Breakdown of Ziyafet bitmişti, mezunlara veda ettik.
bitmek
to finish / to end
mezun
graduate
ziyafet
banquet
veda etmek
to say farewell
Questions & Answers about Ziyafet bitmişti, mezunlara veda ettik.
Is ettik an example of the -dIk participle we are currently learning?
No, this is a tricky coincidence! While the -dIk participle form of etmek is indeed ettik (meaning 'that we did'), here it is simply the regular past tense: et (verb root) + ti (past tense) + k (we). You can tell from the context because veda ettik acts as the main verb of its clause, meaning 'we said farewell'.
Why does this sentence use bitmişti instead of just bitti?
The word bitmişti combines the -miş suffix with the past tense -ti to form the past perfect tense, which translates to 'had ended'. This emphasizes that the banquet was completely finished before the second past-tense action (saying farewell) took place.
Why is the -a suffix added to mezunlar?
The compound verb veda etmek (to say farewell) requires the dative case (-a or -e) for the person receiving the farewell. Just like in English where you say farewell 'to' someone, Turkish adds this suffix to make it mezunlara (to the graduates).
Can I use the word veda on its own without etmek?
Yes, veda is a standalone noun that means 'farewell' or 'parting'. You will often see it in noun compounds without a helper verb, such as in veda partisi (farewell party) or veda konuşması (farewell speech).
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