Et Declension: Turkish Cases of 'meat'
et means “meat”. Its last vowel is e, so 2-way suffixes use e (etler) and 4-way suffixes use i (etin). It is a regular noun: suffixes attach directly to et, as in eti and ette.
Quick facts
- Plural
- etler
- meat
- Harmony
- Front unrounded
- suffix vowels e / i
- Ends in
- a consonant
- suffixes attach directly
- Object form
- eti
- accusative, “the meat”
Rules this noun follows
- Consonant hardening — After f, s, t, k, ç, ş, h, p a suffix-initial d becomes t (and c becomes ç).ette, etten
- Linking vowel — A harmonised vowel is inserted after a consonant (kitab-ı-m).etim, etin
- Pronominal n — After a 3rd-person possessive, case suffixes take n (arabası-n-ı, evi-n-de).etini, etinde
Et in all seven cases
The added suffix is highlighted. Plural forms put -ler before the case ending.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| NominativeYalın hâl · no ending | etmeat | etlermeat |
| AccusativeBelirtme hâli · -(y)I | etithe meat (object) | etlerithe meat (object) |
| DativeYönelme hâli · -(y)A | eteto the meat | etlereto the meat |
| LocativeBulunma hâli · -DA | ettein / at the meat | etlerdein / at the meat |
| AblativeAyrılma hâli · -DAn | ettenfrom the meat | etlerdenfrom the meat |
| Genitiveİlgi hâli · -(n)In | etinthe meat's / of the meat | etlerinthe meat's / of the meat |
| InstrumentalVasıta hâli · -(y)lA | etlewith the meat | etlerlewith the meat |
Possessive forms: “my meat”, “your meat”…
The possessive suffix comes first, then the case. After the 3rd-person forms a case ending takes an extra n (etinde). See possessive suffixes.
| Owner | Nominative | Accusative | Dative | Locative | Ablative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| benimmy | etimmy meat | etimimy meat (object) | etimeto my meat | etimdein / at my meat | etimdenfrom my meat |
| seninyour | etinyour meat | etiniyour meat (object) | etineto your meat | etindein / at your meat | etindenfrom your meat |
| onunhis/her/its | etihis/her meat | etinihis/her meat (object) | etineto his/her meat | etindein / at his/her meat | etindenfrom his/her meat |
| bizimour | etimizour meat | etimiziour meat (object) | etimizeto our meat | etimizdein / at our meat | etimizdenfrom our meat |
| sizinyour (pl.) | etinizyour (pl.) meat | etiniziyour (pl.) meat (object) | etinizeto your (pl.) meat | etinizdein / at your (pl.) meat | etinizdenfrom your (pl.) meat |
| onlarıntheir | etleritheir meat | etlerinitheir meat (object) | etlerineto their meat | etlerindein / at their meat | etlerindenfrom their meat |
Plural + possessive: etlerim (my meat) · etlerin (your meat) · etleri (his/her meat) · etlerimiz (our meat) · etleriniz (your (pl.) meat) · etleri (their meat)
Et in example sentences
Watch out with et
- This t does not soften. Unlike kitap → kitabı, et keeps its t: eti, ete (not
*edi). Most one-syllable nouns behave this way. Rule → - Locative with t, not d. After a voiceless consonant the locative and ablative start with t: ette, etten (not
*etde). Rule → - Two meanings of etin. etin is both "of the meat" (genitive) and "your meat" (possessive). eti is likewise both the object form and "his/her meat". Rule →
Related nouns and resources
Related nouns: food & drink
- bal honey
- balık fish
- çay tea
- çorba soup
- domates tomato
- ekmek bread
- elma apple
- kahvaltı breakfast
- kahve coffee
- kebap kebab
Other front-vowel A1 nouns
Questions about et
What is the plural of et?
The plural of et ("meat") is etler. The plural suffix follows 2-way vowel harmony: the last vowel of et is e, a front vowel, so it takes -ler. The plural then takes case endings: etleri, etlerde, etlerden.
How do you say "to the meat" in Turkish?
"To the meat" is ete, the dative case (-e). Similarly, "in / at the meat" is ette (locative) and "from the meat" is etten (ablative).
How do you say "my meat" in Turkish?
"My meat" is etim (often with the pronoun: benim etim). "Your meat" is etin, "his/her meat" is eti and "my meat" is etlerim.
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