A bell rings and the students enter: the first event gives the time for the second. Here you will build the “when” form from a verb stem and recognise it with both past and present main verbs.
The idea
Remove -mak/-mek, then use -ınca after a/ı, -ince after e/i, -unca after o/u, or -ünce after ö/ü. After a vowel, insert y: oku + y + unca. The form means “when/on doing”; it has no person ending of its own. In Sen gülünce bebek de gülüyor, sen names the person laughing first, while bebek is the subject of the main verb. The main verb and context supply the time.
| Last vowel | After a consonant | Example | After a vowel | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| a, ı | -ınca | bakınca | -yınca | arayınca |
| e, i | -ince | gelince | -yince | söyleyince |
| o, u | -unca | durunca | -yunca | okuyunca |
| ö, ü | -ünce | gülünce | -yünce | büyüyünce |
Examples
- Yağmur durunca pencereleri açıyoruz.When the rain stops, we open the windows.
- Zil çalınca öğrenciler sınıfa girdi.When the bell rang, the students entered the classroom.
- Sen gülünce bebek de gülüyor.When you laugh, the baby laughs too.
- okuyuncaon readingokuyBuffer -y-: the y that joins vowelsunca-(y)ınca / -(y)ince: when, on doing
- arayıncaon callingarayBuffer -y-: the y that joins vowelsınca-(y)ınca / -(y)ince: when, on doing
- söyleyinceon sayingsöyleyBuffer -y-: the y that joins vowelsince-(y)ınca / -(y)ince: when, on doing
- büyüyünceon growing upbüyüyBuffer -y-: the y that joins vowelsünce-(y)ınca / -(y)ince: when, on doing
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Watch out
Do not preserve every stem consonant mechanically: gitmek gives gidince, with t → d, not gitince. This is not a change applied to every verb: bakmak gives bakınca, keeping k. The suffix itself keeps c, as in bakınca.
Try it yourself
Complete with the form of bakmak meaning “when you look”.
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bakınca
bakınca: remove -mak to get bak. Its a selects -ınca; the stem keeps k, and no linking y is needed after a consonant.
Complete with the form of okumak meaning “when you read”.
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okuyunca
okuyunca: the stem is oku, not ok. Keep its final u, insert y between the vowels, and choose the rounded back form -unca.
Complete with the form of gitmek meaning “when we go”.
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gidince
gidince: git changes to gid before this vowel-initial suffix. Biz already names the subject of going; do not add a first-person plural ending to gidince.
Complete with the form of gülmek meaning “when you laugh”.
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gülünce
gülünce: the rounded front vowel ü calls for -ünce. Sen supplies “you”, so this form needs neither a person ending nor a linking y after l.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Complete with the form of bakmak meaning “when you look”.
Complete with the form of okumak meaning “when you read”.
Complete with the form of gitmek meaning “when we go”.
Complete with the form of gülmek meaning “when you laugh”.
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: on reading
Tap the parts in order to build this word: on calling
Keep your progress
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Write three pairs of events, then join each pair with a “when” form. Use one vowel-ending stem and name both subjects if the two actions belong to different people.