Turkish Grammar › Converbs
Bitiş Ulaçları (-(y)AnA / -(y)IncAyA kadar, dek)
“Until” Clauses
Level B2Converbs
Expresses time that lasts until an event: sen gelene kadar bekledim.
This structure expresses that an action lasts UNTIL ANOTHER EVENT: «Sen gelene kadar seni bekledim.» — the waiting ended when you arrived.
It has two forms with the same meaning: «-(y)AnA kadar» and «-(y)IncAyA kadar». There is no difference in meaning between «gelene kadar» and «gelinceye kadar».
The form «-(y)AnA» is the dative form of the participle «-(y)An» you learned in the previous unit: gelen + e → gelene.
The form «-(y)IncAyA» is the dative form of the converb «-(y)IncA» you learned in B1: gelince + ye → gelinceye. This form is longer and preferred in writing.
«dek» can also be used instead of «kadar»; it means the same but belongs more to written language: «gelene dek», «bitinceye dek».
If the verb ends in a vowel, a «y» is inserted before «-(y)AnA»: bekle - bekleyene kadar, oku - okuyana kadar.
The verb carrying the converb is not conjugated; the tense and person of the sentence are read from the main verb: «Gelene kadar bekle.», «Gelene kadar bekledim.», «Gelene kadar bekleyeceğim.»
In this structure the two actions can have different subjects: «Sen gelene kadar ben bekledim.» — the one arriving is you, the one waiting is me.
You had seen the word «kadar» before with two different meanings: as a boundary postposition in A1 («eve kadar»), and as equality in A2 («benim kadar»). Here it marks a TIME LIMIT.
This structure is built with a POSITIVE verb. The moment the waiting ends is marked by an event that happens: «Yağmur dinene kadar bekleyelim.» We do not say the same thing with a negative verb; «yağmur yağmayana kadar bekleyelim» is not said.
This topic completes B2's section on time converbs. In the next unit we will move on to reported speech.
Examples
- Sen gelene kadar seni bekledim.I waited for you until you came.
- Yemek bitinceye kadar kimse masadan kalkmadı.No one got up from the table until the meal was finished.
- Hava kararana kadar bahçede oynadılar.They played in the garden until it got dark.
- Otobüs gelene dek durakta durduk.We stood at the stop until the bus came.
- Yağmur dinene kadar burada bekleyelim.Let's wait here until the rain stops.