Turkish: A Comprehensive Grammar

Noun clauses 357
This construction is identical in meaning to…gibi gel- constructions (24.3.3).
Where a ki clause expresses a discovery made on performing a certain action, the verb
of perception itself may be omitted:
(30) Kapıyı açtım [ki içerisi insan dolu].
‘I opened the door [and saw] [that the place was full of people].’
24.3.2.3 Subject or object of the verb iste
As in the case of bare finite noun clauses with iste- (24.2.3), the verb in a ki clause which
is dependent on the verb iste- ‘want’ is always suffixed with one of the optative forms -
sIn, -(y)AyIm or -(y)AlIm (21.4.4.2–3).
(31) İsteniyormuş [ki birer birer girelim]. (cf. (14))
‘Apparently what they want is [for us to go in one by one].’
(32) Aslında istiyor [ki her taraf mermerle kaplansın]. (c. (15))
‘Actually what he wants is [for everywhere to be covered in marble].’
24.3.2.4 Subject of adjectival predicates
In sentences like (33) and (34) the ki clause is technically the subject of a linking
sentence (12.1.1.2), of which the predicate is the adjective at the beginning of the
sentence (tabii ‘natural’, belli ‘clear, ‘obvious’).
(33) Tabii [ki ben hiç öyle bir şey kastetmemiştim].
‘Of course I had meant nothing of the sort.’
(34) Belli [ki birbirini çekemiyorlar].
‘It’s obvious [that they can’t stand each other].’
However, the combinations of adjectives such as tabii and belli with ki have become
frozen forms which really function more as modal adverbials (16.3).
24.3.3 CLAUSES FORMED WITH gibi
The role of gibi as a subordinator is derived from its primary function as a postposition
meaning ‘like’ (17.2.1). As a subordinator it occurs mainly in adverbial clauses (26.1.5),
but when it stands between a finite subordinate clause and a main verb which is gel- it
marks a noun clause.
The informal idiom gibi gel-, combined with the dative-marked form of a personal
pronoun or of any noun phrase referring to (a) human being(s), means ‘seem (to
someone)’ (just like öyle gel- with a ki clause, 24.3.2.2). The finite noun clause
immediately preceding gibi is the subject of the sentence.
(35) [Meryem yeni işine pek ısınamadı] gibi gel-iyor bana.
seem-IMPF I(DAT)
‘It seems to me [that Meryem is not very happy in her new job].’
(36) Sana [bu işi büyütüyorum] gibi gelebilir.