Learn Turkish: Cambaz aniden düşüyor ve herkes donakalıyor. - The tightrope walker suddenly falls, and everyone freezes in shock.

The verb is a combination of donmak (to freeze) and kalmak (to stay or remain), joined by the vowel -a-. The -(y)akalmak structure shows a sudden, frozen state where someone is unable to act. So, donakalıyor means they literally freeze and stay that way out of shock.

Why is the verb donakalıyor in the singular form if herkes means everyone?

In Turkish, words that represent a group of people as a single whole, like herkes (everyone) or hiç kimse (no one), always take third-person singular verbs. That is why we use donakalıyor instead of the plural donakalıyorlar.

The English translation uses the simple present tense for falls and freezes, but the Turkish verbs düşüyor and donakalıyor use the continuous -ıyor ending. Why is that?

Turkish often uses the present continuous tense (-ıyor) to narrate a story, describe a sudden sequence of events, or set a vivid scene. English usually prefers the simple present for dramatic storytelling, but in Turkish, -ıyor makes the listener feel like they are watching the action unfold right in front of them.

How does the word aniden get its meaning of suddenly?

It is built from the adjective ani (sudden) plus the ablative case ending -den (from). Adding -den or -dan to certain adjectives is a common way to turn them into adverbs that describe how an action happens, much like the -ly ending in English.