Breakdown of Sıkıntıdan patlamaktan başka hiçbir çarem yoktu.
yok
there is not / non-existent
hiçbir
no / not any (determiner)
başka
other / another / else
patlamak
to explode
Questions & Answers about Sıkıntıdan patlamaktan başka hiçbir çarem yoktu.
How does the structure patlamaktan başka translate to "but to explode"?
The postposition başka means "other" or "besides." When you combine it with a verb in the infinitive plus the ablative case (-mAk + -tAn), it means "other than doing [verb]." So, patlamaktan başka literally means "other than to explode."
Does sıkıntıdan patlamak literally mean "to explode from boredom"?
Yes! Just like in English where you might say you are "bored to death," Turkish uses patlamak (to explode or burst) combined with sıkıntıdan (from boredom or distress) to express a feeling of extreme boredom.
We have two ablative endings right next to each other: sıkıntı-dan and patlamak-tan. Why is that?
They serve entirely different grammatical functions here. The -dan in sıkıntıdan shows the cause of the action (exploding from boredom). The -tan in patlamaktan is required by the postposition başka (other than exploding). Turkish is perfectly fine with stacking similar-sounding suffixes when their grammatical roles demand it.
Could I just say hiç çarem yoktu instead of hiçbir çarem yoktu?