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Cuando limpio el polvo, estornudo porque tengo alergia.

Cuando limpio el polvo, estornudo porque tengo alergia.
When I clean the dust, I sneeze because I have an allergy.
From Lesson 118:Present habits with when (cuando)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about Cuando limpio el polvo, estornudo porque tengo alergia.

Why does this sentence use the present tense limpio right after cuando?
In this lesson, we are using cuando (when) to talk about habits or things that happen regularly. When you want to express "whenever this happens, that happens," you just use the normal present tense for both verbs. Here, cuando limpio simply means "whenever I clean."
Does limpio el polvo literally mean "I clean the dust"?
Yes! In English, we usually just say "I dust" as a single verb. In Spanish, the standard way to express this chore is to say you clean the dust (limpiar el polvo) or remove the dust (quitar el polvo).
Is estornudo a verb or a noun here?
It is a verb here! Estornudo is the "yo" (I) form of the verb estornudar (to sneeze). However, it is also the noun for "a sneeze" (el estornudo). You can tell it is a verb in this sentence because of the structure: you are stating the action you do when you clean.
Why is it tengo alergia instead of tengo una alergia?
In Spanish, it is very common to drop the words un or una (a/an) after the verb tener (to have) when talking about general illnesses, conditions, or symptoms. You just say tengo alergia (literally "I have allergy") just like you would say tengo tos ("I have a cough").

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