-maq istədiyini

Reported Intention or Desire

Level 5

Use -maq istədiyini to report a person's desire or intention in a formal context, such as 'He said that he wants to stay.'

How It Works

The construction -maq istədiyini is a sophisticated tool for advanced learners to report speech and intentions objectively.

1. Morphological Structure:

  • Verb Root + -maq/-mək: The action being desired (e.g., getmək).
  • istə-: The root of 'to want'.
  • -diy-: The non-future participle suffix (the 'k' in -dik softens to 'y' before a vowel).
  • -i-: The third person possessive suffix, indicating whose desire it is.
  • -n-: The pronominal 'n' buffer.
  • -i: The definite accusative case marker, because the whole clause is the object of the main verb.

2. Usage and Register:
This pattern is highly formal. While casual speech often uses ki complement clauses (e.g., Dedi ki, getmək istəyirəm), -maq istədiyini is the standard in journalism, academic writing, and official statements. It integrates the reported desire seamlessly into the sentence structure.

3. Tense Neutrality:
Despite the -dik suffix (often associated with the past), in this specific reporting context, it is tense-neutral. It represents the state of 'wanting' at the time the statement was made.

Examples (4)

  1. Rəsmi şəxs iclasda iştirak etmək istədiyini söylədi.

    The official said that he wanted to participate in the meeting.

    Word by Word: Official person meeting-in participation to-do wanting-his-ACC said.

    Here, the official's desire to participate is reported as a single unit acting as the object of 'söylədi'.

  2. O, Bakıda daha bir həftə qalmaq istədiyini bizə yazmışdı.

    He had written to us that he wanted to stay in Baku for one more week.

    Word by Word: He, Baku-in more one week to-stay wanting-his-ACC to-us had-written.

    The pattern works with various reporting verbs like 'yazmaq' (to write).

  3. Şirkət rəhbərliyi yeni layihəyə başlamaq istədiyini bəyan etdi.

    The company management declared that it wanted to start a new project.

    Word by Word: Company management new project-to to-start wanting-its-ACC declaration did.

    In formal contexts, 'bəyan etmək' (to declare) is frequently paired with this construction.

  4. Qonaqlar tezliklə yola düşmək istədiklərini bildirdilər.

    The guests stated that they wanted to set off soon.

    Word by Word: Guests soon road-to to-fall wanting-their-ACC stated.

    Note how the possessive suffix changes to '-ləri' (their) to match the plural subject 'qonaqlar'.

Common Mistakes

  • Omitting the pronominal 'n' buffer before the case marker.

    O, getmək istədiyii bildirdi.
    O, getmək istədiyini bildirdi.

    In Azerbaijani, when adding a case suffix to a 3rd person possessive, a buffer 'n' is mandatory.

  • Mixing up who wants to do the action.

    Different MeaningMüəllim mənim getmək istədiyimi dedi.
    Müəllim getməyimi istədiyini dedi.

    The '-maq istədiyini' pattern says the subject wants to do the action themselves. 'Müəllim mənim getmək istədiyimi dedi' is a good sentence, but it means 'The teacher said that I want to go.' If the teacher wants me to go, make the infinitive a possessed verbal noun: getməyimi istədiyini.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-maq istədiyiniLevel 5Reported Intention or Desire

Learn This First

To understand '-maq istədiyini', a learner must first be familiar with the infinitive form of verbs and the verb 'istəmək' (to want). Crucially, they need to understand how Azerbaijani forms object complement clauses using the '-dığı' relative/nominalizing suffix combined with possessive and accusative case markers to report what someone said or felt.

Words in This Pattern

istəmək