Turkish/Seen Past Tense

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There are two past tenses in Turkish. One of them is görülen geçmiş zaman (seen or direct past tense) and the other one is duyulan geçmiş zaman (heard, indirect, reported or inferential past tense). Their names may vary according to different sources. But the main point is that the first one is used for events that you have witnessed, you have seen when the action was taking place, and the other one is used for actions that you haven't witnessed, you have heard from somebody else. Görülen means seen and duyulan means heard.

Formation[edit | edit source]

The declension of -di is quite different than most other tenses, it is important to be aware.

Affirmative - Olumlu[edit | edit source]

Appropriate form of the suffix di (it changes according to the vowel and consonant harmonies) and the personal ending are added to the verb stem. An important thing to note here is that the personal endings are different from most other tenses.

Verb stem + appropriate form of di + personal ending
verb inflection • past tense
gelmek
ben geldim I came biz geldik we came
sen geldin you came siz geldiniz you came
o geldi he/she/it came onlar geldiler they came
verb inflection • past tense
almak
ben alm I took biz alk we took
sen aln you took siz alnız you took
o al he/she/it took onlar allar they took
verb inflection • past tense
görmek
ben görm I saw biz görk we saw
sen görn you saw siz görnüz you saw
o gör he/she/it saw onlar görler they saw
verb inflection • past tense
gitmek
ben gittim I went biz gittik we went
sen gittin you went siz gittiniz you went
o gitti he/she/it went onlar gittiler they went

Negative - Olumsuz[edit | edit source]

The suffixes -dı,-di (it changes according to the vowel harmony) and the personal ending are added to the negative verb stem.

Verb stem + appropriate form of me + appropriate form of di + personal ending
verb inflection • past tense
gelmek
gelmemek
ben gelmedim I didn't come biz gelmedik we didn't come
sen gelmedin you didn't come siz gelmediniz you didn't come
o gelmedi he/she/it didn't come onlar gelmediler they didn't come
verb inflection • past tense
almak
almamak
ben almam I didn't take biz almak we didn't take
sen alman you didn't take siz almanız you didn't take
o alma he/she/it didn't take onlar almalar they didn't take

Interrogative - Soru[edit | edit source]

Unlike most other tenses, the question particle mi comes after the personal ending, rather than before.

Verb stem (+ appropriate form of me) + appropriate form of di + personal ending     question particle –mi

Affirmative[edit | edit source]

verb inflection • past tense
gelmek
ben geldim mi did I come biz geldik mi did we come
sen geldin mi did you come siz geldiniz mi did you come
o geldi mi did he/she/it come onlar geldiler mi did they come
verb inflection • past tense
almak
ben alm did I take biz alk did we take
sen aln did you take siz alnız did you take
o al did he/she/it take onlar allar did they take
verb inflection • past tense
görmek
ben görm did I see biz görk did we see
sen görn did you see siz görnüz did you see
o gör did he/she/it see onlar görler did they see
verb inflection • past tense
koşmak
ben koştum mu did I run biz koştuk mu did we run
sen koştun mu did you run siz koştunuz mu did you run
o koştu mu did he/she/it run onlar koştular mu did they run

Negative[edit | edit source]

verb inflection • past tense
gelmek
gelmemek
ben gelmedim mi didn't I come biz gelmedik mi didn't we come
sen gelmedin mi didn't you come siz gelmediniz mi didn't you come
o gelmedi mi didn't he/she/it come onlar gelmediler mi didn't they come
verb inflection • past tense
almak
almamak
ben almam didn't I take biz almak didn't we take
sen alman didn't you take siz almanız didn't you take
o alma didn't he/she/it take onlar almalar didn't they take

Irregular Verbs?[edit | edit source]

The same rule is used for all of the Turkish verbs. There are no irregular verbs as in English.

Usage[edit | edit source]

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