Rejection
Lesson 20intermediate Turkish Intermediate
Rejection
Ouch - it's never fun to be rejected. Hopefully with today's lesson on the suffix -meli, you'll be able to use your Turkish to express everything you should have done to avoid bitter rejection. If only. . .
The "should" suffix (meli).
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everything in this lesson?
Samantha
i am having a difficult time with one review question. i think that 'He ought to break up with her' should be 'onunla ayrilmali'. (i's without dots). please explain why this is incorrect.
May 17, 2013
Justin
Good question - you're very close. Ayrılmak actually forces the ablative (-den) in Turkish, not ile. (Your break up FROM someone.)

I changed the question text slightly to make that more clear.

Thanks :)
May 18, 2013
Frank
Great site. One small point; Could you leave a little more time in the speaking sections for the student to answer in future?
Dec 07, 2013
Justin
We can do that! Thanks for the feedback! :)
Dec 11, 2013
Moritz
Meh, got a mistake because I wrote hekim instead of doktor ;) My wife's grandma apparently says tabib.
Apr 13, 2014
Martha
Merhaba!

I think I am a little confused, probably because it is late here, but let me try my question anyway. In the lesson, you say that unlike the other "have to" constructions we have learned,
-meli/-malı works with a verb form, rather than a noun or an adjective form. Am I following correctly so far? And I understand that we're buillding off of verbs: gitmek, gitmeli, gitmeliyim. But then we get to past tense and we must have the buffer y: gitmeliydim. Yes? Here is where I am confused: This buffer y goes with past tense in noun sentences, correct? But in verb-sentence past tense, we don't need it: aradım. So, is what we're dealing with here something between a noun and a verb sentence? Does this have something to do with your note in the Langauge Points about -meli actually being the short infinitive combined with -li?

Thinking too hard again, I know. :)

Teşekkürler!
May 25, 2014
Justin
I love your questions :)

That's correct; -meli is often taught and considered by native speakers as indivisible, but historically it's not. It's a combination of the short infinitive and the same -li that we see in words like "tuzlu" and "şekerli" and "Amerikalı." So, just like:

Amerikalıyım = I am American
gitmeliyim = gitme + li + y + im = "I am with the going"

(Remember there's nothing special about -li and buffer y, here. It's also kediyim = I am a cat.)
May 26, 2014
Martha
Sağol! And I truly appreciate your answers -- and the fact that you put up with my questions. :)

So, this makes the -meli construction something like the
-mekte construction we learned. Gitmekteyim: "I am in the going." Gitmeliyim: "I am with the going."

And that's why that buffer "y" shows up in the past tense: "Gitmekteydim" and "gitmeliydim." Yes? It is not a verb past tense, but a noun past tense.

And so in the dialogue: "Girmeliydim!"

From confusion to clarity. (I think.) Teşekkür ederim!
May 27, 2014
miquel
Bir şey sorabilir miyim?
(Could I put "zaten" beetwen "öğrenmek and gerekiyor ?)

Mesela : Ben çok önemli şeyleri öğrenmem zaten gerekiyor.
Ben zaten çok önemli şeyleri öğrenmem gerekiyor.
Doğru hangisi?
Teşekkürler ederim
Miquel
May 15, 2018
miquel
Lesson 20 Intermediate "Rejection"

In the Language Points of this lesson, you use "bahsetmeliler" but I think you should use bahsetmemeliler (negatif)
Yours :
Shouldn't they mention their plans to her before leaving?
Ayrılmadan önce ona planlarından bahsetmeliler mi?
Yours, Miquel
May 21, 2018
Öğrenci
Hello, thank you for the lovely lesson, just wanted to ask the difference between these two phrases?

Şu an ne yapayım

Şu an ne yapmalıyım

I assume yapayım is a bit for informal or slangish in this case?, but still holds the same meaning?
Sep 27, 2020
Anonymous Commenter
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