Breakdown of Şaşkınlıkla birbirimize baktık ve bayılayazdık.
ve
and
bakmak
to look
birbiri
each other / one another
bayılmak
to faint
Questions & Answers about Şaşkınlıkla birbirimize baktık ve bayılayazdık.
How exactly does bayılayazdık mean "we almost fainted"?
It uses the approximative compound verb structure -(y)Ayazmak, which means "to almost do" an action but stopping just short of it. Here, we have the root bayıl- (to faint) + the linking vowel -a- + yaz- (the auxiliary verb for "almost") + the past tense -dı- + the "we" ending -k.
Is it common to use -(y)Ayazmak in everyday spoken Turkish like this?
It is perfectly understood, but it can sound slightly literary, old-fashioned, or extra dramatic in modern Turkish. In casual conversation, a Turkish speaker is more likely to use neredeyse (almost) or az kalsın (almost) with the past continuous or future-in-the-past tense, such as Az kalsın bayılıyorduk or Neredeyse bayılacaktık.
What suffixes make up the word şaşkınlıkla?
It starts with the adjective şaşkın (surprised or confused). The -lık suffix turns it into the abstract noun şaşkınlık (astonishment). Finally, the instrumental suffix -la (a shortened, attached form of ile, meaning "with" or "by") is added, giving us "with astonishment."
Why does the word for "each other" take the -e ending in birbirimize?