You will use zaman for time as a stretch, add plural, possessive and case endings to it, and know when another word is needed.
The idea
zaman means time as a stretch, a period or an era, and it is a regular noun: the last vowel a is back and the last sound n does not soften, so every ending is added as it is: zamanlar, zamanım, zamana, zamanda, zamandan. After the third-person possessive, the buffer n comes before a case ending: zamanına, zamanında. Having time is said with var and yok: zamanım var, zamanım yok.
| Ending | Form | In a phrase |
|---|---|---|
| - | zaman | zaman geçiyor |
| -lar | zamanlar | eski zamanlar |
| -ı | zamanı | zamanı bilmiyorum |
| -a | zamana | zamana ihtiyacım var |
| -da | zamanda | aynı zamanda |
| -dan | zamandan | zamandan tasarruf ediyoruz |
| -ın | zamanın | zamanın var mı |
| -ım | zamanım | zamanım yok |
| -ımız | zamanımız | zamanımız az |
| -ları | zamanları | zamanları farklı |
Examples
- Bu akşam zamanın var mı?Do you have time this evening?Turkish has no verb for 'have': zamanın var literally says 'your time exists', with -ın on zaman.
- Bugün hiç zamanım yok.I have no time at all today.
- Bu hafta ailemle çok zaman geçiriyorum.I am spending a lot of time with my family this week.
- Otobüs zamanında geldi.The bus came on time.Zamanında is zaman with the possessive -ı, the buffer n and the locative -da, and it means 'on time'. Plain zamanda is used in aynı zamanda, 'at the same time'.
- O zaman ben de geliyorum.Then I am coming too.At the start of a sentence, o zaman means 'then, in that case'. It is two separate words; the o is 'that', not a pronoun.
- Saat kaç?What time is it?The time on the clock is saat. Zaman kaç? is not Turkish for this question: zaman is time as a stretch or an era.
- Haftada üç kez spora gidiyorum.I exercise three times a week.Counted occasions use kez (also defa or kere): üç kez. Zaman is not used for them.
- zamanımızdain our timezamanımız-imiz / -ımız / -umuz / -ümüz: ourda-de / -da / -te / -ta: in, at, on
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Watch out
Do not use zaman for the time on the clock or for counting occasions. The clock is saat: Saat kaç?, not Zaman kaç?. Occasions are kez, defa or kere: üç kez, not üç zaman. Also, zamanda does not mean 'on time': that is zamanında.
Try it yourself
Add -ım (my) to zaman: I have no time.
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zamanım
zamanım: zaman ends in the consonant n, so -ım is added directly, with the back vowel ı after a; nothing softens.
Add the locative to zaman in the fixed phrase: at the same time.
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zamanda
zamanda: n is voiced, so the locative starts with d, and the back vowel a gives -da; aynı zamanda is a fixed phrase for 'at the same time'.
Make the plural of zaman: old times.
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zamanlar
zamanlar: the last vowel is back, so the plural is -lar, not -ler; eski zamanlar means 'old times'.
Write the word for counted occasions, not zaman: I exercise three times a week.
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kez / defa / kere
kez: counted occasions are said with kez (also defa or kere), never zaman; zaman does not appear after a number.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Add -ım (my) to zaman: I have no time.
Add the locative to zaman in the fixed phrase: at the same time.
Make the plural of zaman: old times.
Write the word for counted occasions, not zaman: I exercise three times a week.
kez / defa / kere
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: in our time
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Write three sentences about your week: one with zamanım var, one with zamanım yok and one with zamanında. Then ask a friend the same thing with zamanın.