Indefinite & quantifier pronouns

Indefinite and quantifier pronouns refer to people or things without naming them specifically. Turkish has a small, closed set of these forms: biri(si) «someone / one of them», herkes «everyone», hepsi «all of them», bazısı «some of them», kimse «anyone / no one», hiçbiri «none of them», hiçbir şey «nothing / anything», and hiçbir + noun «no + noun». The most important dividing line is between the positive group (biri, herkes, hepsi, bazısı) and the negative-polarity group (kimse, hiçbiri, hiçbir, hiçbir şey): the latter group always requires a negative verb.

• biri(si) — use when referring to an unspecified person («someone») or to one member of a previously mentioned group («one of them»). The suffix -si is optional and adds a slight definiteness: biri «someone», birisi «one of them / that one».

• herkes — use for «everyone / everybody». It is grammatically singular, so the verb must be in the third-person singular form.

• hepsi — use for «all of them» when the group has already been established in context. It takes case suffixes like a noun.

• bazısı — use for «some of them» as a partial subset of a known group.

• kimse — use for «no one / nobody» (or «anyone» in questions). The verb must be negative.

• hiçbiri — use for «none of them» when referring to a specific group. The verb must be negative.

• hiçbir şey — use for «nothing / anything». The verb must be negative.

• hiçbir + noun — use as a determiner before a noun for «no + noun» (e.g. hiçbir yer «nowhere»). The verb must be negative.

All of these pronouns take the standard Turkish case suffixes. Two points need attention.

Buffer -n- after the possessive -i / -si. Forms that already end in the third-person possessive suffix -i / -si (biri, birisi, hepsi, hiçbiri, bazısı) insert a buffer consonant -n- before any vowel-initial case suffix. For example: hepsi → hepsini (accusative), hepsine (dative).

kimse ends in a vowel but has no possessive suffix, so it follows regular noun declension: kimse → kimseyi (accusative), kimseye (dative).

• Negative-polarity pronouns with a positive verb. English «nobody came» and «nothing happened» use a positive verb, which tempts learners to write *Kimse geldi or *Hiçbir şey oldu. In Turkish, kimse, hiçbiri, hiçbir, and hiçbir şey always demand a negative verb (-mA), yok, or değil: Kimse gelmedi. / Hiçbir şey yok.

• Plural verb with herkes. Because «everyone» feels plural, learners write *Herkes geldiler. Turkish treats herkes as grammatically singular: Herkes geldi (third-person singular past).

• Dropping the -n- buffer or using the wrong case form. Pronouns ending in the possessive -i / -si need a buffer -n- before vowel-initial case suffixes. Correct forms: kimseyi / kimseye; hiçbirine / hiçbirini; hepsine / hepsini. Forms like *hiçbiriye or *hepsiye are incorrect.

• Confusing biri, her biri, and hiçbiri. These three look similar but mean different things: biri «someone / one of them», her biri «each one of them» (positive, distributive), hiçbiri «none of them» (negative-polarity). Only hiçbiri requires a negative verb.