Learn Turkish: Bitiş için ikiye beş kala pistte olacağım. - I will be on the track at five to two for the finish.

To say an event happens at a certain time before the hour, Turkish uses the dative case (to/towards) on the hour, plus the minutes, and the word kala. Here, we add the dative suffix -e with a buffer letter -y- to iki (two) to make ikiye. We add the minutes (beş) and kala (literally "remaining"). So, ikiye beş kala literally means "with five remaining to two."

Why do we use kala here instead of var?

We use var to state what time it is right now, like Saat ikiye beş var (It is five to two). However, this sentence is about an event happening at a specific time. When saying that an event happens at [minutes] to [hour], var changes to kala.

Where does the word bitiş come from?

It is formed from the verb bitmek (to finish or end). Adding the suffix -iş turns the verb into a noun, meaning "the finish" or "the ending."

Why does the locative suffix on pist take the form -te in pistte?