A literary discussion involves both a writer and a work. Use şair for the poet and şiir for a poem or poetry, then follow the poet through a letter, a discussion and an invitation.
The idea
The stem şair stays intact: şaire, şairin, şairler, şairimiz. Its last vowel is i, so the forms take front vowels. Context distinguishes the accusative bu şairi (this poet, as an object) from the possessive derginin şairi (the magazine’s poet). When the latter becomes a specific object, it is derginin şairini: the possessive ending is followed by n and the accusative. With onların, both şairi and şairleri can refer to one poet; context clarifies the number.
| Use | Form |
|---|---|
| Bare form | şair |
| Accusative | şairi |
| Dative | şaire |
| Locative | şairde |
| Ablative | şairden |
| Genitive | şairin |
| With the poet | şairle |
| Plural | şairler |
| My poet | benim şairim |
| Your poet (singular) | senin şairin |
| His/her poet | onun şairi |
| Our poet | bizim şairimiz |
| Your poet (plural or polite) | sizin şairiniz |
| Their poet(s) | onların şairi / onların şairleri |
Examples
- Genç şair bugün kütüphanede konuşacak.The young poet will speak at the library today.
- Editör bu şaire bir mektup gönderdi.The editor sent this poet a letter.
- Okurlar şairin yeni kitabını tartışıyor.The readers are discussing the poet’s new book.
- Bu şairi daha önce bir söyleşide dinledik.We listened to this poet at a talk before.
- Derginin şairi bu ay iki şiir yayımladı.The magazine’s poet published two poems this month.
- Derginin şairini etkinliğe davet ettik.We invited the magazine’s poet to the event.
- Genç şairlerimizden biri bu ödülü kazandı.One of our young poets won this award.
- Şairden gelen mektup masanın üzerinde.The letter from the poet is on the table.
Read-aloud uses a synthetic Turkish voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.
No Turkish device voice is available. You can still read the text.
Watch out
Do not turn şair into şiir when adding an ending: şairi refers to a person, while şiiri can mean “the poem” as an object. Nor is derginin şairi already an accusative just because it ends in i: after “we invited”, use derginin şairini.
Try it yourself
Complete with “poet”: We listened to this poet on the radio yesterday.
Show answer or example answer
şairi
şairi: bu identifies a particular poet, the person we listened to on the radio. The object therefore takes the accusative; nothing here marks possession.
Complete with “poet”: We listened to the magazine’s poet on the radio yesterday.
Show answer or example answer
şairini
şairini: derginin supplies the possessor. Keep the possessive şairi, then add n and the accusative -i, because that poet is the person we listened to.
Use “our poets”: One of our young poets will speak this evening.
Show answer or example answer
şairlerimizden
şairlerimizden: biri selects one member from “our poets”. The form keeps both the plural and “our”, then adds -den for the group from which one is selected.
Choose the word for the person who writes a poem.
Show answer or example answer
şair
şair: the sentence asks for the person who writes the poem. Şiir names the work, so it cannot fill this definition of a person.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Complete with “poet”: We listened to this poet on the radio yesterday.
Complete with “poet”: We listened to the magazine’s poet on the radio yesterday.
Use “our poets”: One of our young poets will speak this evening.
Choose the word for the person who writes a poem.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Keep your progress
Sign up for free to save your practice results in your account.
Sign up to saveI already have an accountUse it today
Invent a magazine and a poet. Write one sentence naming its poet, one inviting that poet, and one about one of your poets. Check who each ending refers to; do not quote a poem.