Breakdown of Koşucular on ikiyi on geçe kronometreye baktı.
on
ten
on iki
twelve
bakmak
to look
geçe
past (the hour)
Questions & Answers about Koşucular on ikiyi on geçe kronometreye baktı.
Why is there a -yi on on iki in on ikiyi on geçe?
When saying that an event happens at a certain number of minutes past the hour, the hour takes the accusative case. Here, on iki (twelve) ends in a vowel, so we add the buffer y and the accusative suffix -i to make on ikiyi.
Why do we use geçe here instead of geçiyor?
We use geçe because it answers the question 'At what time?' (Saat kaçta?). If we just wanted to state the time by saying 'It is ten past twelve', we would use the verb form geçiyor. Because an action is actually happening at that specific time in this sentence, we must use the time adverb form geçe.
Why does kronometre take the -ye suffix here?
The verb bakmak (to look) always requires the dative case (-e or -a), which gives the meaning of looking 'to' or 'towards' something. Since kronometre ends in a vowel, we add the buffer y and the dative -e to make kronometreye.
Since Koşucular (The runners) is plural, why is the verb baktı singular?