Misafirler gelince, annem çay demleyecek.

the tea

Breakdown of Misafirler gelince, annem çay demleyecek.

• benim: my
• misafir: the guest
• anne: the mother

Questions & Answers about Misafirler gelince, annem çay demleyecek.

What does gelince mean, and how is it formed?

Gelince comes from the verb gelmek (to come / to arrive) plus the suffix -ince / -ınca, which often means when, once, or upon doing something.

So:

• gel- = come
• -ince = when / once

Together, gelince means when they come or when they arrive.

In this sentence, it connects the first action to the second one:

• Misafirler gelince = when the guests arrive
• annem çay demleyecek = my mother will brew tea

Why is there no separate word for when in the sentence?

In Turkish, meanings like when, once, or after doing are often expressed with a suffix rather than a separate word.

English:

• When the guests arrive, ...

Turkish:

• Misafirler gelince, ...

So instead of adding a separate word before the verb, Turkish attaches -ince to the verb itself.

This is very common in Turkish grammar. English often uses extra helper words; Turkish often uses endings.

Why is it misafirler and not misafirleri or something else?