Questions & Answers about Bugün kahvaltı etmiyor.
How do we form the negative present continuous in etmiyor?
The verb root is et (from etmek, to do). To make it negative in the present continuous, we add the negative suffix -mi followed by the tense suffix -yor. This gives us et-mi-yor (is not doing). We use -mi rather than -mı, -mu, or -mü because the vowel in et is an 'e', which dictates the vowel harmony.
I learned that etmek changes to ediyor in the positive present continuous. Why is the 't' kept in etmiyor?
That is a great observation! In the positive form ediyor, the t changes to a d because it is immediately followed by a vowel (the helping vowel -i-). However, in the negative form etmiyor, the t is followed by the consonant m from the negative suffix -mi-. Because it is followed by a consonant, the t does not change.
Why use etmiyor (not doing) instead of a verb for 'having' or 'eating'?
In English, we say we 'have' breakfast or 'eat' breakfast. In Turkish, the standard expression is formed with the helper verb etmek (to do). So, the phrase kahvaltı etmek literally translates to 'to do breakfast'.
Where is the word for 'he' in this sentence?
The pronoun 'he' is implied by the verb ending. In Turkish, the third-person singular (he, she, it) has no personal suffix after -yor. If it were 'I am not having breakfast', it would be etmiyorum, and for 'you' it would be etmiyorsun. The lack of a personal suffix on etmiyor automatically tells us it is he, she, or it.
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