Breakdown of Şehirde azınlık nüfusun beşte biri.
beş
five
şehir
city
nüfus
population
azınlık
minority
bir
one
Questions & Answers about Şehirde azınlık nüfusun beşte biri.
How does beşte biri translate to 'one-fifth'?
In Turkish, fractions are formed using the locative case (the suffix for 'in' or 'at'). Beşte means 'in five' and bir means 'one'. Together, beşte bir literally means 'one in five' or one-fifth. The extra -i at the end of biri is a possessive suffix tying it back to the population.
Why is there an -un on nüfusun and an -i on biri?
They form a possessive pair, similar to saying 'the population's one-fifth'. Nüfus (population) takes the genitive suffix -un to mean 'of the population', and beşte bir takes the possessive suffix -i to show that the fraction belongs to that specific population.
Why is it beşte instead of beşde?
This is a quick refresher on consonant assimilation. The word beş ends in ş, which is a hard (voiceless) consonant. When a suffix starting with d attaches to a hard consonant, the d hardens into a t. Therefore, the locative suffix -de becomes -te.
Where is the verb 'is' in this sentence?
In Turkish present tense sentences, the verb 'to be' (is/are) is often completely invisible. You could optionally add the 'is' suffix -dir to the very end (beşte biridir) to sound more formal or factual, but the sentence is perfectly correct and natural without it.
Learn Şehirde azınlık nüfusun beşte biri 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