Tölem, öndiris, kelissöz: how a verb becomes a noun
The unit about money and contract consists almost entirely of deverbal nouns: tölem, öndiris, teksoris, mindetteleme, kelissöz, suranys. In English they end any which way — "payment", "production", "check", "commitment" — and the link to the verb is not always visible. In Kazakh there are four tails, and each speaks of its own. For example: “Жеткізу құны төлемге кірмейді” — The delivery cost is not included in the…
How it works
The unit about money and contract consists almost entirely of deverbal nouns: tölem, öndiris, teksoris, mindetteleme, kelissöz, suranys. In English they end any which way — "payment", "production", "check", "commitment" — and the link to the verb is not always visible. In Kazakh there are four tails, and each speaks of its own.
-u — the most general: the action as such. Töleu — both to pay and payment, zetkizu — both to deliver and delivery, rastau — both to confirm and confirmation. The -u form takes cases and possessive tails and works in the sentence like an ordinary noun: zetkizu quny, töleudi umyttym. English does the same with the gerund, but here the -u form also feeds all the other suffixes below. It is exactly this form that stands in all the "to do something" of this wave.
-ym / -im / -m names the result, the portion, the finished thing. Töleu gives tölem — not the act of paying but the sum that is paid; qoiu gives qoiylym — a staged play; zhalğau gives zhalğas and zhalğasy — a continuation. If the word stands in a report and can be counted, it is most likely a -ym.
-ys / -is / -s names an action in which two parties take part, or the process as a whole. Öndiru — öndiris, teksoru — teksoris, surau — suranys, zharysu — zharys, kelisu — kelis. In verbs the -ys tail meant reciprocity (amandasu, bölisu), and its trace stayed in the nouns: kelissöz — negotiations, word for word "a word the parties agree on with each other".
-ma / -me names what has been made — an object or a document. Tapsyru — tapsyrma (an assignment), mindet — mindetteleme (a commitment), köşiru — köşirme (a copy), toptau — toptama (a collection), sekiru — sekirtpe (a jump rope). The tail yields a thing that can be taken in hand or handed in at a window.
Why tell them apart. One English word often corresponds to two Kazakh ones, and they are not interchangeable: töleu — to pay, tölem — a payment; teksoru — to check and a check-up, teksoris — an inspection as an event. The mistake here is not grammatical but semantic, and the ear cannot catch it: the tail is one syllable.
Table
| the tail | what it names | the verb | the noun |
|---|---|---|---|
| -u | the action in general | töleu — to pay | töleu — payment |
| -u | the action in general | zetkizu — to deliver | zetkizu — delivery |
| -ym / -im | the result, the amount | töleu | tölem — a payment |
| -ym / -im | the result, a thing | qoiu — to stage | qoiylym — a play |
| -ys / -is | the process, reciprocity | öndiru — to produce | öndiris — production |
| -ys / -is | the process, reciprocity | surau — to request | suranys — demand |
| -ma / -me | a made thing, a paper | mindet — a duty | mindetteleme — a commitment |
| -ma / -me | a made thing, a paper | toptau — to collect | toptama — a collection |
By example
- Жеткізу құны төлемге кірмейдіThe delivery cost is not included in the payment
- Зауытта өндіріс тоқтады, тексеріс басталдыProduction stopped at the factory, an inspection began
- Міндеттемені жазбаша рәсімдеу керекThe commitment must be put in writing
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
Tölem, öndiris, kelissöz: how does it work in Kazakh?
The unit about money and contract consists almost entirely of deverbal nouns: tölem, öndiris, teksoris, mindetteleme, kelissöz, suranys. In English they end any which way — "payment", "production", "check", "commitment" — and the link to the verb is not always visible. In Kazakh there are four…
What does it look like in an example sentence Kazakh?
“Жеткізу құны төлемге кірмейді” — The delivery cost is not included in the payment. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.