Breakdown of Bebek sakinleşene kadar ninni söyleyeceğim.
bebek
baby
söylemek
to say, to sing
kadar
as ... as; until, up to
sakinleşmek
to calm down
ninni
lullaby
Questions & Answers about Bebek sakinleşene kadar ninni söyleyeceğim.
How does sakinleşene kadar mean "until [the baby] calms down"?
This uses the grammar from this lesson: Verb + -(y)AnA kadar ("until doing"). We take the verb stem sakinleş- (to calm down) and add -ene because the last vowel 'e' dictates front vowel harmony. Then we add kadar. Together, sakinleşene kadar means "until calming down".
I recognize the word sakin (calm). How does it become a verb here?
You're spot on! Sakin is an adjective meaning "calm". By adding the suffix -leş, you turn an adjective into a verb that means "to become [adjective]". So, sakinleşmek translates perfectly to "to become calm" or "to calm down".
This sentence has two different subjects (the baby and I). How do we know who is doing what?
In Turkish, the subject of the "until" action simply sits right in front of it in its plain, dictionary form. So, Bebek sakinleşene kadar covers "Until the baby calms down". The main subject (I) is attached to the very end of the sentence as the personal ending -im on the main verb söyleyeceğim.
Why does the sentence use söyleyeceğim (I will say) instead of a specific verb for "sing"?
In Turkish, you don't typically use a standalone verb for "to sing". Instead, you use the verb söylemek (to say/to tell) combined with the thing you are singing. Just like şarkı söylemek means "to sing a song", ninni söylemek means "to sing a lullaby".
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