Breakdown of Prömiyer bittiğinde yönetmen bile ağlıyordu.
ağlamak
to cry
bitmek
to finish / to end
yönetmen
director
bile
even
prömiyer
premiere
Questions & Answers about Prömiyer bittiğinde yönetmen bile ağlıyordu.
How exactly does bittiğinde mean "when it ended"?
It uses the structure you are learning in this lesson! It starts with the verb root bit- (to end). We add the participle suffix -dik (which mutates to -tiğ here), followed by the 3rd-person singular possessive -i (its), and finally the locative case -nde (at/on). Literally, it translates to "at the time of its ending."
Why does the -dik suffix change to -tiğ in bittiğinde?
Two consonant rules are at play. First, because the root bit- ends in a hard consonant (t), the d in -dik hardens into a t. Second, because we attach a vowel-starting possessive suffix (-i) right after it, the k softens into a ğ.
Why does bile come after yönetmen instead of before it?
In English, we say "even the director," placing "even" before the noun. In Turkish, the word bile (even) always comes directly after the word or phrase it emphasizes. Since it emphasizes the director here, it has to be yönetmen bile.
The root for "to cry" is ağlamak. Why is it spelled ağlıyordu instead of ağlayordu?
This is a great refresher on vowel narrowing! When a verb root ends in a or e (like ağla-) and is followed by the continuous suffix -yor, that final wide vowel narrows to ı, i, u, or ü. Here, the a narrows to ı, making it ağlıyor.
Why is the verb ağlıyordu rather than just ağladı?
The word ağlıyordu is in the past continuous tense (combining -ıyor for continuous action and -du for the past), meaning "was crying." If we used ağladı (simple past), it would mean the director "cried" as a single, sudden reaction when the premiere ended, rather than already being in the middle of crying.
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