elma (apple): elma yedim, elmayı yedim

The idea

A general object stays bare: elma yedim means 'I ate an apple' or 'I ate apples'. When the apple is a particular one that both speakers know, it takes the accusative: elmayı yedim, with a y between the vowel a and -ı. After a number the noun stays singular: üç elma. Then come elmanın tadı, elma suyu and elmalı.

Examples

• Her sabah elma yiyorum.I eat an apple every morning.A general object takes no ending: elma yiyorum, not elmayı yiyorum, when no particular apple is meant.
• Elmayı masaya koyuyorum.I am putting the apple on the table.A particular apple that both speakers know takes the accusative. After the vowel a, the buffer y joins the ending: elma + y + ı. Masaya is the dative of masa.
• Sepette üç elma var.There are three apples in the basket.After a number the noun stays singular: üç elma, never üç elmalar. Sepette comes from sepet: the p is voiceless, so the ending is -te.
• elmalarımızdanfrom our appleselma·lar-ler / -lar: the plural suffix·ımız-imiz / -ımız / -umuz / -ümüz: our·dan-den / -dan / -ten / -tan: from, out of
• elmayıthe apple (as the object)elma·yı-i / -ı / -u / -ü: marking the definite object
• elmalıwith apple, apple-flavouredelma·lı-li / -lı / -lu / -lü: with, having
• Elmanın tadı çok güzel.The taste of the apple is very good.Two endings mark the link: the genitive -nın on elma (n buffer after a vowel) and the possessive -ı on tat, which becomes tadı because the t softens before a vowel.
• Bir bardak elma suyu istiyorum.I would like a glass of apple juice.In an apple juice the first noun stays bare and the second takes the possessive ending: elma suyu, with su becoming suyu. Elmanın suyu would mean the juice of one particular apple.
• Bahçemizde yaşlı bir elma ağacı var.There is an old apple tree in our garden.The same compound pattern gives elma ağacı: the second noun takes -ı, and the final ç of ağaç softens to c before the vowel. Bir comes after the adjective: yaşlı bir elma ağacı.

Watch out

Do not put -yı on every object: elmayı yiyorum speaks of one particular apple, while 'I eat apples' is elma yiyorum. And do not pluralise after a number: üç elmalar is wrong, it is üç elma.

Try it yourself

1. I am eating the apple on the plate. Add the right ending to elma (apple).

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   elmayı

   elmayı: the apple on the plate is a particular one, so the object takes the accusative; after the vowel a comes y, and the back vowel gives ı.

2. I am buying four apples. Write elma (apple) with no plural ending.

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   elma

   elma: after the number dört the noun stays singular, so elmalar would be wrong.

3. The taste of the apple is good. Put elma (apple) in the genitive.

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   elmanın

   elmanın: the genitive names the owner of the taste; after a vowel it is -nın, and the next word tadı carries the possessive ending.

4. Apple pie: give elma (apple) the ending that means 'with apple'.

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   elmalı

   elmalı: the suffix -lı means 'with apple'; the last vowel a is back, so it is -lı and not -li.

Use it today

Write four sentences about fruit you eat: two with a general object such as elma yiyorum and two with a particular fruit in the accusative. Say why you chose each.