-sa, -se and bolar edi: if I do, if I did
To say if the money is enough you need no conjunction. The tail -sa does the whole job. For example: “Несие берсе, пәтер аламын” — If they give the loan, I will buy a flat. A rule from the Kazakh course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
To say if the money is enough you need no conjunction. The tail -sa does the whole job.
A real condition is one that may come true. The verb takes -sa, then the tail for the person: barsam, barsañ, barsa, barsaq. Aqsha zhetse, päter zhaldaimyn is if the money is enough, I will rent a flat. Negation sits inside: kelmese, habarlañyz.
An unreal condition is one that did not or will not happen. It adds edi: bilsem, keler edim, had I known, I would have come. The commonest form is bolar edi: zhaqsy bolar edi, that would be good.
A pleasant trap: the word eger is optional. The tail has said it, and in speech eger usually drops out.
Table
| What we express | The form | Example | In English |
|---|---|---|---|
| a real condition | -sa / -se | uaqyt bolsa | if there is time |
| the person in the condition | -sam, -sañ, -sa | barsam, barsañ | if I, if you |
| negation | -masa / -mese | kelmese | if he does not come |
| the unreal | -sa + -ar edi | bilsem, aıtar edim | if I knew — I would say |
| "it would be" | bolar edi | zhaqsy bolar edi | it would be good |
| the unreal in the past | -ğan bolsa | aıtğan bolsañ | if you had said |
| a polite request | -sañyz | qalasañyz | if you wish |
By example
- Несие берсе, пәтер аламынIf they give the loan, I will buy a flat
- Ертерек білсем, өтініш бермес едімHad I known earlier, I would not have applied
- Мүмкін болса, шот көшірмесін беріңізшіIf possible, please give me an account statement
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
-sa, -se and bolar edi: how does it work in Kazakh?
To say if the money is enough you need no conjunction. The tail -sa does the whole job.
What does it look like in an example sentence Kazakh?
“Несие берсе, пәтер аламын” — If they give the loan, I will buy a flat. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.