Breakdown of Markette yiyecek alıyorum.
market
supermarket
almak
to take, to buy
yiyecek
food (things to eat)
Questions & Answers about Markette yiyecek alıyorum.
Why does "at the supermarket" use -te (markette) instead of -de?
The word market ends in a hard consonant (t). In Turkish, when a word ends in a hard, voiceless consonant (like p, ç, t, k, s, ş, h, f), suffixes that normally start with d change to t to make pronunciation smoother. So the locative (at/in/on) suffix -de becomes -te.
Doesn't the verb root al- mean "to take"? Why is it translated as "buying"?
Yes, almak literally means "to take". However, in Turkish, it is the standard verb used for "buying" something from a store. You are literally "taking" food at the supermarket!
This lesson is about the negative suffix -mIyor. How would I change alıyorum to say "I am not buying"?
To say "I am not buying", you insert the negative suffix before the present continuous ending. The verb root is al-, and following vowel harmony, the negative suffix is -mı. Put it all together: al- + -mı- + -yor + -um = almıyorum.
Why is "food" just yiyecek and not taking a specific object suffix?
Because you are buying general food, not a specific item like "the food". In Turkish, when an object is general or indefinite (like saying "I'm buying food" instead of "I'm buying the food"), it stays in its plain dictionary form and does not take the accusative (specific direct object) suffix.
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