Soru: a question, your question, our questions

The idea

Soru sormak means to ask a question. With a particular question, compare soruyu cevaplamak (answer the question) and soruya cevap vermek (give an answer to the question). The stem keeps its final u: soruyu, soruya, sorunun. Possession gives sorum (my question) and sorusu (his/her question); the latter becomes sorusuna when an answer is directed to it. The table pairs singular and plural forms; the related lessons explain the suffixes.

Examples

• Bu soruyu birlikte cevaplayalım.Let’s answer this question together.
• Bu soruya yarın cevap vereceğiz.We will answer this question tomorrow.
• Sorularımızı toplantıdan önce yazalım.Let’s write down our questions before the meeting.
• Kısa bir sorum var.I have a short question.
• Senin sorun hangi konuyla ilgili?What topic is your question about?
• Onun sorusuna henüz cevap gelmedi.There has been no answer to his/her question yet.
• Bu soruda iki yeni kelime var.There are two new words in this question.
• Üç sorudan birini seçelim.Let’s choose one of the three questions.

Watch out

Senin sorun means your question, but the separate noun sorun means problem. Context matters: Bir sorum var introduces a question, whereas Bir sorunum var announces a problem. Do not add an extra u when forming sorum.

Try it yourself

1. Fill the blank with the correct form of soru: Bu ___ birlikte cevaplayalım. (Let’s answer this question together.)

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   soruyu

   soruyu: this is the particular question being answered, so it is the definite direct object of cevaplayalım. The y links the two vowels.

2. Fill the blank with the correct form of soru: Bu ___ yarın cevap vereceğiz. (We will answer this question tomorrow.)

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   soruya

   soruya: the question is what the answer is directed to. The phrase cevap vereceğiz therefore calls for the dative form here.

3. Write “our questions” as one word, using soru.

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   sorularımız

   sorularımız: several questions belong to us. Start with the plural sorular and attach -ımız; the last vowel is now a, so write ı, not u.

4. Fill the blank with the correct form of soru: Onun ___ henüz cevap gelmedi. (There has been no answer to his/her question yet.)

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   sorusuna

   sorusuna: onun identifies the owner. Keep the possessive form sorusu, then add -na to mark the question receiving an answer.

Use it today

Prepare three questions for a discussion. Then write that you have a question, that the group will answer a particular question, and that an answer to someone else’s question has arrived.