LingoflyOpposite the bank, behind the house: the pointer comes after the noun
In English opposite and behind come before the noun. In Kazakh such a word comes after it, and each one demands its own tail from the noun. For example: “Дүкен банктің қарсысында (Düken banktiñ qarsysynda), бағдаршамның қасында” (Bağdarshamnyñ qasynda) — The shop is opposite the bank, next to the traffic light. A rule from the Kazakh course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
In English opposite and behind come before the noun. In Kazakh such a word comes after it, and each one demands its own tail from the noun.
One group asks for -nyñ, the whose tail: qarsysynda, opposite; artynda, behind; qasynda, beside. Banktiñ qarsysynda, üidiñ artynda.
A second group asks for -ğa: deiin, up to; qarai, toward. Keshke qarai is toward evening. A third asks for -dan: keiin, after; beri, since; buryn, before. Bir zhyldan keiin is in a year.
The trap: the English word gives you no hint about the tail. In a year is bir zhyldan keiin, and opposite the school is mekteptiñ qarsysynda. Learn them whole, as pairs.
Table
| The word after the noun | The tail on the noun | Example | In English |
|---|---|---|---|
| qarsysynda, artynda, qasynda | the whose-tail (-nyñ/-niñ) | üidiñ artynda | behind the house |
| deiin, qarai, taman | the -ğa tail (-ğa/-ge) | keshke qarai | toward evening |
| keiin, beri, buryñ | the -dan tail (-dan/-den) | bir zhildan keiin | in a year |
| boiymen, birge | the -men tail (-men/-ben) | köshe boiymen | along the street |
| where to / where at / where from | -ğa / -da / -dan | qalağa, qalada, qaladan | to the city, in the city, from the city |
By example
- Düken banktiñ qarsysynda, bağdarshamnyñ qasyndaThe shop is opposite the bank, next to the traffic light
- Көше бойымен жүріп, соңына дейін барыңызKöshe boiymen zhürip, soñyna deiin baryñyzWalk along the street and reach its end
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
Kazakh postpositions and the case they take?
In English opposite and behind come before the noun. In Kazakh such a word comes after it, and each one demands its own tail from the noun.
How to say opposite the bank in Kazakh?
In English opposite and behind come before the noun. In Kazakh such a word comes after it, and each one demands its own tail from the noun.
Keiin vs deiin in Kazakh?
A second group asks for -ğa: deiin, up to; qarai, toward. Keshke qarai is toward evening. A third asks for -dan: keiin, after; beri, since; buryn, before. Bir zhyldan keiin is in a year.
Why the Kazakh postposition stands after the noun?
In English opposite and behind come before the noun. In Kazakh such a word comes after it, and each one demands its own tail from the noun.
What does it look like in a Kazakh example sentence?
“Дүкен банктің қарсысында (Düken banktiñ qarsysynda), бағдаршамның қасында” (Bağdarshamnyñ qasynda) (Düken banktiñ qarsysynda, bağdarshamnyñ qasynda) — The shop is opposite the bank, next to the traffic light. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.