Learn Hardcore Turkish: Su taşınca mutfağı temizliyorum. - When the water overflows, I clean the kitchen.

Su taşınca = when/whenever the water overflows (often a repeated situation)
It can also feel conditional in context: if the water overflows (then…)

So taşınca is not a full finite verb like taştı (it overflowed); it’s more like overflowing/once it overflows used to set the time/condition for the main clause.

Why is it taşınca and not something like taşarken?

Both exist, but they’re not the same:

Su taşınca: focuses on the moment it overflows / once it overflows (trigger event)
Su taşarken: means while it is overflowing (ongoing simultaneous action)

So your sentence frames cleaning as a response that happens after/once overflow occurs, not necessarily during the overflow.

How is taşınca built? What is the dictionary form?

The dictionary form is taşmak = to overflow.

Formation:

verb stem: taş-
converb suffix: -ınca (chosen by vowel harmony) → taşınca

Vowel harmony here selects -ınca because the last vowel in taş- is a (a back vowel).

Why is the main verb temizliyorum (present continuous)? Would temizlerim be more natural?

Temizliyorum is literally I am cleaning (right now / around now), but in Turkish it can also be used for habitual or repeated situations, depending on context.

That said:

Su taşınca mutfağı temizlerim. often sounds more like a general rule / habit: Whenever the water overflows, I clean the kitchen.
Su taşınca mutfağı temizliyorum. can sound like: When it overflows, I (end up) cleaning the kitchen (these days / typically), or it may feel more immediate/complaint-like in some contexts.

Both can be correct; temizlerim is often the default for a timeless habit.

What does the -ı on mutfağı mean?

That -ı is the accusative case (definite direct object marker).

mutfak = kitchen
mutfağı = the kitchen (as the specific object being cleaned)

Because temizlemek usually takes a direct object, Turkish often marks it as definite with the accusative.

Why does mutfak become mutfağı (spelling/pronunciation change)?

Two common changes happen:

1) k → ğ softening (in many words when a vowel-initial suffix is added)

mutfak + -ı → mutfağı

2) The final consonant becomes a soft ğ, which typically lengthens the preceding vowel rather than sounding like a strong consonant.

So it’s a normal sound/spelling alternation: mutfak → mutfağı.

There’s no word for I or my—how do we know who is doing the cleaning?

Turkish usually drops subject pronouns because the verb ending shows the person.

temizliyor-um = I am cleaning / I clean (in this context)

So ben (I) is optional and would usually be added only for emphasis or contrast:

Ben su taşınca mutfağı temizliyorum. = I (as opposed to someone else) clean the kitchen…

Does Su taşınca mean “when the water overflows” or “when water overflows”? Why no article?

Turkish doesn’t have articles like a/the, and it often uses bare nouns.

Su can mean water in general or the water in a given situation. Context decides.

So Su taşınca can be understood as:

When water overflows (general)
When the water overflows (a specific situation, like the sink water)

Can the word order change? For example, can I say Mutfağı su taşınca temizliyorum?

Yes. Turkish word order is flexible because case endings show grammatical roles.

Common options:

Su taşınca mutfağı temizliyorum. (very neutral)
Mutfağı su taşınca temizliyorum. (more focus on the kitchen)
Su taşınca temizliyorum mutfağı. (possible, but sounds more marked/emphatic)

The most typical pattern is: (time/condition) + object + verb.

Is taşınca more like “when” or “because”? How would I say “because it overflowed”?

-ınca is primarily when/once/whenever/if, not plain “because.”

If you want explicit because, you’d typically use:

Su taştığı için mutfağı temizliyorum. = Because the water overflowed/overflows, I clean the kitchen.
Su taştığı için mutfağı temizledim. = Because the water overflowed, I cleaned the kitchen.

So:

Su taşınca… = when/if/once it overflows…
Su taştığı için… = because it overflowed…