Question 1

Why do we use gezme instead of the full infinitive gezmek here?

Accepted Answer

This is the core of our current lesson! When linking an unfulfilled or abstract action to an abstract noun like arzu (desire), Turkish builds a standard noun compound. We use the short verbal noun ending in -mA (gezme) as the first part, and add the possessive compound marker -su to the abstract noun (arzusu). We cannot use gezmek because full infinitives do not form noun compounds in this way.

Question 2

Why is dünyayı in the accusative case if it comes right before a noun compound?

Accepted Answer

Even though gezme functions as a noun to build the compound gezme arzusu, it still acts like a verb internally within its own clause. Because the action of traveling the world requires a specific direct object, dünya takes the accusative suffix -(y)ı, becoming dünyayı.

Question 3

Does the word onun (her) refer to her desire (arzusu) or her dream (hayaliydi)?

Accepted Answer

It refers to her dream. The sentence breaks cleanly into two parts: Dünyayı gezme arzusu (The desire to travel the world) is the entire subject, and onun en büyük hayaliydi (was her biggest dream) is the predicate. If it meant 'her desire to travel the world', onun would sit at the very beginning of the sentence.

Question 4

What are the exact suffixes attached to hayaliydi, and why does it use an -i instead of an -ı?

Accepted Answer

The root is hayal (dream). It gets the 3rd-person possessive -i (linking back to onun), a buffer -y-, and the past tense copula -di (was). It takes the front vowel -i rather than the back vowel -ı because hayal is an Arabic loanword and a common exception to standard A-type vowel harmony rules.

Dünyayı gezme arzusu onun en büyük hayaliydi.

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