Imperative
-
In Turkish we use the imperative to give instructions or express a command. The imperative does not add any suffixes of its own to the verb root.
I | Ben |
You | Sen |
He / She / It | O |
We | Biz |
You (Plural) | Siz |
They | Onlar |
Positive
[verb root + personal suffix]
We don't add any suffix to the verb root for the imperative. We only attach the personal suffix depending on the last vowel of the verb root. Since the imperative expresses a command, it cannot be used for "ben" (I) or "biz" (we).
For "sen" (you singular) there is no personal suffix either. So the imperative form consists of just the verb root.
For "siz" (you plural), if the letter at the end of the verb root is a vowel we also first attach a "y" to prevent having two vowels side by side.
Last Vowel of verb root▶ | a/ı/o/u | e/i/ö/ü |
---|---|---|
Sen | - | - |
O | -sın | -sin |
Siz | -[y]ın | -[y]in |
Onlar | -sınlar | -sinler |
Examples:
yazmak - to write | gelmek - to come | ||
Sen yaz | Write! | Sen gel | Come! |
O yazsın | Let him/her/it write! | O gelsin | Let him/her/it come! |
Siz yazın | Write! | Siz gelin | Come! |
Onlar yazsınlar | Let them write! | Onlar gelsinler | Let them come! |
For "siz", the buffer letter "y" is added when the last letter of the verb root is a vowel:
başlamak - to start | izlemek - to watch | ||
Sen başla | Start! | Sen izle | Watch! |
O başlasın | Let him/her/it start! | O izlesin | Let him/her/it watch! |
Siz başlayınız | Start! | Siz izleyin | Watch! |
Onlar başlasınlar | Let them start! | Onlar izlesinler | Let them watch! |
Negative
[verb root + "ma/me" + personal suffix]
For negative, we attach the negative suffix "ma/me" to the verb root depending on its last vowel. Thereafter we attach the personal suffix. Once again there is no suffix for the imperative itself.
Last Vowel of verb root▶ | a/ı/o/u | e/i/ö/ü |
---|---|---|
Sen | -ma | -me |
O | -masın | -mesin |
Siz | -mayın | -meyin |
Onlar | -masınlar | -mesinler |
Examples:
yazmak - to write | gelmek - to come | ||
Sen yazma | Don't write! | Sen gelme | Don't come! |
O yazmasın | Don't let him/her/it write! | O gelmesin | Don't let him/her/it come! |
Siz yazmayın | Don't write! | Siz gelmeyin | Don't come! |
Onlar yazmasınlar | Don't let them write! | Onlar gelmesinler | Don't let them come! |