Learn Turkish: Babam yaramaz köpeğimizle bahçede uçurtma uçururdu. - My father used to fly a kite in the garden with our naughty dog.

This verb uses the habitual past tense, which is formed by combining the aorist suffix with the past tense suffix. Starting with the verb uçurmak, we add the aorist suffix -ur to show a broad habit, followed by the past tense suffix -du. Together, uçur-ur-du literally means "he used to fly (something)."

I thought the verb "to fly" was uçmak. Why is the verb here uçurmak?

Uçmak means "to fly" as an action you do yourself, like a bird or an airplane. Because the father is flying a kite, he is making the kite fly. This requires the causative suffix -ur, which changes uçmak (to fly) into uçurmak (to make fly).

Why does the word for kite, uçurtma, look like it has a verb ending?

It actually comes from a verb! The -ma suffix can be used to permanently turn an action into a physical noun. Uçurtma comes from uçurtmak (another form of making something fly). So, an uçurtma (kite) is literally a "thing that is made to fly."

How does the word köpeğimizle break down into "with our dog"?