Learn Turkish: Sabaha doğru bu ürpertici labirente girmemiz lazımdı. - Towards morning, we had to enter this creepy maze.

When doğru is used after a noun with the dative ending (-a or -e), it acts as a postposition meaning 'towards' or 'around' a certain time or place. Here, sabah (morning) takes the dative -a, so sabaha doğru means 'towards morning' or 'approaching morning'.

Why does labirent (maze) take the -e ending to become labirente?

The verb girmek (to enter) requires the dative case because you are showing direction into a place. Even though we just say 'enter the maze' in English, Turkish requires you to literally say 'enter into the maze', which is why labirent becomes labirente.

How does girmemiz lazımdı translate to 'we had to enter'?

To express past obligation, Turkish uses a verbal noun plus lazımdı (was necessary). girmemiz is made of the verbal noun girme (entering) plus the possessive -miz (our). Literally, girmemiz lazımdı means 'our entering was necessary'.

Is there a trick to remembering the word ürpertici (creepy)?