You will say that something existed, was missing or will exist, and choose the right form for each time.
The idea
Add the past ending to var and yok themselves: vardı, yoktu. It is -dı after a and -tu after o with a voiceless k. The future uses olmak: olacak for there will be, olmayacak for there will not be. In questions mı stays apart: var mıydı?, yok muydu?.
| Present | Past | Future |
|---|---|---|
| var | vardı | olacak |
| yok | yoktu | olmayacak |
| var mı? | var mıydı? | olacak mı? |
| yok mu? | yok muydu? | olmayacak mı? |
Examples
- Dün evde süt vardı.There was milk at home yesterday.The past of var is vardı, written as one word. The last vowel a gives -dı.
- Geçen yıl bahçemizde elma ağacı yoktu.Last year there was no apple tree in our garden.The past of yok is yoktu. After k, a voiceless sound, the ending starts with t, and the vowel o gives -tu.
- Yarın akşam evde misafirimiz olacak.We will have a guest at home tomorrow evening.The future of var is olacak, from olmak (to be, to become). The form varacak exists, but it means “will arrive” (varmak).
- Geçen yaz paramız yoktu, ama zamanımız vardı.Last summer we had no money, but we had time.The owner stands in the possessive form (paramız, zamanımız), and yoktu and vardı only say whether the thing existed. The past ending goes on var or yok, not on the noun.
- Dün sınıfta kaç öğrenci vardı?How many students were in the classroom yesterday?
- Bahçede kedi var mıydı?Was there a cat in the garden?The question particle stays apart and carries the past: var mıydı?. With yok it is yok muydu?, because mu follows o.
- Yarın okulda sınav olmayacak.There will be no exam at school tomorrow.
- yoktunuzyou were not there (plural or polite)yoktuWas and were: -di after nouns (öğrenciydim)nuzPast person endings: -m, -n, -k, -niz, -ler
- olmayacakthere will not beolmayacak-meyecek / -mayacak: will not, is not going to
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Watch out
Do not add a future ending to var or yok: varacak means “will arrive” and yok olacak means “will vanish”. Use olacak and olmayacak.
Try it yourself
Put yok into the past: There was no water at home last night.
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yoktu
yoktu: yok ends in k, a voiceless sound, so the ending starts with t, and the vowel o gives -tu.
Put var into the past: There was a market on this street once.
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vardı
vardı: the last vowel of var is a, and r is voiced, so the ending is -dı.
Say it in the future: There will be a meeting tomorrow. Do not use varacak.
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olacak
olacak: var has no future of its own; olmak supplies it, and -acak follows the back vowel o.
Say it in the future: Nobody will be here on Saturday.
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olmayacak
olmayacak: the negative future of yok also comes from olmak, with -mayacak after the back vowel o.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Put yok into the past: There was no water at home last night.
Put var into the past: There was a market on this street once.
Say it in the future: There will be a meeting tomorrow. Do not use varacak.
Say it in the future: Nobody will be here on Saturday.
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: you were not there (plural or polite)
Tap the parts in order to build this word: there will not be
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Write three sentences about your street: one about the past, one about now and one about the future. Check that every past ends in -dı or -tu and that no sentence contains varacak.