Onomatopoeias (nerd lingo for "words created by imitating a sound") are very common in Turkish. You can find all sorts of words with imitative origin - nouns, adverbs, verbs and even adjectives. Sounds like a lot, right? But thanks to the agglutinative nature of Turkish, you will learn onomatopoeias with ease. Why learn onomatopoeia in the first place?, you might ask. Firstly, they will make your speech more lively and descriptive. Additionally, some words that don't seem to be imitative in nature are, in fact, onomatopoeic. Knowing the roots of these words will help you memorize them more easily thanks to association.
Without further ado, let's start with the basics of onomatopoeia - the roots.
Onomatopoeic roots
The Turkish onomatopoeic vocabulary is made up of roots (sounds of humans, animals, objects or natural phenomena) and adverbs, verbs, nouns and adjectives which are derived from the primary roots. This results in the formation of onomatopoeic groups. Here's an example with vız, meaning buzz:
vız (primary root) → vızıl (secondary root) → vızıl vızıl (adverb) → vızıldamak (verb) → vızıltı (noun)
PS: primary and secondary roots (primary root + -ıl/-ır) are essentially the same. The only difference is that secondary roots imply more length and less severity.
Onomatopoeic adverbs
You can make an adverb out of an onomatopoeic root by duplicating it. Here are more examples:
parıl - shining/gleaming
Yüzüğün elmasları parıl parıl parlıyordu. - The diamonds of the ring were shining brightly. (lit. The diamonds of the ring were shining "parıl parıl".)
mışıl - sleeping soundly (how did they come up with a sound for that?)
Bebek mışıl mışıl uyuyor. - The baby is sleeping soundly. (lit. The baby is sleeping "mışıl mışıl".)
fokur - boiling with noisy bubbles (yes, it's that specific)
Tenceredeki su fokur fokur kaynıyor. - The water in the pot is boiling noisily. (lit. The water in the pot is boiling "fokur fokur".)
Now, let's learn how to make some verbs!
Onomatopoeic verbs
There are three suffixes that make verbs out of onomatopoeic roots: -kIr (4-way vowel harmony), -lA (2-way vowel harmony), and -dA (2-way vowel harmony). Keep in mind that -dA is only attached to secondary roots. Here are some examples.
öksürmek (to cough) ← öskürmek ← ös + -kür
Öksürürken ağız bölgesini peçeteyle kapatmalıyız. - We should cover the mouth area with tissue when coughing.
Notice the s and k swapping places? That is called metathesis.
hapşırmak (to sneeze) ← hapşurmak ← hapşu (comp. English achoo) + -r
Üstüme hapşırma, öküz! - Don't sneeze on me, you bull (rude person)!
Because the root ends in a vowel, the -kır suffix has lost its initial k.
haykırmak (to shout) ← hay (comp. English hey) + -kır
Kaybolan çocuk durmaksızın annesinin adını haykırdı. - The lost child shouted his mother's name over and over.
fışkırmak (to squirt, to spew) ← fış + -kır
Deney sırasında her yere etil alkol fışkırdı. - During the experiment, ethyl alcohol spewed everywhere.
püskürmek (to erupt, to spurt) ← püfkürmek ← püf (comp. English poof) + -kür
Yanardağ etkinleşince içinden lav püskürür. - When a volcano becomes active, lava erupts out of it.
çatlamak (to crack) ← çat (comp. English shatter) + -la
Yeni aldığım çömlek bulaşık makinesinde çatlamış. - The new pot I bought cracked in the dishwasher.
miyavlamak (to meow) ← miyav + -la
Bizi görünce kedi miyavlamaya başladı. - The cat started meowing when it saw us.
havlamak (to bark) ← hav + -la
Havlayan köpek ısırmaz. - A barking dog never bites. (People who make threats don't carry them out.)
patlamak (to burst, to explode) ← pat (comp. Low German spatten, English spatter) + -la
Havai fişekler elimizde patladı. - The fireworks exploded in our hands.
horlamak (to snore) ← hor (kinda sounds like Freddy Fazbear?) + -la
Horlamadan uyumak istiyorsanız sırt üstü uyumayın. - Don't sleep on your back if you want to sleep without snoring.
fısıldamak (to whisper) ← fısıl + -da
Kütüphanede fısıldayarak konuşulur. - At the library, you talk by whispering.
