Word
Göçebeler gibi yaşamak için birkaç haftalığına karavan kiraladılar mı?
Meaning
Did they rent a caravan for a few weeks to live like nomads?
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Göçebeler gibi yaşamak için birkaç haftalığına karavan kiraladılar mı?
yaşamak
to live / to experience / to undergo
hafta
week
için
for
kiralamak
to rent
Questions & Answers about Göçebeler gibi yaşamak için birkaç haftalığına karavan kiraladılar mı?
How exactly is the word haftalığına built to mean "for a few weeks"?
It breaks down as hafta (week) + -lık (duration suffix) + -ı (3rd person possessive) + -n- (buffer) + -a (dative). The k in -lık softens to ğ because it is followed by a vowel. This specific chain of suffixes (-lığına / -liğine) is the standard formula to express that you are doing something for an intended, temporary period of time.
Could I just say birkaç hafta karavan kiraladılar mı instead of using haftalığına?
Yes, but there is a subtle difference in meaning. Birkaç hafta kiraladılar simply states the duration of the action: the rental lasted a few weeks. Using birkaç haftalığına emphasizes their intent at the moment they rented it: they rented the caravan with the plan of keeping it for a temporary span of a few weeks.
Since the English translation is "a few weeks", why isn't there a plural suffix on hafta?
In Turkish, nouns that come right after numbers or quantifiers like birkaç (a few), çok (many), or az (little/few) must remain in the singular form. Therefore, it is always birkaç hafta, never birkaç haftalar.
Why is the direct object karavan not marked with the accusative suffix to make it ?