Questions & Answers about Bu kuşun kanatları çok büyük olabilir.
How does olabilir mean "might be" instead of "can be" or "is able to be"?
The combination of the possibility suffix -abil and the aorist tense ending -ir is used for both ability ("can") and probability ("might" or "may"). When used with the verb olmak (to be) to describe a physical state or quality, it almost always expresses probability: "might be". Context tells us we are guessing about the bird's wings, not talking about their "ability" to be big.
Why do we need the -un on kuşun here?
We are talking about the wings of a specific bird, so we use a definite genitive-possessive phrase: bu kuşun (this bird's) + kanatları (wings). If we dropped the -un and said kuş kanatları, it would become a general noun compound meaning "bird wings" (as a category), which wouldn't make sense with the word bu (this) pointing to a specific animal.
Since the wings are plural (kanatları), shouldn't the verb be plural too (olabilirler)?
In Turkish, when the subject is plural but non-human (like animals, objects, or body parts), the verb usually remains in the singular form. Since kanatları (wings) is non-human, the verb olabilir doesn't need the plural suffix -ler.
Would it mean the same thing if I said "Bu kuşun çok büyük kanatları olabilir"?