Breakdown of Bu makasla ne yapıyorsunuz?
bu
this
ne
what
yapmak
to do / to make
ile
with / by / and (linking nouns)
makas
scissors
Questions & Answers about Bu makasla ne yapıyorsunuz?
How does the suffix -la work in makasla?
-la is the attached form of the postposition ile, meaning "with" or "by means of". Because makas ends in a consonant, we don't need the buffer letter y. We just look at the last vowel of makas ('a') and follow 2-way vowel harmony to add -la instead of -le.
Why does the English translation say "these scissors" if bu makas means "this scissor"?
In English, "scissors" is a plural word (a pair of scissors), so we use "these". But in Turkish, makas is a standard singular noun. You don't need to make it plural (makaslar) unless you are talking about multiple pairs of scissors. So, "this scissor" (bu makas) is the natural way to say it in Turkish.
Where does the ı come from in yapıyorsunuz?
The verb root is yap- (to do/make), and the present continuous suffix is -yor. Since yap- ends in a consonant and -yor starts with one, we need a helper vowel in between. Based on 4-way vowel harmony, the 'a' in yap- means we use ı, giving us yapıyor.
Does yapıyorsunuz mean "you" plural or "you" formal?
It can be either! The personal ending -sunuz is used when talking to a group of people ("you all") or when speaking politely and formally to just one person.
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