Past Tense (Di'li Geçmiş Zaman)

Formation

The past tense (simple past) expresses completed actions. It's formed by adding -di/-dı/-du/-dü to the verb stem, following i-type vowel harmony, plus personal endings.

Pattern: Verb stem + -di/dı/du/dü + personal ending

Personal endings:

-m (I)

-n (you)

-(no ending) (he/she/it)

-k (we)

-niz (you formal/plural)

-ler (they)

gel-di-m

I came

gel + di + m

yap-tı-n

you did

yap + tı + n

git-ti

he/she went

git + ti (no personal ending)

Consonant Alternation

After voiceless consonants (ç, f, h, k, p, s, ş, t), use -ti/-tı/-tu/-tü instead of -di:

Voiced → -di/-dı/-du/-dü

Voiceless → -ti/-tı/-tu/-tü

iç-ti-m

I drank

iç (voiceless ç) → ti

bak-tı-m

I looked

bak (voiceless k) → tı

al-dı-m

I took

al (voiced l) → dı

Common Irregular Verbs

Some common verbs have irregular past stems:

gitmek → gitti (went)

etmek → etti (did)

gelmek → geldi (came)

demek → dedi (said)

Eve gittim

I went home

git → gitti

Ne dedin?

What did you say?

de → dedi

Teşekkür ettim

I thanked

et → etti

Exercises

conjugation

Conjugate 'okumak' (to read) for 'we' in past tense

Answer: okuduk

oku + du + k = okuduk (we read)

translation

Translate: I drank water

Answer: Su içtim

iç + ti + m = içtim (voiceless ç)

fill in-blank

Complete: Dün ev gel (I came home yesterday)

Answer: e geldim

eve (to home) + geldim (I came)