You will learn the melody of a Turkish yes/no question: the peak comes just before mi, not on it. No recording is attached to this lesson, so it teaches by spelling and mouth position.
The idea
In a yes/no question the particle mi is written as a separate word and said light and low. The peak of the sentence sits on the syllable right before it: Evde mi? peaks on de, Kapı açık mı? on çık. The voice does not climb on mi itself. A question word such as ne zaman or kim already makes the question, so it takes no mi and usually carries the emphasis: Ne zaman geliyorsun?
| Sentence | Peak syllable | Particle |
|---|---|---|
| Yağdı mı? | dı | mı |
| Evde mi? | de | mi |
| Kapı açık mı? | çık | mı |
| Yol uzun mu? | zun | mu |
| Ev büyük mü? | yük | mü |
Examples
- Annen evde mi?Is your mother at home?The peak is on de, the last syllable before mi; mi itself stays low and light.
- Sen çay içiyor musun?Are you drinking tea?
- Bugün okula gidiyor musun?Are you going to school today?
- Yağmur yağdı mı?Did it rain?The peak sits on dı and mı drops away after it. Tap the syllables: yağ-DI mı.
- Yağmur yağdı.It rained.The same words without mı make a statement: the sentence ends on dı and falls, with no particle after it.
- Çay mı kahve mi istersin?Do you want tea or coffee?Each choice has its own mi, and each peak sits on the last syllable before it: çay, then ve in kahve.
- Ne zaman geliyorsun?When are you coming?The question word already asks the question, so there is no mi; the emphasis usually sits on ne zaman, and the voice does not climb at the end.
- Yol uzun mu?Is the road long?
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
It is tempting to raise the voice at the end and stress mi, as in Evde MI?. In Turkish that blurs the question: keep mi short and low and put the weight on de. Do not glue it to the word either: Evdemi is a spelling mistake.
Try it yourself
Type the syllable where the voice peaks: Yağmur yağ-dı mı? (Did it rain?)
Show answer or example answer
dı
dı: the verb yağdı is stressed on its last syllable dı and mı is unstressed, so the peak stays on dı.
Type the syllable where the voice peaks: Annen ev-de mi? (Is your mother at home?)
Show answer or example answer
de
de: in evde the peak is on the last syllable de; mi follows light and low.
Type the syllable where the voice peaks: Kapı a-çık mı? (Is the door open?)
Show answer or example answer
çık
çık: the syllable before mı is the last one of açık, so çık, not mı itself.
Type the question particle: Hava güzel ___? (Is the weather nice?)
Show answer or example answer
mi
mi: the last vowel of güzel is e, front and unrounded, so mi, written as a separate word.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Type the syllable where the voice peaks: Yağmur yağ-dı mı? (Did it rain?)
Type the syllable where the voice peaks: Annen ev-de mi? (Is your mother at home?)
Type the syllable where the voice peaks: Kapı a-çık mı? (Is the door open?)
Type the question particle: Hava güzel ___? (Is the weather nice?)
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Keep your progress
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Read the examples aloud twice. The first time tap on the peak syllable of each question, the second time say mi lightly. Then turn three statements of your own into questions with mi and check where the peak falls.