If you know Spanish, compare yo estoy esperando with estoy esperando: both identify the speaker. Turkish also often leaves out the subject pronoun. Here you will read who is waiting and decide when a pronoun helps.
The idea
Ben bekliyorum and bekliyorum both mean “I am waiting”. In these present-continuous forms, -um points to ben, -sun to sen, and -uz to biz: bekliyorum, bekliyorsun, bekliyoruz. Omitting the pronoun leaves the verb unchanged; adding it does not replace the personal ending. An explicit pronoun can highlight a contrast, as in Ben çay içiyorum, sen kahve içiyorsun. The form o does not distinguish he from she; context identifies the person.
| With a subject pronoun | Without a subject pronoun |
|---|---|
| Ben kapıda bekliyorum. | Kapıda bekliyorum. |
| Biz bahçede bekliyoruz. | Bahçede bekliyoruz. |
| Siz burada bekliyorsunuz. | Burada bekliyorsunuz. |
Examples
- Ben kapıda bekliyorum.I am waiting at the door.
- Sen içeride bekliyorsun.You are waiting inside.
- Biz bahçede bekliyoruz.We are waiting in the garden.
- Kapıda bekliyorum.I am waiting at the door.
- Siz burada bekliyorsunuz.You are waiting here (polite singular or plural).
- O dışarıda bekliyor.He or she is waiting outside.
- Ben çay içiyorum, sen kahve içiyorsun.I am drinking tea; you are drinking coffee.
- İçeride bekliyorsunuz.You are waiting inside (polite singular or plural).
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
Spanish usted takes a third-person verb, but Turkish polite siz takes the same verb form as plural siz: bekliyorsunuz. Bekliyor is third person, not the polite equivalent of usted está esperando. The ending stays even when siz is omitted.
Try it yourself
Rewrite Ben burada bekliyorum. without the subject pronoun.
Show answer or example answer
Burada bekliyorum. / Bekliyorum burada.
Burada bekliyorum. / Bekliyorum burada.: removing ben leaves the first-person ending in place, so the sentence still describes the speaker. Both orders keep that meaning.
Which Turkish subject pronoun matches bekliyoruz? Write only the pronoun.
Show answer or example answer
biz
biz: the final -uz in bekliyoruz includes the speaker in a group. The garden tells you where, not who.
Address one person politely: “You are waiting here.” Complete the verb in the present continuous.
Show answer or example answer
bekliyorsunuz
bekliyorsunuz: the addressee is one person, but polite siz requires the plural/polite verb form. Bekliyor would refer to a third person.
Add the subject pronoun to contrast “I” with “you” (one familiar person).
Show answer or example answer
sen
sen: içiyorsun already points to the person being addressed. The pronoun makes the contrast with ben explicit: tea for one person, coffee for the other.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Rewrite Ben burada bekliyorum. without the subject pronoun.
Burada bekliyorum. / Bekliyorum burada.
Which Turkish subject pronoun matches bekliyoruz? Write only the pronoun.
Address one person politely: “You are waiting here.” Complete the verb in the present continuous.
Add the subject pronoun to contrast “I” with “you” (one familiar person).
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
Write one sentence about yourself without a subject pronoun, then a contrasting sentence about a friend with a pronoun. Add a sentence addressing one person politely. Use the related pronoun and suffix lessons to study the full patterns.