Zorlanmak describes having difficulty, whether physical or mental. It does not by itself say that you failed: you can struggle with a door and still open it. You will name the difficult activity and say when the difficulty occurs.
The idea
Use -makta/-mekte zorlanmak for an activity: ayırt etmekte zorlanmak means to have trouble distinguishing. A field can take the locative too: matematikte zorlanmak. Conjugate the stem zorlan-: zorlanıyorum, zorlandım, zorlanırım. The negative present is zorlanmıyorum; compare future zorlanacak with zorlanacağım. The table gives plural forms with onlar; a singular verb is also possible with an explicit human plural subject.
| Subject | Present continuous | Past | Future | Aorist |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ben | zorlanıyorum | zorlandım | zorlanacağım | zorlanırım |
| sen | zorlanıyorsun | zorlandın | zorlanacaksın | zorlanırsın |
| o | zorlanıyor | zorlandı | zorlanacak | zorlanır |
| biz | zorlanıyoruz | zorlandık | zorlanacağız | zorlanırız |
| siz | zorlanıyorsunuz | zorlandınız | zorlanacaksınız | zorlanırsınız |
| onlar | zorlanıyorlar | zorlandılar | zorlanacaklar | zorlanırlar |
Examples
- Bu yokuşta çok zorlanıyorum.I am really struggling on this hill.
- Dün kapıyı açmakta zorlandık.We had trouble opening the door yesterday.
- Kardeşim matematikte hiç zorlanmıyor.My sibling has no trouble at all with mathematics.
- Bu iki sesi ayırt etmekte zorlanıyorum.I have trouble telling these two sounds apart.
- İlk günlerde zorlanabilirsin, ama zamanla alışırsın.You may struggle in the first few days, but you will get used to it over time.
- Karar vermekte zorlandın mı?Did you have trouble making a decision?
- Yeni görevimde zorlanacağımı düşünmüştüm, ama işler beklediğimden kolay çıktı.I had thought I would struggle in my new role, but things turned out easier than I expected.
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Watch out
Konuşmakta zorlanıyorum says that speaking is difficult for me. Konuşmaya zorlanıyorum normally says that I am being forced to speak. Do not automatically use the dative after an English “to”. Also keep zorlanmak apart from zorlamak, which describes forcing or putting pressure on someone or something.
Try it yourself
Complete the phrase for having difficulty: Bu iki sesi ayırt ___ zorlanıyorum. Use etmek.
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etmekte
etmekte: the difficulty lies in telling the sounds apart. The phrase is ayırt etmek, and its infinitive takes -te after k, so that consonant stays unchanged.
Use the past of zorlanmak for “we”: Dün dar kapıdan geçerken ___.
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zorlandık
zorlandık: dün places this event yesterday, and the prompt asks for “we”. The ending -dık marks that past event and its plural speaker; zorlandım would mean only “I”.
Use the negative present continuous for “I”: Artık bu yokuşta ___. The difficulty is over.
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zorlanmıyorum
zorlanmıyorum: the speaker no longer finds the hill difficult. With artık, the negative form expresses a change from earlier difficulty; the affirmative would say the opposite.
Use the future of zorlanmak for “I”: Yarın bu ağır kutuyu taşırken ___.
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zorlanacağım
zorlanacağım: the speaker predicts difficulty carrying the heavy box tomorrow. The k in zorlanacak softens to ğ before the vowel of the first-person ending.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Complete the phrase for having difficulty: Bu iki sesi ayırt ___ zorlanıyorum. Use etmek.
Use the past of zorlanmak for “we”: Dün dar kapıdan geçerken ___.
Use the negative present continuous for “I”: Artık bu yokuşta ___. The difficulty is over.
Use the future of zorlanmak for “I”: Yarın bu ağır kutuyu taşırken ___.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
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Name a task you struggled with yesterday and one you no longer find difficult. Use -makta/-mekte for the activity, then change the first sentence into a question. Add a prediction about tomorrow.