what is it?
Turkish expresses clock time and calendar dates by attaching case suffixes directly to numerals, time words, and date expressions. The locative suffix marks an exact point in time — on the hour, at a half-hour, in a year, in a month. Minutes past the hour use the accusative on the hour numeral plus geçe; minutes to the hour use the dative on the upcoming hour numeral plus kala. Days of the week take no case suffix at all. The word saat (hour/clock) is optional and always precedes the numeral.
when to use it
On the hour or half-hour — attach the locative to the hour numeral (saat üçte, on buçukta). Buçuk (half) follows the hour and carries the locative itself.
Minutes past the hour — use the accusative form of the hour numeral + the minute count + geçe (ikiyi beş geçe = five past two).
Minutes to the hour — use the dative form of the upcoming hour numeral + the minute count + kala (dörde yirmi kala = twenty to four).
Quarter-hours — çeyrek (quarter) replaces the minute count in both the past and to patterns (üçü çeyrek geçe, dörde çeyrek kala).
Years and months — attach the locative to the year numeral or month name (1995'te, şubatta). An apostrophe separates the suffix from a numeral written in digits.
Days of the week — no case suffix. The day name stands alone or is followed by günü (çarşamba günü = on Wednesday).
formation
The locative suffix is -(d/t)A, where the vowel harmonises with the last vowel of the stem and the consonant voices to d after a vowel or voiced consonant, and devoices to t after a voiceless consonant. The accusative suffix is -(y)I and the dative is -(y)A, both following the same vowel harmony rules.
| pattern | example | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| locative on the hour | saat üçte | at three o'clock |
| locative — half-hour | on buçukta | at half past ten |
| accusative + geçe | ikiyi beş geçe | at five past two |
| dative + kala | dörde yirmi kala | at twenty to four |
| çeyrek geçe | üçü çeyrek geçe | at quarter past three |
| çeyrek kala | dörde çeyrek kala | at quarter to four |
| locative on a year | 1995'te | in 1995 |
| locative on a month | şubatta | in February |
| day of the week + günü | çarşamba günü | on Wednesday |
saat is optional. When used, it always comes before the numeral: saat üçte ✓ — never after it. Üç saatte means «in three hours» (a duration), not a clock time.
examples in context
common pitfalls
Adding the locative to days of the week. Days of the week never take a case suffix. Çarşambada is wrong; the correct form is çarşamba günü or simply çarşamba.
Dropping the accusative before geçe or the dative before kala. Both geçe and kala require a case-marked hour numeral. «İki beş geçe» and «dört yirmi kala» are incorrect. The accusative gives ikiyi beş geçe and the dative gives dörde yirmi kala.
Placing saat after the numeral. Üç saatte means «in three hours» — a duration, not a clock time. For clock time, saat must precede the numeral: saat üçte.
Three sentences, graded here. Nothing is saved and no account is needed.
Sınav ___ başlıyor. (mart)
Fill in the blank with the correct form of the word in parentheses.