püf noktası

Turkish

Etymology

Compound of püf (“onomatopoeic for; a puff of air”) +‎ nokta (“point, spot”) +‎ -(s)ı (possessive suffix with "s" as buffer consonant), literally “puff point”, from a folk tale about either a pottery or glassblowing craftsman and his impatient apprentice wanting to open his own shop, and the master not giving him his leave because the apprentice hadn't yet learned the "puff point" of the art, supposedly where one gently blows on the tiny air bubbles formed in the material to pop them before it's dry to prevent the item from cracking or breaking easily.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpyf.nok.ta.sɯ/
• Hyphenation: püf‧nok‧ta‧sı

Noun

püf noktası (definite accusative püf noktasını, plural püf noktaları)

1. (idiomatic) The most important part of a thing that separates those in the know and others; the secret, the trick, the crux of the matter.

Declension

Inflection
Nominative	püf noktası
Definite accusative	püf noktasını
	Singular	Plural
Nominative	püf noktası	püf noktaları
Definite accusative	püf noktasını	püf noktalarını
Dative	püf noktasına	püf noktalarına
Locative	püf noktasında	püf noktalarında
Ablative	püf noktasından	püf noktalarından
Genitive	püf noktasının	püf noktalarının

Further reading

• “püf noktası”, in Turkish dictionaries, Türk Dil Kurumu
• Çağbayır, Yaşar (2007) “püf noktası”, in Ötüken Türkçe Sözlük (in Turkish), Istanbul: Ötüken Neşriyat, page 3913