Defterlere

Defterlere is a Turkish word that functions as the dative plural form of defter, meaning notebooks or ledgers. It conveys the idea of movement toward or toward the notebooks, or a purpose involving the notebooks, depending on the verb it accompanies. In Turkish, defterlere can be translated as “to the notebooks,” “for the notebooks,” or “to notebooks,” depending on the sentence.

Morphology and grammar are central to the word. Turkish is an agglutinative language, so defterlere is built from the root defter + the plural suffix -ler + the dative suffix -e, yielding defterler + e = defterlere. Vowel harmony governs the suffix choices: because the root ends with the front vowel e, the plural suffix is -ler, and the dative suffix is -e. The order of suffixes is fixed: root + plural + dative.

Usage and contexts. Defterlere is used whenever the indirect object, destination, or beneficiary of an action is the notebooks. Examples include: Defterlere bakıyorum. (I am looking at the notebooks.) Notlar defterlere kaydedildi. (The notes were recorded into the notebooks. / The notes were saved in the notebooks.) The form is common in everyday Turkish as well as in archival, educational, and administrative contexts where notebooks or ledgers play a role.

Etymology and scope. The word defter derives from Turkish and Ottoman Turkish, ultimately tracing back to Arabic daftar, meaning register or ledger. Defterlere, therefore, sits at the intersection of everyday writing practices and historical record-keeping in Turkish, reflecting how suffixal harmony and case marking shape meaning in Turkish syntax.