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Questions & Answers about Fazla yemek yiyorum.
Why does the verb start with yi- instead of ye- if the verb for "eat" is yemek?
The root of the verb is ye-. In Turkish, when a verb root ends in e or a and you add the present continuous suffix -iyor, that ending vowel narrows to i, ı, u, or ü. So, ye + iyor becomes yiyor (he/she/it is eating). With the "I" ending -um, it becomes yiyorum.
Does yemek here mean "to eat" or "food"?
In this sentence, yemek means "food" or "meal". Even though yemek is also the dictionary form (infinitive) of the verb "to eat", it is commonly used as a noun. So yemek yiyorum literally means "I am eating food".
Could I just say fazla yiyorum without the word yemek?
Yes, you can say just fazla yiyorum ("I am eating too much"). However, Turks very often pair the noun yemek with the verb ye- to specify the action of eating a meal or eating generally. Adding the noun makes it sound very natural.
Why doesn't yemek have a specific object ending here, like yemeği?
You only use the specific object ending (the accusative case) when talking about a specific thing, like "the food" or "that food". Because you are talking about eating food in general here, yemek stays in its plain form without any extra suffixes.