Breakdown of Deneyler gösterdi ki algler resife yapışıp büyüyor.
göstermek
to show
büyümek
to grow
deney
experiment
ki
that (conjunction) / so... that
Questions & Answers about Deneyler gösterdi ki algler resife yapışıp büyüyor.
Since I already learned how to say 'that' using the object participle -dığını, why use ki here?
Using the participle would make the sentence Deneyler alglerin resife yapışıp büyüdüğünü gösterdi. While perfectly correct, using ki allows you to break up long or complex ideas. It uses an English-like structure (Main Verb + ki + complete independent sentence), which is often preferred in academic writing or spoken Turkish to present a finding clearly without creating a massive, heavy clause.
Why is the main verb gösterdi in the past tense, but büyüyor is in the present continuous tense?
In English, we often shift the tense to match the main verb in reported speech (e.g., showed that they attached). In Turkish, a ki clause preserves the tense of the original fact or statement. Because algae attaching and growing is an ongoing scientific fact, the present continuous -iyor is used, regardless of the main verb's past tense.
What is the function of the -ıp suffix on yapışıp?
The -ıp suffix is a linking suffix (converb) that replaces 'and' (ve). It chains verbs together so you don't have to repeat the tense and person suffixes. Instead of saying yapışıyor ve büyüyor (attaches and grows), you add -ıp to the first verb, letting it borrow the present continuous tense from the final verb büyüyor.
Both deneyler (experiments) and (algae) are plural subjects, so why are their verbs and in the singular form?