You will say that you must or need to do something, choosing between gerek, lazım and zorunda and putting the person ending in the right place.
The idea
To say you have to do something, turn the verb into a noun with -me/-ma, add a possessive ending for the person, and put gerek or lazım after it. Those two words never change: kalkmam gerek, gitmen lazım, gitmesi gerek. zorunda works differently: the verb stays an infinitive and the person goes on zorunda: gitmek zorundayım. To say there is no need, put the noun form in the dative and add gerek yok: gitmene gerek yok. zorunda değilim means “I don't have to”.
| Person | gerek / lazım | zorunda |
|---|---|---|
| ben | gitmem gerek | gitmek zorundayım |
| sen | gitmen gerek | gitmek zorundasın |
| o | gitmesi gerek | gitmek zorunda |
| biz | gitmemiz gerek | gitmek zorundayız |
| siz | gitmeniz gerek | gitmek zorundasınız |
| onlar | gitmeleri gerek | gitmek zorundalar |
Examples
- Yarın erken kalkmam gerek.I need to get up early tomorrow.The verb becomes a noun with -ma, and -m marks the person: kalkmam, “my getting up”. The word gerek never changes.
- Doktora gitmen lazım.You need to go to the doctor.
- Akşama kadar çalışmak zorundayız.We have to work until the evening.With zorunda the verb stays an infinitive (çalışmak) and the person goes on zorunda: zorunda-yız.
- Bugün ders çalışmak zorunda değilim.I don't have to study today.
- Acele etmene gerek yok.You don't need to hurry.The negative is gerek yok. The person goes in the dative on the verbal noun: etme-n-e, “for your hurrying”.
- Çocukların bu akşam erken yatması gerek.The children need to go to bed early this evening.A noun subject takes the genitive (çocukların), and the verbal noun takes the third-person ending: yatması.
- gitmemizour goinggitme-me / -ma: verbal nounsmiz-imiz / -ımız / -umuz / -ümüz: our
- Artık gitmemiz gerek.We have to go now.
- Bu raporu bugün bitirmem gerekiyor.I need to finish this report today.
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Watch out
Do not carry one pattern's ending into the other. Gitmem zorundayım is wrong: with zorunda the verb stays gitmek and the ending goes on zorunda, while with gerek and lazım the ending goes on the verb (gitmem gerek). And gerek itself never takes a person ending.
Try it yourself
Add the ending: I need to go to bed early this evening.
Show answer or example answer
yatmam
yatmam: yat- has the back vowel a, so the noun suffix is -ma, not -me; the -m says it is I who must go, and gerek stays as it is.
Add the ending: you need to send this letter.
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göndermen
göndermen: göndermek has the front vowel e, so the suffix is -me, and -n for “you” is added straight on, with no linking letter after the vowel.
Complete the sentence: we have to work this weekend.
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zorundayız
zorundayız: zorunda ends in a vowel, so a linking y comes before -ız for “we”, and the infinitive çalışmak before it does not change.
Add the ending: you don't need to come today.
Show answer or example answer
gelmene
gelmene: gelme plus -n for “you” plus the dative -e; the dative is what makes gerek yok mean “no need for you to”.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Add the ending: I need to go to bed early this evening.
Add the ending: you need to send this letter.
Complete the sentence: we have to work this weekend.
Add the ending: you don't need to come today.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the parts in order to build this word: our going
Keep your progress
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Write four sentences about your week: two with gerek or lazım, one with zorunda, and one saying what you do not have to do.