Breakdown of Onun toplantıyı iptal etmesi beklenmedik bir durum.
bir
a / an
o
that / he / she / it
toplantı
meeting
durum
situation
iptal etmek
to cancel
beklenmedik
unexpected
Questions & Answers about Onun toplantıyı iptal etmesi beklenmedik bir durum.
How does the grammar in iptal etmesi work to mean "his canceling"?
We use the short verbal noun ending -me to turn the verb iptal et- (to cancel) into an action noun: iptal etme (canceling). To show who is doing the canceling, we add the 3rd person singular possessive ending -si. So, iptal etmesi literally means "his canceling." This entire action phrase acts as the subject of the sentence.
Why does toplantıyı have the accusative -(y)ı ending if the phrase is the subject?
Even though the entire phrase onun toplantıyı iptal etmesi is the subject of the main sentence, the verb inside that phrase (iptal etmek) still behaves like a normal verb. Since "the meeting" is a specific, definite direct object being canceled, it takes the accusative case to become toplantıyı.
How is the adjective beklenmedik built?
It starts with the verb root bekle- (to expect/wait). First, the passive -n makes it beklen- (to be expected). Then the negative -me makes it beklenme- (not to be expected). Finally, the participle ending -dik turns it into an adjective. Put together, beklenmedik translates to "unexpected."
Could we drop onun and just say "Toplantıyı iptal etmesi..."?
Yes! Because iptal etmesi already has the 3rd person possessive ending -si, it is already grammatically clear that it means "his" (or "her" or "its") canceling. Including onun here just makes the person explicit or adds a bit of emphasis.
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