-irdi

Used to

Level 4

The -irdi pattern (Aorist + Past Tense) describes things that were regular habits in the past or things that would happen in imaginary situations.

How It Works

The -irdi pattern is essential for moving beyond simple past events to describing character traits and hypothetical worlds.

1. Habitual Past ('Used to'):
It describes actions that were repeated regularly in the past but are no longer true. While the Past Continuous is often used for this in casual speech, -irdi is more precise for defining a person's character or a general rule of that time.
Example: Eskiden çok kitap okurdu. (He used to read a lot of books.)

2. Hypothetical 'Would':
This is the standard form for the result clause in 'Type 2' conditional sentences (unreal or unlikely present/future situations).
Example: Param olsa, yeni bir araba alırdım. (If I had money, I would buy a new car.)

3. Formation Rules:

  • Vowel Stems: Add -r + -dı/di/du/dü (e.g., oku-r-du).
  • Single Syllable Stems: Usually add -ar/er + -dı/di (e.g., yap-ar-dı).
  • Multi-syllable Stems: Add -ır/ir/ur/ür + -dı/di/du/dü (e.g., getir-ir-di).
  • Exceptions: Remember the 13 exceptions like gelir, alır, and bilir.

4. Negation:
In the negative, the Aorist -r is replaced by -maz/-mez.
Example: Gitmezdim. (I wouldn't go / I didn't use to go.)

Examples (5)

  1. Babam her akşam bize masal anlatırdı.

    My father used to tell us fairy tales every evening.

    Word by Word: My father every evening to us fairy-tale used-to-tell.

    Here, the pattern describes a repeated habit in the past.

  2. Yerinde olsam oraya asla gitmezdim.

    If I were in your place, I would never go there.

    Word by Word: In your place if I were, to there never I-would-not-go.

    This uses the negative form (-mezdim) to express a hypothetical 'would not'.

  3. Gençken çok hızlı koşardı.

    He used to run very fast when he was young.

    Word by Word: While young very fast he-used-to-run.

    This describes a characteristic or ability that was true in the past.

  4. Vaktim olsaydı sana yardım ederdim.

    If I had time, I would help you.

    Word by Word: My time if there were, to you help I-would-do.

    A classic hypothetical scenario using the auxiliary verb 'etmek'.

  5. Eskiden bu parkta oyun oynardık.

    We used to play games in this park in the past.

    Word by Word: In the past in this park game we-used-to-play.

    Shows the first-person plural form (-rdık).

Common Mistakes

  • Using the wrong Aorist vowel for monosyllabic verbs.

    Her gün buraya gelerdi.
    Her gün buraya gelirdi.

    'Gelmek' is one of the 13 exceptions that takes -ir instead of -er.

  • Using -iyordu for hypothetical 'would' sentences.

    Param olsa alıyordum.
    Param olsa alırdım.

    For imaginary 'if-then' results, the standard choice is the aorist-past (-irdi), as in alırdım. The progressive past (-iyordu) is not the usual form here.

  • Forgetting the -maz/-mez change in negation.

    Oraya giderdi değil.
    Oraya gitmezdi.

    Turkish does not use 'değil' to negate verbs in this tense; the suffix itself changes to -maz/-mez.

How It Connects

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

-irdiLevel 4Used to

Learn This First

The pattern -irdi (the Aorist Past) is a compound tense. To understand it, you must first be comfortable with the Aorist (Geniş Zaman) to form the base, and the Simple Past (-di) to provide the past-time perspective. Together, they express habitual actions in the past, equivalent to 'used to' in English.

Words in This Pattern

-r-di