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Intermediate

Genitive & the Possessive

The izafet construction

Genitive -in marks the possessor

'of X / X's'.

📊 Possessive construction (izafet)
Part Suffix Example
possessor -in (genitive) evin
possessed -i / -si (3rd poss.) kapısı
together ... evin kapısı
💬 Examples
evin kapısı
the door of the house
📝 ev + -in (genitive) + kapı + -sı (possessed)
Ali'nin arabası
Ali's car
📝 Ali + -nin + araba + -sı
BOTH words are marked (izafet)

possessor + -in, possessed + -(s)i.

💬 Examples
öğretmenin kitabı
the teacher's book
📝 Both marked: -in + -ı
Türkiye'nin başkenti
the capital of Turkey
📝 izafet construction
A noun-noun compound marks only the second

e.g. 'Turkish lesson'.

💬 Examples
Türkçe dersi
Turkish lesson
📝 Only the 2nd word takes -i (compound)
okul müdürü
the school principal
📝 Compound: müdür + -ü