turkish phonology and morphology (türkçe ses ve b‹ç‹mb‹lg‹s‹)

Unit 8 - Word Classes
It is clear that adjectives function as modifiers of nouns, but nouns can be used
as modifiers as well. It is possible to say demir kap› as well as büyük kap›. In the
former the noun demir is used as an adjective, in the latter the adjective is büyük.
Even though they function in the same way, there are significant differences
between the two. Earlier we mentioned that adjectives can be used with degree
adverbs, but no noun can be used with a degree adverb: çok büyük kap› is OK,
but *çok demir kap› is not. Adjectives can combine with other adjectives as in
büyük kal›n kap›, but nouns cannot as in *demir kal›n kap›. Usually in a noun
phrase adjectives precede nouns. Finally, nouns cannot be coordinated with other
adjectives. Büyük ama dik kap› is acceptable, but *demir ama dik kap› is not.
Coordination is a syntactic process that combine the two elements of the same
type. The ungrammaticality of the last example shows that demir and büyük are
not considered to be of the same nature. Apparently büyük is It more is your turn! of an adjective
than demir which holds on to its nouniness. Since there are restrictions on 1 the way
nouns are used as modifiers, they are regarded as peripheral members, and
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therefore the modifier function is more characteristically filled It is by your adjectives.
turn!
Verbs, too, can be used as adjectives. This process is called adjectivalization,
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the undergoers of which have characteristics of both verbs and adjectives. Some
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examples are shown in brackets: [a¤layan] bebek, [sevdi¤imiz] ev, [k›r›lm›fl] vazo,
It is your turn!
[katlan›lmaz] dert, [gömülü] hazine, [akacak] kan. In these examples we see the
attributive use of the adjectivalized verbs. Let’s now see if they can
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be used
predicatively.
It is your turn!
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(15)
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a. *bebek a¤layan d. *dert katlan›lmaz
b. *ev sevdi¤imiz
c. vazo k›r›lm›fl
e. hazine gömülü
f. *kan akacak
It is your turn!
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The ungrammaticality of (15a, b, d, and f) may be due to their less fully
adjectivalization. Therefore, unlike most prototypical adjectives, It is your turn! they are not
It is your turn!
flexible enough to be used predicatively.
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The following morphemes are used to produce adjectivalized verbs? It is your Do they turn! display any
It is your turn!
semantic similarity?
a. k›r›k, yan›k, bitmifl, boyanm›fl, trafll›
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b. k›r›labilir, yap›labilir, bükülebilir.
It is your turn!
It is your turn!
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Quantifying modifiers such as biraz, az, çok, birtak›m; numerals such as bir,
iki, üç, dört; and ordinals such as birinci, ikinci, üçüncü are also classified as
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It is your turn!
adjectives. There are also compound adjectives such as aç›k sözlü, bofl bo¤az,
It is your turn!
ola¤anüstü. One last type of adjective is the the modifier reading of 9 genitive
constructions. As we mentioned in Unit 7, an expression like baflar›lar›n çocu¤u
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means baflar›l› çocuk. Is it gradable? *Çok baflar›lar›n çocu¤u, It *oldukça is your turn! baflar›lar›n
It is your turn!
çocu¤u. Can it be a predicative or attributive? Baflar›lar›n çocu¤u Ahmet, 10 but not
*baflar›lar›n çocu¤u bir ö¤renci. So it can have a definite noun as its head in its
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attributive use. Similarly, it can predicate a definite subject as It in is Ahmet your turn! baflar›lar›n
It is your turn!
çocu¤u, O baflar›lar›n çocu¤u. Bu ö¤renci baflar›lar›n çocu¤u. But which 11one/s of
these adjective types are the most prototypical?
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147
It is your turn!
It is your turn!
It is your turn!
It is your turn!
It is your turn!
It is your turn!
It is your turn!
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It is your turn!
It is your turn!
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