The Converb of Exception (-mAdIkçA)
In the previous lesson, you learned how to use -dIkçA to express "as long as" or "the more... the more...". To express the negative version of this—meaning "unless" or "as long as [an action] does not happen"—you simply add the negative suffix -mA before -dIkçA.
You create this form by attaching -ma or -me (following 2-way vowel harmony) directly to the verb stem, followed by the converb suffix.
| Verb Stem | Negative + Suffix | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| ver- (to give) | -medikçe | vermedikçe | unless (one) gives |
| yağ- (to rain) | -madıkça | yağmadıkça | unless it rains |
| aç- (to open) | -madıkça | açmadıkça | unless (one) opens |
| büyü- (to grow) | -medikçe | büyümedikçe | unless (it) grows |
Because the negative suffix -mA always ends in a vowel, consonant mutation never occurs here. The d will never harden into a t. You only have two straightforward forms to remember: -madıkça and -medikçe.
| Unless you give fertilizer, the crops dry up. | Gübre vermedikçe ekinler kuruyor. |
| Unless it rains, the well dries up. | Yağmur yağmadıkça kuyu kuruyor. |
Setting the Condition
Just like its positive counterpart, -mAdIkçA does not take tense or personal markers itself. It acts purely as a condition for the rest of the sentence. The main verb (or noun) at the end of the sentence determines who is doing the action and when it happens.
| Unless you open the greenhouse, the tomatoes rot. | Serayı açmadıkça domatesler çürüyor. |
| We are not going to the greenhouse unless the crops grow. | Ekinler büyümedikçe seraya gitmiyoruz. |
This structure is extremely useful for talking about natural processes, farming, and agriculture, because it easily describes a state that remains frozen or an outcome that won't occur until a specific requirement is met.
| Unless the mud dries, the tractor does not work. | Çamur kurumadıkça traktör çalışmıyor. |
| Unless we buy fertilizer, we have no harvest. | Gübre almadıkça hasadımız yok. |