You will conjugate okumak in the present, past, future and negative, and use it both for reading and for studying at a school.
The idea
The stem oku- ends in a vowel, so its endings behave differently from those of a consonant-final verb such as gelmek. In the present -yor loses its linking vowel (okuyorum, not okuuyorum), the past has a d (okudum), and the future needs a linking y before -acak, whose k softens to ğ before a vowel: okuyacağım, but okuyacak. The negative -ma sits right after the stem and becomes -mu before -yor: okumuyorum, okumadım. With an object okumak means to read (gazete okumak, mektubu okumak); with a place and no object it often means to study there: üniversitede okuyor.
| Person | Present (-yor) | Past (-du) | Future (-acak) | Present, negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ben | okuyorum | okudum | okuyacağım | okumuyorum |
| sen | okuyorsun | okudun | okuyacaksın | okumuyorsun |
| o | okuyor | okudu | okuyacak | okumuyor |
| biz | okuyoruz | okuduk | okuyacağız | okumuyoruz |
| siz | okuyorsunuz | okudunuz | okuyacaksınız | okumuyorsunuz |
| onlar | okuyorlar | okudular | okuyacaklar | okumuyorlar |
Examples
- Ben şimdi gazete okuyorum.I am reading a newspaper now.The stem oku- ends in a vowel, so -yor attaches without a linking vowel: oku + yor + um. The pronoun ben may be dropped.
- Mektubu dün akşam okudum.I read the letter yesterday evening.After a vowel the past ending starts with d, and the back rounded vowel u gives -du. Mektubu is one particular letter: p softens to b before the accusative -u.
- Yarın bu kitabı okuyacağım.I will read this book tomorrow.A linking y appears between the stem vowel and -acak, and the k of -acak softens to ğ before the vowel of -ım. Kitabı is one particular book: p softens to b before the accusative -ı.
- Ayşe üniversitede okuyor.Ayşe is studying at university.With a place and no object, okumak is often used for studying at a school or university. The third person has no person ending: okuyor.
- Ali mesajı okumadı.Ali did not read the message.
- okuyacağımI will readokuyBuffer -y-: the y that joins vowelsacağ-ecek / -acak: will, going toım-im / -sin / -iz / -siniz: I am, you are, we are
- okumuyorsunuzyou (plural) are not readingokumuyor-miyor / -mıyor / -muyor / -müyor: not doing nowsunuz-im / -sin / -iz / -siniz: I am, you are, we are
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Watch out
Do not treat oku- like a stem that ends in a consonant. Writing okuuyorum or okıyorum adds a vowel that is not there, and okuacağım leaves out the linking y: the correct forms are okuyorum and okuyacağım.
Try it yourself
Complete with the present tense: I am reading a book.
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okuyorum
okuyorum: the stem ends in the vowel u, so -yor attaches with no extra vowel, and -um marks ben after the rounded o of -yor.
Complete with the past tense: Yesterday I read the letter.
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okudum
okudum: after a vowel the past ending starts with d, the back rounded vowel u gives -du, and -m marks ben.
Complete with the future tense: I will read the newspaper this evening.
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okuyacağım
okuyacağım: a linking y separates the stem vowel from -acak, the back vowel u gives -acak, and its k softens to ğ before the vowel of -ım.
Make it negative, in the present: We are not reading a newspaper.
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okumuyoruz
okumuyoruz: the negative -ma follows the stem and turns into -mu before -yor, and -uz marks biz.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Complete with the present tense: I am reading a book.
Complete with the past tense: Yesterday I read the letter.
Complete with the future tense: I will read the newspaper this evening.
Make it negative, in the present: We are not reading a newspaper.
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: I will read
Tap the parts in order to build this word: you (plural) are not reading
Keep your progress
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Write four sentences about what you read: one in the present, one in the past, one in the future and one negative. Circle the linking y in the future and check that the k has become ğ.