gürüldemek (the sky to rumble, to thunder) ← gürül + -de
Duydun mu? Gök gürüldedi! - Did you hear that? Thunder boomed! (lit. The sky rumbled!)
fokurdamak (to boil noisily) ← fokur + -da
Su fokurdamadan ocağın altını kıs. - Turn down the stove before the water boils with noise.
parıldamak (to shine, to twinkle) ← parıl + -da
Parıldayan yıldızları izlemek beni rahatlatıyor. - Watching the twinkling stars relaxes me.
cızırdamak (to sizzle, to whiz) ← cızır + -da
Tavuğu yağa attığınızda cızırdamalı. - The chicken should sizzle when you drop it in the oil.
Onomatopoeic nouns and adjectives
The -(İl)tİ/-(İr)tİ suffix (4-way vowel harmony) makes nouns out of onomatopoeic roots:
vız (buzzing sound) → vızıltı (buzz)
Arıların vızıltısı pikniğimizi mahvetti. - The buzz of the bees ruined our picnic.
parıl (shining sound) → parıltı (shine)
Kıyafetin hoş ama parıltısı eksik. - Your garment is nice, but its shine is missing.
gür (loud noise sound) → gürültü (noise)
Bu gürültüde kimse çalışamaz! - No one could work in this noise!
çıt (crunching sound) → çıtırtı (crispiness, crunch)
Öbür yemekler de pek güzeldi, ancak şnitzelin çıtırtısı beni benden aldı. - The other dishes were also very good, but the crunch of the schnitzel took me away.
Another way is by adding the -mA (2-way vowel harmony) or -(İ)k (4-way vowel harmony) suffix to onomatopeic verbs:
öksürmek → öksürük (cough)
Öksürüğün gittikçe kötüleşiyor. - Your cough is getting worse.
hapşırmak → hapşırık (sneeze)
çatlamak → çatlak (crack)
Çatlakları tamir macunuyla doldurabiliriz. - We can fill in the cracks with patching compound.
ışıldamak (to glow) → ışıldak (searchlight)
Işıldaklar gökyüzünü tarıyordu. - The searchlights were scanning the sky.
havlamak → havlama (barking)
Havlamanı görmezden geleceğim şimdilik. - I'll ignore your barking for now.
fısıldamak → fısıldama (whisper)
Fısıldamalarınızı duymuyorum mu sanıyorsunuz? - You think I don't hear your whispers?
patlamak → patlama (explosion)
Dün geceki patlama hepimizi korkuttu. - Last night's explosion scared us all.
Note that -(İ)k can also create adjectives:
çatlamak → çatlak (cracked, crazy)
O bardağı kullanma! Çatlak o. - Don't use that glass! It's cracked.
Ne diyor bu çatlak karı? - What is this crazy woman saying?
parlamak (to shine) → parlak (shiny)
Şampuanını mı değiştirdin? Saçın oldukça parlak görünüyor. - Did you change your shampoo? Your hair looks quite shiny.
şaklamak (to chirp) → şaklak → şakrak (cheerful, merry)
Ay, bunaldım! Daha şakrak bir şarkı aç! - Oh, I'm tired of this! Play a more cheerful song!
Exceptions
Some words of imitative origin have unclear suffix structure while others have no suffixes at all. Here are some examples:
abur cubur (unhealthy snacks) ← abur cubur (loud eating sound)
bir tık (a little bit) ← tık (small increment) ← tık (clicking sound)
çan (church bell) ← çang (resonant bonk sound)
çiş (urine) ← çiş çiş (urinating sound, usually used by mothers to encourage their child to urinate)
civciv (chick) ← civ civ (chick sound)
cızbız (a type of meatball) ← cız bız (frying sound)
düdük (whistle [the object]) ← düt (whistle sound) + -Uk (?)
fıskiye (water fountain) ← fıs (pressurized water sound) + -iyA(t) (pseudo-Arabic verbal noun suffix)
goygoy (goofy talk) ← goy goy (unintelligible talking sound)
kekeme (stuttering) ← ke ke (stuttering sound) + -mA (?)
pati (paw) ← pat pat (walking sound) + ?
şakımak (to chirp, usually for nightingales) ← şak (chirping sound) + -I (?)
şipşak (very quickly, in the blink of an eye) ← şip şak (quick dashing sound)
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