Present Tense
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Chapter 3a:
The Present Tense
Present Continuous (Perfect)
The Present Continuous or Present Perfect tense is the tense used to describe actions which are in the process of being done. Here are the endings for this tense:
Person: | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
1st | -yorum | -yoruz |
2nd | -yorsun | -yorsunuz |
3rd | -yor | -yor |
These will make different meanings based on the ending:
Language: | Root: | First Person | Second Person | Third Person | Plural |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Turkish | bilmek | biliyorum | biliyorsun | biliyor | biliyoruz |
English | to know | I know | you know | knows | we know |
Language: | Root: | First Person | Second Person | Third Person | Plural |
Turkish | yazmak | yazıyorum | yazıyorsun | yazıyor | yazıyoruz |
English | to write | I am writing | you are writing | writing | we are writing |
Note the vowel harmony which occurs when morphing from the infinitive to the present continuous form, as a in "yazmak" morphs to ı. Now, for some examples of some sentences utilizing the present continuous case.
Şimdi bir kitap
I am writing
Amerikaya uçakla
I am going
Ben seni
I am listening
Present Imperfect
The Present Imperfect tense is the tense used to describe actions which are happening specifically in the present, though possibly intermittently. It may describe a behavior someone does. Here are the endings for this tense:
Person: | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
1st | -(r)im | -(r)iz |
2nd | -(r)sin | -(r)siniz |
3rd | none | none |
Language: | Root: | First Person | Second Person | Third Person | Plural |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Turkish | yemek | yerim | yersin | yer | yerimiz |
English | to eat | I eat | you eat | eat | we eat |
Language: | Root: | First Person | Second Person | Third Person | Plural |
Turkish | yürümek | yürürüm | yürürsün | yürü | yürürüz |
English | to walk | I walk | you walk | walk | we walk |
Knowing when to use perfect and imperfect is very tough, as the two are very similar. In most cases, the past perfect will work better than the past imperfect. It can be useful when telling a story from a first person view, or answering someone's questions about a certain action.
Şehri
I look
Kitap
I read
Alkol
I drink
Command
Command tense is used when telling someone to do something, or initiating an action. The way to do this is to remove the -mak ending from the infinitive
Go!
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