Questions & Answers about Su çok sıcak mı?
Why is the question word mı instead of mi or mu?
The question particle changes its vowel to match the word right before it. This is called 4-way vowel harmony. The word immediately before it is sıcak, and its final vowel is 'a'. According to the harmony rules, words ending with an 'a' or 'ı' sound are always followed by mı.
Why is there no word for "is" in this sentence?
In Turkish, simple statements describing something in the present tense don't require a separate verb for "is" when talking about a third person or object (he, she, or it). Just saying su çok sıcak implies "the water is very hot". Adding the particle mı at the end turns that complete statement into a yes/no question.
What happens if I move the question particle and ask "Su çok mu sıcak?"
The question particle places the focus on the word immediately before it. Su çok sıcak mı? generally asks "Is the water very hot?" If you say Su çok mu sıcak?, you are emphasizing the word çok, asking "Is the water VERY hot?" (as opposed to just a little bit). Notice that mı also changes to mu here to match the 'o' vowel in çok!
Does sıcak mean hot like temperature, or hot like spicy food?
Sıcak refers exclusively to heat and temperature, just like the water in this sentence. If you want to say your food is spicy hot, you must use a completely different word: acı.
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