Breakdown of İlk başta onların geleneklerini garipsedim.
onlar
they
baş
head
gelenek
tradition
ilk
first, initial
garipsemek
to find strange (odd)
Questions & Answers about İlk başta onların geleneklerini garipsedim.
How is the verb garipsedim formed from the adjective garip?
It uses the suffix -(i)mse (which takes the form -se here). This suffix attaches to nouns and adjectives to create a verb meaning "to perceive as" or "to find [adjective]". So, garip (strange) plus -se gives us garipsemek (to find strange). We then add the past tense -di and the first-person ending -m.
Why is geleneklerini in the accusative case here?
Verbs created with the -(i)mse suffix inherently mean finding a specific thing to be a certain way, so they naturally take a direct object. Because you are pointing to a specific thing ("their traditions"), it takes the definite accusative suffix, which is the final -i in geleneklerini.
What is the exact breakdown of the suffixes on geleneklerini?
It breaks down as gelenek (tradition) plus -leri (third-person plural possessive, meaning "their", linking back to onların) plus -n- (buffer letter) plus -i (accusative case marker).
Could I just use ilk instead of ilk başta?
No, using just ilk wouldn't work here. İlk means "first" as an adjective. İlk başta is a fixed adverbial phrase meaning "at first" or "in the beginning." You could drop ilk and just say başta ("at the start"), but ilk başta emphasizes the very beginning of a situation that later changed.
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