Optative Mood (Wishes) in Turkish

Overview

The optative mood, known as istek kipi in Turkish, is one of the most practical verb forms you will learn at the A2 level. It allows you to express wishes, make suggestions, and propose actions using the idea of "let me," "let's," or "may it be." If you have ever heard a Turkish speaker say Gidelim! ("Let's go!"), you have already encountered the optative in action.

This mood is built by adding the suffix -e or -a (following vowel harmony) to the verb stem, then attaching the appropriate personal endings. The first person plural form is by far the most frequently used, making it essential for everyday conversation. You will rely on it whenever you want to suggest doing something together, volunteer to do something yourself, or express a mild wish.

Understanding the optative mood also prepares you for more advanced mood and modality structures in Turkish. Once you are comfortable forming wishes and suggestions, you will find it much easier to tackle conditional and subjunctive constructions later on.

How It Works

Formation

The optative is formed by adding -e/-a (based on vowel harmony) to the verb stem, followed by personal suffixes. The buffer letter y appears when the stem ends in a vowel.

Person	Suffix	Example (gitmek - to go)	Translation
Ben (I)	-(y)eyim / -(y)ayım	gideyim	Let me go
Sen (you)	-(y)esin / -(y)asın	gidesin	May you go
O (he/she/it)	-(y)e / -(y)a	gide	May he/she go
Biz (we)	-(y)elim / -(y)alım	gidelim	Let's go
Siz (you pl.)	-(y)esiniz / -(y)asınız	gidesiniz	May you (pl.) go
Onlar (they)	-(y)eler / -(y)alar	gideler	May they go

Vowel Harmony Rule

• If the last vowel in the stem is e, i, ö, ü → use -e forms
• If the last vowel in the stem is a, ı, o, u → use -a forms

Key Patterns

Verb	Stem	1st sg.	1st pl.
yapmak (to do)	yap-	yapayım	yapalım
gelmek (to come)	gel-	geleyim	gelelim
bakmak (to look)	bak-	bakayım	bakalım
söylemek (to say)	söyle-	söyleyeyim	söyleyelim

Negative Form

Add -me/-ma to the stem before the optative suffix:

Positive	Negative
gidelim (let's go)	gitmeyelim (let's not go)
yapayım (let me do)	yapmayayım (let me not do)
bakayım (let me look)	bakmayayım (let me not look)

Examples in Context

Turkish	English	Note
Gidelim!	Let's go!	Most common usage
Bir şey sorayım.	Let me ask something.	1st person singular
Ne yapalım?	What shall we do?	Suggestion/question
Biraz bekleyelim.	Let's wait a bit.	Suggestion
Sana yardım edeyim.	Let me help you.	Volunteering
Bu akşam dışarı çıkalım.	Let's go out tonight.	Proposal
Kahve içelim mi?	Shall we have coffee?	Question form with mi
Pencereyi açayım mı?	Shall I open the window?	Offering
Allah yardım ede.	May God help.	Formal wish (rare in daily speech)
Bakalım ne olacak.	Let's see what will happen.	Very common expression

Common Mistakes

Forgetting Vowel Harmony

• Wrong: Yapalım → yapelim
• Right: Yapalım (stem has "a", so use -a form)
• Why: The optative suffix must follow vowel harmony. Since "yap-" contains the vowel "a," the suffix must be -alım, not -elim.

Confusing the Optative with the Imperative

• Wrong: Using Git! when you mean "Let's go"
• Right: Gidelim! for "Let's go"
• Why: Git! is a direct command to one person. The optative gidelim is a suggestion that includes the speaker.

Dropping the Buffer "y"

• Wrong: söyleeim
• Right: söyleyeyim
• Why: When the verb stem ends in a vowel (söyle-), you need the buffer consonant "y" before the optative suffix.

Overusing Formal Second/Third Person

• Wrong: Saying gidesin to a friend to mean "you should go"
• Right: Use the imperative git or a necessity form like gitmelisin
• Why: The second and third person optative forms sound literary or prayer-like. In everyday speech, Turkish speakers prefer imperatives or necessity forms for direct suggestions to others.

Usage Notes

The first person forms (especially -elim/-alım) dominate everyday use. You will hear gidelim, bakalım, and yapalım constantly in Turkish conversation. The second and third person optative forms are much rarer and tend to appear in proverbs, prayers, and formal or literary contexts.

Adding the question particle mı/mi to the first person optative creates polite offers: Yardım edeyim mi? ("Shall I help?"). This is one of the most natural ways to offer assistance in Turkish.

The expression bakalım ("let's see") has become almost a filler word in colloquial Turkish, used to express uncertainty or anticipation about what will happen next.

Practice Tips

• Start by memorizing the first person plural (-elim/-alım) forms of common verbs like gitmek, yapmak, yemek, and bakmak. These are the forms you will use most often.
• Practice making suggestions in daily scenarios: ordering food (ne yiyelim?), planning outings (nereye gidelim?), and offering help (yardım edeyim mi?).
• Listen for bakalım in Turkish media — it appears so frequently that tracking it will help you internalize the optative rhythm naturally.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Present Continuous Tense — understanding basic verb conjugation is needed before learning mood variations
• Next steps: The optative mood connects naturally to conditional and necessity forms as you advance through B1 grammar