Question 1

Since this lesson is about deduction, could we use olmalı here and say yarın yağmur yağıyor olmalı?

Accepted Answer

No, because the -iyor olmalı ("must be ...ing") structure is used for strong logical deductions about what is happening right now or around now. For predictions about the future (yarın), Turkish typically avoids olmalı. Instead, you express high probability using phrases like büyük ihtimalle (most probably) alongside the standard future tense -ecek/-acak.

Question 2

Why do we say yağmur yağacak (literally "rain will rain") instead of just using a pronoun like "It will rain"?

Accepted Answer

Turkish doesn't use dummy subjects like "it" for weather. You must specify the element that is falling by using the verb yağmak (to rain/snow/precipitate). Therefore, yağmur yağacak (rain will rain) or kar yağacak (snow will snow) are standard phrasing. You can drop the word yağmur only if the context makes it extremely obvious.

Question 3

What suffix is attached to ihtimal to make ihtimalle?

Accepted Answer

It is the postposition ile (with / by means of). When attached as a suffix to a word ending in a consonant, the "i" drops and it follows e/a vowel harmony, becoming -la or -le. So ihtimal + ile becomes ihtimalle. Literally, büyük ihtimalle translates to "with big probability".

Question 4

Could we change the word order to Yarın büyük ihtimalle yağmur yağacak?

Accepted Answer

Yes, absolutely. Adverbs of time (yarın) and adverbs of probability (büyük ihtimalle) are both quite flexible in a Turkish sentence. Placing yarın directly before the subject (yağmur) just puts slightly more focus on the timing, but both word orders are very common and natural.

Büyük ihtimalle yarın yağmur yağacak.

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