"I do not know the language of birds."
Translation:Ben kuş dili bilmiyorum.
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I'm afraid we'll have to find some bilingual speakers first. Maybe we can enlist some African Grey Parrots?
kuşların dilini bilmiyorum. this is you other correct solution. how can the use of BEN make such a diffence to the endings
The use of ben has nothing to do with that sentence. You can also say "Ben kuşların dilini bilmıyorum" an be correct. It is just a different way to say the same thing (in this case using a possessive structure or a noun compound doesn't really change the meaning).
When you use the genitive-possessive as a direct object, it is specific and it needs the accusative case.
"Kuşların dilini bilmiyorum" is an accepted answer.
Shouldn't the possessive be kuşların dilisi? Because according to my grammar book in the possessive it should get an "s" there, not the "n". I'm confused.
The possessive ending for 3rd person will be "i" -- with a buffer-s before it if the word ends in a vowel. But after that if you add another suffix that starts with a vowel, you need a buffer-n between them. What you are seeing is:
dilini = dil + i [possessive] + n [buffer] + i [accusative]
1313
"Ben kuş dilini bilmiyorum" was also not accepted. (The sentence structure is a bit different, but I believe the essential meaning remains the same). Incidentally, I recall reading an article about a type of language (used by villagers in a remote, mountainous part of Turkey?) called "Kuş dili"! If I ever find the link again, I will share it here.
- 1313
"Kuş Dili" is a language used in the (Kara Deniz) Black Sea Coast Region of Turkey. The Black Sea Region is famous for its cuisine, folk dance and, thanks largely to the Giresun Province, its "bird language". The 400-year-old whistled language is part of the region's cultural heritage and has made its way onto the UN cultural agency's list of endangered languages.
For those who might be interested, here is the link.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/30/arts/in-turkey-keeping-alive-a-language-of-whistles.html
Because it refers to the language of A bird, like a parrot or something. Kuş dili or kuşlarin dilini are both acceptable.
When you use the genitive-possessive construction as a direct object, it is specific and it needs the accusative case.
"Kuşların dilini bilmiyorum" is an accepted answer.
Why is "kuş dilini bilmiyorum" marked as error and corrected in "kuş dili bilmiyorum"? Doesn't it need the accusative, being a specific object?
With "kuş dili," the noun-compound object is general/generic "bird language," so it does not take the accusative case. However if it was "kuşların dili," that genitive-possessive object is specific "the language of birds," so the accusative is necessary.
If you use the noun-compound "bird language," it will always be general/generic, so you don't put the plural on the first noun.
If you want to use the plural, you are now speaking of more specific "birds," so a genitive-possessive is more appropriate to get "the language of the birds." You would need to add the genitive to complete that, and also the accusative: kuşların dilini.