Before starting this lesson, you need to have a good command of 2 grammar subjects. First of all, it will be useful to know the 2 way vowel harmony in Turkish, then the consonant harmony in Turkish. Only after knowing these rules can you know which suffix (-de, -da, -te, -ta) can be used at the end of each word. First of all, we will briefly touch on these issues, then we will show you with examples in which meanings you can use Turkish locative case suffixes (-de, -da, -te, -ta) in detail.
*If the last vowel of the word that the suffix will come to the end of it is a back vowel (a, ı, o, u) and the last letter of the word is a hard consonant (f, s, t, k, ç, ş, h, p); -ta should be used.
-Parkta, Kitapta, Ağaçta, Uzakta
*If the last vowel of the word that the suffix will come to the end of it a back vowel (a, i, o, u) and the last letter of the word is not a hard consonant (consonant except f, s, t, k, ç, ş, h, p); -da should be used.
-Okulda, Masada, Televizyonda, İstanbul’da
*If the last vowel of the word with the suffix will come to the end of it is a front vowel (e, i, ö, ü) and the last letter of the word is a hard consonant (f, s, t, k, ç, ş, h, p); -te should be used.
-İnternette, Yemekte, Kulüpte, Tuvalette
*If the last vowel of the word that the suffix will come to the end of it is a front vowel (e, i, ö, ü) and the last letter of the word is not a hard consonant (consonant except f, s, t, k, ç, ş, h, p); -de should be used.
-Evde, Kafede, Tatilde, Çanakkale’de
If you want to learn more about vowel harmony and consonant harmony, you can access lectures and lecture videos from these links. If you already know these rules, let’s get started.
What does these suffix (-de, -da, -te, -ta) do?
BRIEFLY: It adds the meaning of time and being in a place such as on, in, at, there, in front of. And using when indicate time as answer the question “When?”
1. Meaning Of Turkish Locative Case
It usually (especially) comes to the end of the word and adds the meaning of “being somewhere , at a place”. Thus the word with -de, -da, -ta, -te suffixes gives the answer to the question “Where?”
SAMPLE SENTENCE 1: Öğremen sınıfta. (The teacher is in the classroom.)
QUESTION: Öğretmen nerede? (Where is the teacher?)
ANSWER: Sınıfta (In the classroom)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 2: Buzdolabında yumurta yok. (There are no eggs in the fridge.)
QUESTION: Nerede yumurta yok? (Where are there no eggs?)
ANSWER: Buzdolabında (in the fridge)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 3: İstanbul’da yaşıyorum. (I live in Istanbul.)
QUESTION: Nerede yaşıyorum? (Where do I live?)
ANSWER: İstanbul’da (in Istanbul)
DO NOT FORGET! Separate with an apostrophe (‘) if these suffixes are added to proper nouns!
SAMPLE SENTENCE 4: Kalem masada. (The pencil is on the table.)
QUESTION: Kalem nerede? (Where is the pencil?)
ANSWER: Masada (on the table)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 5: Masada yemek yeriz. (We eat at the table)
QUESTION: Nerede yemek yeriz? (Where do we eat?)
ANSWER: Masada (at the table)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 6: Pencerede kuş var. (There is a bird in front of the window.)
QUESTION: Kuş nerede? (Where is the bird?)
ANSWER: Pencerede (infront of the window)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 7: Çiçekler ellerimde, kapında sırılsıklam bekliyorum. (Flowers in my hands, I’m waiting at/in front of your door, soaked.)
QUESTION: Çiçekler nerede? (Where is the flowers?)
ANSWER: Ellerimde (in my hands)
QUESTION: Nerede bekliyorum? (Where am I waiting?)
ANSWER: Kapında (at/in front of your door)
2. MEANING
The suffixes -de, -da, -te, -ta sometimes come to the end of the word and indicate time meaning. It answers the question “When?” Used at the end of years, months and the clock. It is also used at the end of the seasons in spring and autumn.
SAMPLE SENTENCE 1: Haziranda burası çok kalabalık olur. (It gets very crowded here in June.)
QUESTION: Burası ne zaman çok kalabalık olur? (When does this place get too crowded?)
ANSWER: Haziran’da (in June)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 2: Ben 1994′te doğdum. / Ben 1994 yılında doğdum. (I was born in 1994. / I was born in the year of 1994.)
QUESTION: Ben ne zaman doğdum? (When was I born?)
ANSWER: 1994′te / 1994 yılında (in 1994 / in the year of 1994)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 3: İlkbaharda ağaçlar çiçek açar. (In the spring the trees bloom.)
QUESTION: Ağaçlar ne zaman çiçek açar? (When do trees bloom?)
ANSWER: İlkbaharda (In the spring)
SAMPLE SENTENCE 4: Saat 12.00′de buluşalım mı? (Shall we meet at 12:00?)
QUESTION: Ne zaman? (When?)
ANSWER: 12.00′de (at 12:00)
CAUTION! This suffix is not used at the end of days when specifying time. For example, pazarteside, salıda, çarşambada… These are incorrect usage. To indicate time, it can be used as pazartesi günü (on manday), salı günü (on tuesday) , çarşamba günü (on wednesday)…
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