Breakdown of Dosyaları kontrol ettiler mi?
dosya
file
kontrol etmek
to check
mi
question particle (mı/mi/mu/mü)
Questions & Answers about Dosyaları kontrol ettiler mi?
Why is the question word mi placed after ettiler, instead of adding the plural ending to the question word?
In the witnessed past tense, personal endings (like -ler for "they") attach directly to the verb, not to the question particle. So you say ettiler mi? (did they check?), whereas in some other tenses you might be used to seeing the personal ending attach to the question word.
Why is there an -ı at the end of dosyaları?
The -ı is the accusative case ending, which marks a specific direct object. Because the sentence says "the files" (specific) rather than just "files" (general), you take the plural word dosyalar and add -ı.
Why are two words (kontrol ettiler) used to translate the single English word "check"?
In Turkish, many verbs are formed by combining a noun with a helper verb, most commonly etmek (to do / to make). Here, the noun kontrol is combined with etmek to create the action kontrol etmek (to check).
Why is the question particle mi and not mı?
The question particle changes to match the last vowel of the word right before it, following 4-way vowel harmony rules. Since the last vowel in ettiler is e, the particle must be mi.
Learn Dosyaları kontrol ettiler mi and more in Turkish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free