Bu eski borçtan kurtulmak istiyorum.

Because kurtulmak usually takes the thing you are getting free from in the ablative case, which often corresponds to English from.

• borç = debt
• borçtan = from the debt

So:

• borçtan kurtulmak = to get rid of / be freed from the debt

Also, the ending is -tan rather than -dan because borç ends in the voiceless consonant ç, so Turkish uses the voiceless form of the ablative ending here.

Kurtulmak means to get rid of, to be rid of, to escape from, or to be freed from, depending on context.

In this sentence, it means something like:

• to get rid of
• to free oneself from

So borçtan kurtulmak is a very natural way to say to get out of debt or to get rid of a debt.

A useful point: kurtulmak is usually about becoming free from a problem, burden, danger, illness, debt, etc.

Examples:

• Bu dertten kurtulmak istiyorum. = I want to get rid of this trouble.
• Hastalıktan kurtuldu. = He/She recovered from the illness.

Because istiyorum means I want.

• kurtulmak = to get rid of / to be freed
• istiyorum = I want

So:

• kurtulmak istiyorum = I want to get rid of it / I want to be free of it

If you said kurtuluyorum, that would mean I am getting rid of it or I am becoming free of it, which describes an action in progress, not a desire.

This is the same pattern as in English:

• I want to leave
• I want to learn
• I want to get rid of this debt

In Turkish:

• gitmek istiyorum = I want to go
• öğrenmek istiyorum = I want to learn
• kurtulmak istiyorum = I want to get rid of it

İstiyorum comes from the verb istemek = to want.

It breaks down like this:

• iste- = verb stem
• -iyor = present continuous tense
• -um = I

So:

• istiyorum = I want

Turkish often uses the present continuous for what English simply calls the present:

• istiyorum = I want
• literally, something like I am wanting, but in normal English we translate it as I want

That is why the subject I does not need to be said separately. The ending -um already tells you the subject is I.

Because Turkish often leaves out subject pronouns when the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

Here:

• istiyor-um = I want

So ben = I is not necessary.

You could say:

• Ben bu eski borçtan kurtulmak istiyorum.

But usually it is omitted unless you want emphasis, contrast, or clarity.

For example:

• Ben bu eski borçtan kurtulmak istiyorum, o ise beklemek istiyor. = I want to get rid of this old debt, but he/she wants to wait.

Yes, eski means old, but in this sentence it most naturally means something like:

• old
• longstanding
• from a long time ago

So bu eski borç means this old debt—probably a debt that has existed for a while, not a newly created one.

A small nuance: depending on context, eski can also mean former in some expressions, but here old debt is the natural meaning.

Examples:

• eski ev = old house
• eski arkadaş = old friend / longtime friend
• eski sevgili = ex-partner / former lover

In eski borç, the idea is most likely a debt that has been around for a long time.

Turkish word order is flexible, but the most neutral order often puts the main information before the verb, with the verb at the end.

Here the structure is:

• Bu eski borçtan = from this old debt
• kurtulmak = to get rid of / to be freed
• istiyorum = I want

So the sentence literally feels like:

• From this old debt, to get rid of myself, I want

A more natural English translation is simply:

• I want to get rid of this old debt.

You can move things around in Turkish for emphasis, but this version sounds natural and standard.

It normally uses the ablative case: -dan / -den / -tan / -ten.

So you usually say:

• borçtan kurtulmak = to get rid of the debt
• sorundan kurtulmak = to get rid of the problem
• ondan kurtulmak = to get rid of him/her/it

This is because the meaning is basically to become free from something.

So for learners, it is best to memorize kurtulmak together with the pattern:

• X’ten kurtulmak = to get rid of X / to be freed from X

That will help you avoid trying to use it like a direct-object verb.

This is because of vowel harmony.

The ablative ending has four common forms:

• -dan
• -den
• -tan
• -ten

The vowel depends on the last vowel of the word, and the consonant depends on whether the word ends in a voiced or voiceless consonant.

For borç:

• last vowel = o, so we need the a-type vowel
• final consonant = ç (voiceless), so we use t, not d

So:

• borç + tan = borçtan

Yes, bu eski borç is a complete noun phrase meaning this old debt.

Turkish modifiers come before the noun:

• bu = this
• eski = old
• borç = debt

So:

• bu eski borç = this old debt

This is similar to English, where adjectives also usually come before the noun.

You can think of it as:

• determiner + adjective + noun

Examples:

• bu büyük ev = this big house
• o yeni araba = that new car
• şu zor soru = that difficult question

Yes, depending on context, that can be a very natural translation.

Possible translations include:

• I want to get rid of this old debt.
• I want to get out of this old debt.
• I want to free myself from this old debt.

The exact best translation depends on the situation:

• If you mean a financial obligation you want to clear, get out of this debt may sound very natural.
• If you are focusing on removing a burden, get rid of this debt works well.
• If you want a more literal or formal tone, free myself from this old debt is closer to the Turkish structure.

In speech, you can emphasize those words with intonation, and in Turkish you can also change word order for focus.

For example:

• Bu eski borçtan kurtulmak istiyorum. = neutral
• Bu borçtan kurtulmak istiyorum. = I want to get rid of this debt
• Eski borçtan kurtulmak istiyorum. = I want to get rid of the old debt

If the context already makes the debt clear, Turkish may drop one of the modifiers.

But the original sentence is a good, neutral full version if you want to mention all the information clearly.