of Onun saçı uzun ve gözlüğü var.
uzun
long / tall
var
there is / existent
ve
and
onun
his / her / its
saç
hair
gözlük
glasses
Questions & Answers about Onun saçı uzun ve gözlüğü var.
Why does saç take the suffix -ı instead of -sı in saçı?
The 3rd person singular possessive suffix is -(s)ı, -(s)i, -(s)u, or -(s)ü. The buffer letter s is only used when the root word ends in a vowel (like araba -> arabası). Since saç (hair) ends in a consonant, it does not need the buffer and simply takes -ı based on vowel harmony.
Why did gözlük (glasses) change to gözlüğü?
Two things happen here. First, we add the 3rd person possessive suffix -ü to match the last vowel in gözlük (vowel harmony). Second, when a suffix starting with a vowel is added to a Turkish word ending in k, the k usually softens into a ğ (consonant mutation). So, gözlük + -ü becomes gözlüğü (his/her glasses).
How does gözlüğü var translate to 'she has glasses'?
Turkish doesn't have a direct verb for 'to have'. Instead, it uses the word var (there is / exists) along with a possessive suffix. Literally, Onun gözlüğü var means 'Her glasses exist.' This is the standard way to express possession in Turkish.
Why isn't onun repeated before gözlüğü?
In Turkish, you don't need to repeat the possessive pronoun if it is already understood. Since the sentence starts with Onun (her) and both saçı and gözlüğü have the 3rd person possessive suffix, it is clear that both the hair and the glasses belong to her.
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