Can you help me? Asking with edebilir misiniz

The idea

Turkish builds the request from three parts: the noun yardım (help), the verb etmek (to do) and a question. With the ability ending -ebil it asks whether the person is able and willing to help: Bana yardım edebilir misiniz? The person who is helped is in the dative, bana (to me), size (to you), and et- becomes ed- before the vowel of -ebil. To a friend use -sin: Bana yardım eder misin? To offer help, turn the question round: Size yardım edebilir miyim? To say that you need it: Yardıma ihtiyacım var.

Examples

• Bana yardım edebilir misiniz?Could you help me?The ending -ebil asks whether the person is able to help, and -siniz is the polite you. Before that vowel et- becomes ed-: edebilir.
• Size yardım edebilir miyim?Can I help you?
• Bana yol gösterebilir misiniz?Could you show me the way?
• Bana yardım eder misin?Will you help me? (to a friend)Between friends -sin replaces -siniz. Eder on its own asks whether you will do it, which sounds softer than asking whether you are able.
• Yardıma ihtiyacım var.I need help.The thing you need takes the dative: yardım + -a gives yardıma. In ihtiyaç the final ç becomes c before the vowel of -ım: ihtiyacım.
• Tabii, yardım ederim.Of course, I will help.
• Yardımınız için teşekkür ederim.Thank you for your help.
• edebilirsinizyou are able to do (polite or plural)ed·ebil-ebil- / -abil-: can and may (gelebilirim)·ir-ir / -ar / -er: the aorist (gelir, yapar)·siniz-im / -sin / -iz / -siniz: I am, you are, we are
• yardımınızyour help (polite or plural)yardım·ınız-ınız / -iniz / -unuz / -ünüz: your (plural, polite)

Watch out

Do not put the helped person in the accusative: Beni yardım edebilir misiniz? is wrong, because yardım etmek takes the dative, bana or size. Also keep yardım and et- apart as two words, and write edebilir, not etebilir: the t softens to d before the vowel.

Try it yourself

1. Ask a stranger whether they can help: build the verb from et-, the ability ending and -ir. Mind the t.

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   edebilir

   edebilir: et- ends in t, which softens to d before the vowel of -ebil; the ending -ebil asks whether the person is able to help.

2. Offer help politely to someone you address as siz. Which pronoun fits?

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   Size

   Size: you are offering help to the person you speak to, and the helped person takes the dative; siz + -e gives size.

3. Say that you need help. Put yardım (help) into the form the sentence needs.

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   yardıma

   yardıma: the thing you need takes the dative, which is -a after the back vowel ı; yardım + -a gives yardıma.

4. Ask a friend with the plain form, without the ability ending: et- plus the usual ending.

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   eder

   eder: the friendly question uses the aorist alone, et- + -er, and the t softens to d before the vowel; then mi and -sin follow.

Use it today

Write three lines for a station: asking a stranger for help, offering help to an older neighbour, and telling a shop assistant that you need help.