Turkish Grammar › Verb Conjugation
Dilek Kipi (-sA)
Optative Mood
Level B1Verb Conjugation
States wishes we want to come true: keşke yağmur yağsa.
The optative states things we want to happen but that have not happened yet: «Keşke bu yaz tatile gitsek.», «Keşke yağmur yağsa.»
Its suffix is «-sa, -se» and it attaches directly to the verb stem: gel-se, bak-sa, çalış-sa, gül-se.
The personal endings follow the suffix: gelsem, gelsen, gelse, gelsek, gelseniz, gelseler.
In the negative the negative suffix attaches to the verb: gelmesem, yağmasa, unutmasak.
This mood is most often used in wishes built with «keşke»: «Keşke burada olsan.», «Keşke daha çok vaktimiz olsa.»
The word «bari» is used with the same form and means «at least»: «Bari sen gelsen.»
Its second use is a POLITE SUGGESTION. With the question particle the sentence becomes a proposal: «Biraz dinlensek mi?», «Yarın buluşsak mı?»
Its third use is a polite request: «Şunu bana verseniz.», «Kapıyı kapatsanız.» This form softens the request.
It looks like the conditional you will meet in the next topic, but its function is quite different. The easiest way to tell them apart is to see where the suffix attaches: in the OPTATIVE it goes straight onto the verb stem (gel-se), in the CONDITIONAL it follows a tense suffix (gel-ir-se).
So «Keşke gelse.» is a wish, while «Eğer gelirse…» is a condition.
Wish sentences usually stand alone with no result clause after them; the speaker simply states the wish.
Examples
- Keşke bu yaz hep birlikte tatile gitsek.If only we could all go on holiday together this summer.
- Keşke yağmur yağsa da hava serinlese.If only it would rain and cool the air down.
- Bari sen bize gelsen.At least you could come to us.
- Biraz dinlensek mi?Shall we rest a little?
- Şu pencereyi açsanız.Would you open that window, please.