Questions & Answers about Hayır, arabam yok.
How does arabam yok mean "I do not have a car" if there is no word for "have"?
In Turkish, there is no verb for "to have." Instead, you express possession by saying that something exists or does not exist. Arabam means "my car" and yok means "does not exist" or "there is not." Literally, you are saying "my car does not exist."
How does arabam mean "my car"?
The word for car is araba. To show that it belongs to you (my), you add a possessive suffix to the end. Because araba already ends in a vowel, you just attach -m to make arabam.
Could I say "Benim arabam yok" instead?
Yes, you can! Benim means "my" and is perfectly correct here. However, because the -m at the end of arabam already tells us whose car it is, the word benim is usually left out in everyday speech unless you want to emphasize it.
How would I say the opposite: "I have a car"?
To say you do have something, you replace yok (does not exist) with var (exists). So, "I have a car" is simply Arabam var.
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