Learn Turkish: Kronometreyi kontrol edecek gözlemci yediye on kala gelecek. - The observer who will check the stopwatch will come at ten to seven.

To say an event happens at "minutes to the hour", Turkish uses the Dative case (to/towards) on the hour, followed by the minutes, and the word kala (remaining/left). Here, yedi (seven) takes the dative suffix -e with a buffer letter y, becoming yediye. So, yediye on kala literally translates as "remaining ten to seven."

Both edecek and gelecek use the future suffix. How do their roles differ in this sentence?

Position changes their function! Gelecek is at the very end of the sentence, so it acts as the main verb: "will come." However, kontrol edecek sits directly before the noun gözlemci (observer). Here, the -ecek suffix acts as a future participle (a verbal adjective), translating to "who will check."

Why is kronometre marked with the accusative case (kronometreyi) if the main verb of the sentence is just "come"?

Because it is the specific direct object of the verbal adjective kontrol edecek, not the main verb gelecek. The observer is checking a specific stopwatch, so kronometre needs the accusative suffix -yi. In Turkish, participles still act like verbs and demand cases from their objects just like regular verbs do.

How is the word gözlemci (observer) formed?