Question 1

How does the ending on çarpmıştı create the meaning 'had hit'?

Accepted Answer

This is the Past Perfect tense (the focus of this lesson). It combines the verb root çarp- (to hit), the suffix -mış, and the past tense suffix -tı. Together, -mıştı creates the 'had done something' meaning. Also notice the consonant harmony: because ş in -mış is a voiceless consonant, the past suffix becomes -tı instead of -dı.

Question 2

Why does the word dünyaya have a dative (direction) ending?

Accepted Answer

In Turkish, the verb çarpmak (to hit, crash into, or strike) requires the target to be in the dative case. It literally translates to crashing 'to' or 'into' something. Therefore, dünya (earth) takes the buffer letter y and the dative suffix -a.

Question 3

Can you break down the suffixes on çağından?

Accepted Answer

Yes! First, we have the noun compound buzul çağı (ice age), where çağ takes the possessive suffix -ı. Next, the word önce (before) always requires the preceding word to have the ablative (from) suffix -dan. When we attach a case suffix like -dan to a possessive suffix like -ı, we must use the buffer letter n. So it becomes çağ + ı + n + dan.

Question 4

Why is the subject (devasa bir meteor) placed right before the verb instead of at the beginning?

Accepted Answer

In Turkish, the most important information (the focus) is usually placed immediately before the verb. By placing devasa bir meteor right before çarpmıştı, the speaker emphasizes exactly what it was that hit the earth. The time phrase buzul çağından önce is put at the beginning to set the background scene.

Buzul çağından önce dünyaya devasa bir meteor çarpmıştı.

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