Breakdown of Şaşkın seyirci, sanki sihirbaz ipi yutmuş gibi bağırıyor.
bağırmak
to shout
gibi
like (similar to)
yutmak
to swallow
sihirbaz
magician
Questions & Answers about Şaşkın seyirci, sanki sihirbaz ipi yutmuş gibi bağırıyor.
We already have '-mış gibi' meaning 'as if'. Why is the word 'sanki' in this sentence too?
In Turkish, sanki means 'supposing' or 'as if'. While -mış gibi alone is enough to mean 'as if he swallowed', adding sanki at the beginning of the clause is a very common way to emphasize the imaginary nature of the situation. It works together with gibi much like saying 'acting just as if' in English.
Why use yutmuş instead of the regular past tense yuttu?
When creating 'as if' sentences for actions in the past, the rule is to use the -mIş suffix before gibi. Here, it doesn't carry its usual 'gossip' or 'hearsay' meaning. Instead, verb + -mIş gibi is simply the set formula to show that the action didn't actually happen or is an unreal comparison.
The English translation says 'audience', but seyirci is singular. Why isn't it seyirciler?
Words like seyirci (spectator/audience) or taraftar (fan/supporter) are often used as collective nouns in Turkish. Using the grammatically singular form to represent the whole group is very common and natural. Because the subject is singular, the verb bağırıyor is also singular.
Why does ip (rope) have an -i at the end, making it ipi?