Breakdown of Operasyon başlamak üzere.
başlamak
to begin, to start
üzere
about to / on the verge of
operasyon
operation
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Questions & Answers about Operasyon başlamak üzere.
The current lesson is about causative-passive verbs. Could we use başlatılmak (to be started) here instead of just başlamak?
Yes! You could say Operasyon başlatılmak üzere (The operation is about to be started) if you wanted to emphasize the passive fact that someone specific is initiating it. However, because başlamak can act intransitively (meaning an event simply "starts"), it is perfectly natural and more common to just use the plain verb here.
How exactly does üzere create the meaning of "about to"?
When you pair a verb in its full dictionary infinitive form (-mAk) with the postposition üzere, it expresses that an action is on the absolute verge of happening. Başlamak üzere is the standard structure for saying "about to start".
Why isn't there a tense or "to be" suffix at the end of üzere?
In the present tense for the third person ("it is"), the "to be" suffix (-dir) is frequently dropped in everyday spoken and written Turkish. You could formally say Operasyon başlamak üzeredir, but leaving it as just üzere is very common and completely correct.
Doesn't -mAk üzere sometimes mean "in order to"? How do we know which meaning it is here?
You are right that -mAk üzere can also mean "in order to" (similar to -mAk için) or "on the condition that" in the middle of a sentence. However, when it is placed at the very end of a sentence acting as the main predicate, as it is here, it almost always translates to "about to".