Taking a taxi: where to, how much, stop here

The idea

Name the place with the dative: adrese, havalimanına, köprüye. Put kadar after that dative to say as far as: köprüye kadar. Ask for a stop politely with the ability form and a question word: Burada durabilir misiniz?

Examples

• Bu adrese gidiyoruz.We are going to this address.
• Havalimanına ne kadar tutar?How much will it cost to the airport?The word havalimanı already ends in the possessive -ı, so the dative joins with an n: havalimanına, never havalimanıya.
• Burada durabilir misiniz?Could you stop here?Dur- is the stem, -abil- adds can, and -ir closes the form. Asking whether the driver can stop is the polite way; misiniz is written apart.
• Köprüye kadar gidiyoruz.We are going as far as the bridge.Kadar after a noun in the dative means as far as: köprü becomes köprüye, with a y between two vowels.
• Taksi otobüs kadar büyük değil.The taxi is not as big as the bus.Here otobüs stays bare. After a bare noun, kadar compares: as big as the bus.
• Taksimetre açık mı?Is the meter running?
• Nereye gidiyoruz?Where are we going?
• Üstü kalsın.Keep the change.

Watch out

Kadar after a bare noun means as ... as, not as far as: havalimanı kadar is as big as the airport. For the place you are driving to, add the dative first: havalimanına kadar. Barking Dur! at a driver also sounds rude.

Try it yourself

1. Add the ending: we are going as far as the airport.

   Show answer or example answer

   havalimanına

   havalimanına: the word already ends in the possessive ı, so the dative joins with n and the back vowel gives -a; havalimanıya is wrong.

2. Add the ending: we are going as far as the bridge.

   Show answer or example answer

   köprüye

   köprüye: the word ends in the vowel ü, so a y comes before the front-vowel dative -e.

3. Write the verb from durmak (to stop) that means can: could you stop here?

   Show answer or example answer

   durabilir

   durabilir: dur- takes -abil- for can and the ending -ir; misiniz then makes it a polite question.

4. Write the word for as ... as: the taxi is not as big as the bus.

   Show answer or example answer

   kadar

   kadar: otobüs has no dative, so kadar compares sizes instead of marking a limit.

Use it today

Write the three things you would say in a taxi: where you want to go, a question about the fare and a polite request to stop.