In English we use prepositions like "with" (having) and "without" (lacking) to describe the properties of things: a person with a car, tea with lemon, a house without a roof.
Kyrgyz has no prepositions. Instead, two word-building suffixes are glued directly onto the word, turning it into an adjective.
🧠 The Logic
What are these suffixes for? They solve an important communicative task — describing the presence or absence of a quality in something. English needs separate preposition words for this, while Kyrgyz is more compact: one suffix turns a noun into an adjective.
- -ЛУУ = "having something," "containing something," "characterized by something"
- -СЫЗ = "not having something," "lacking something"
Think of it as a building kit: take any noun, add a suffix, and you get a new adjective.
🧮 The -ЛУУ Formula (Suffix of Presence)
This suffix means that something possesses a quality or contains something.
💡 Pronunciation tip: This suffix has one unique feature! Unlike most other suffixes, it uses only the rounded vowels «У» and «Ү». You don't need to choose between 4 vowels — just between hard and soft!
Depending on the final letter of the word, the suffix takes one of 6 forms: -луу-лүү, -дуу-дүү, -туу-түү.
After vowels and the letters Р, Й → -луу-лүү
- Бала (child) → Балалуу (having children)
- Үй-бүлө (family) → Үй-бүлөлүү (having a family, married)
After voiced consonants (З, Л, М, Н, Ң) → -дуу-дүү
- Акыл (mind) → Акылдуу (smart)
- Туз (salt) → Туздуу (salty)
- Лимон (lemon) → Лимондуу (with lemon)
- Билим (knowledge) → Билимдүү (educated)
After voiceless consonants (К, П, С, Т, Ч, Ш) → -туу-түү
- Кант (sugar) → Канттуу (sweet, sugary)
- Сүт (milk) → Сүттүү (with milk)
- Күч (strength) → Күчтүү (strong)
🧮 The -СЫЗ Formula (Suffix of Absence)
This suffix works like the English suffix "-less." It means that something doesn't have a certain quality.
This one is simpler! The first letter «С» never changes. You only need to pick the vowel according to the vowel harmony law: -сыз-сиз-суз-сүз.
- Акыл → Акылсыз (foolish, mindless)
- Кант → Кантсыз (without sugar)
- Туз → Тузсуз (unsalted)
- Сүт → Сүтсүз (without milk)
- Бала → Баласыз (childless)
- Күч → Күчсүз (powerless, weak)
⚠️ Important Nuances
1. -ЛУУ vs. МЕНЕН
A common mistake is to confuse the -луу suffix with the postposition менен (with / together with).
❌ Мага чай лимон менен бериңиз. (Give me tea together with a lemon — as if the tea and lemon came to the café as a pair)
✅ Мага лимондуу чай бериңиз. (Give me tea with lemon / lemon tea)
How to tell them apart:
- Use менен when talking about a joint action or accompaniment: «Мен досум менен бардым» (I went with my friend).
- Use -луу when describing a property or composition of something: «Лимондуу чай» (Tea with lemon), «Машиналуу адам» (A person who has a car).
💡 Examples
Now you can build dozens of useful words yourself! Here are the most popular pairs:
At a Café or Restaurant
| With something (-луу) | Without something (-сыз) |
|---|---|
| Сүттүү кофе — Coffee with milk | Сүтсүз кофе — Coffee without milk |
| Канттуу чай — Tea with sugar | Кантсыз чай — Tea without sugar |
| Газдуу суу — Sparkling water | Газсыз суу — Still water |
| Эттүү тамак — Food with meat | Этсиз тамак — Meat-free food |
About People and Their Status
- Ал үй-бүлөлүү. — He/she is married (has a family).
- Мен машинасыз келдим. — I came without a car.
- Сиз абдан акылдуусуз. — You are very smart.
See also:
- Basic Adjectives — the foundation for understanding the modifier system
- Vowel Harmony — choosing the vowel in the suffix (-луу/-лүү, -сыз/-сиз/-суз/-сүз)
- Sound Assimilation — choosing the consonant in the -ЛУУ suffix (л/д/т)