Breakdown of Bebek uyuyana kadar onu sallayacağım.
o
that / he / she / it
bebek
baby
uyumak
to sleep
kadar
as ... as; until, up to
sallamak
to rock
Questions & Answers about Bebek uyuyana kadar onu sallayacağım.
How do we get "until he falls asleep" from "uyuyana kadar"?
This uses the grammar structure from our current lesson: Verb + -(y)ana kadar (until doing). The verb root is uyu- (to sleep). Because it ends in a vowel, we add the buffer letter -y-, followed by -ana kadar.
Why do we need the word "onu" (him/her) when we already mentioned "Bebek" (the baby)?
In this sentence, Bebek is the subject of the first part (the baby sleeping), and onu is the specific direct object of the second part (rocking him/her). Turkish often restates the object as a pronoun directly before the main verb to keep the sentence clear, especially after a clause like uyuyana kadar.
Why is there a "ğ" in "sallayacağım"?
The verb root is salla- (to rock). We add the buffer -y- and the future tense suffix -acak to get sallayacak. When we add the personal ending for "I", which is -ım, the hard k ends up between two vowels. In Turkish, a k between vowels softens into a ğ (soft g), making it sallayacağım.
Can "uyumak" mean both "to sleep" and "to fall asleep"?
Yes! Depending on the context, uyumak can mean the ongoing state of sleeping or the action of falling asleep. When paired with -(y)ana kadar (until), it refers to the exact moment the baby goes to sleep, so "until he falls asleep" is the most natural English translation.
Learn Bebek uyuyana kadar onu sallayacağım 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