Conditional Mood (-se/-sa)

Formation

The conditional mood expresses 'if' or hypothetical situations. It's formed by adding -se/-sa (e-type harmony) to the verb stem, followed by personal endings.

Pattern: Verb stem + -se/-sa + personal ending

Front vowels → -se

Back vowels → -sa

gel-se-m

if I come

gel + se + m

yap-sa-n

if you do

yap + sa + n

gid-er-se

if he/she goes

git + er + se (with aorist)

With Different Tenses

The conditional can be added to different tense stems:

Present: verb stem + se

Past: past stem + y + se

Future: future stem + se

Each creates slightly different meaning.

Gelsem

If I come/were to come

Simple conditional

Geldiysem

If I (have) come

Past conditional

Geleceksem

If I will come

Future conditional

Common Conditional Patterns

Conditional clauses often use:

Eğer ... -se → If ... then

-se ... -r → If ... then (habitual)

-se ... -ecek → If ... then (future)

-se ... -dı → If ... then (past result)

Eğer gelirsen, mutlu olurum

If you come, I will be happy

eğer + conditional + result

Yağmur yağarsa, evde kalırım

If it rains, I stay home

Habitual conditional

Çalışsaydım, geçerdim

If I had studied, I would have passed

Past counterfactual

Exercises

conjugation

Conjugate 'gelmek' (to come) for 'if we' in conditional

Answer: gelsek

gel + se + k = gelsek (if we come)

translation

Translate: If you want

Answer: İstersen

iste + r + sen = istersen (conditional with aorist)

fill in-blank

Complete: Eğer çalış__, başarırsın (If you study, you'll succeed)

Answer: san

çalış + sa + n = çalışsan