Grammar Notes Flashcards
Definite and indefinite articles
There are none in Swahili
Noun classes
All nouns fall into one of 15 classes. When nouns are in a sentence, all other words relating to that noun (adjectives, possessives, verb subjects or objects) must agree with the noun. This is done through the use of prefixes attached to the words that are specific to each noun class.
Nominal prefixes
The prefix on the noun that determines to which class it belongs. All related adjectives have the same prefix. The prefix differs for singular vs. plural nouns.
Possessive Pronouns
- angu = my, mine
- ako = your, yours (singular)
- ake = her, hers, his, its, theirs (inanimate)
- etu = our, ours
- enu = your, yours (plural)
- ao = their, theirs (living beings)
Self-standing personal pronouns
I, me = mimi you (singular) = wewe he, she, her him = yeye we, us = sisi you (plural) = ninyi/nyinyi they, them = wao
“A” of relationship: concept of possession or description
Use with the pronominal prefix.
Possessive:
Kitabu cha mwalimu (teacher’s book)
Nguo za watoto (children’s clothes)
Vitabu vyangu (my books)
Description function in adjectival phrase:
shule ya msingi (primary school) nia ya kufanya kazi (will to work) kili cha kukulia (chair to sit on) kazi ya kwanza (first job) vyombo vya nyumbani (household goods)
“A” of relationship: adverbial relationships
Use with KU (becomes KWA). 5 uses.
Location with respect to people (never use with locative words ending in “ni”):
Wapo kwa mwalimu (They are at the teacher’s)
Nilipata barua kwa rafiki (I got a letter from a friend)
Walikwenda shambani (They went to the farm)
Instrument by which an action is performed:
Aliandika kwa kalamu mpya (He wrote with a new pen)
Kata nyama kwa kisu (Cut the meat with a knife)
Precedes nouns or infinitives in phrases indicating the purpose of the action:
Alikuja kwa dawa (She came for medicine)
Samaki hii haifai kwa chakula (The fish is no good for eating)
Introduces adverbial phrases of manner: “how” an action is performed:
Alifanya kazi kwa haraka (He worked hurriedly)
Nitakuja kwa furaha (I will gladly come)
Idiomatically used between two adjectives to reinforce the idea of repetition or continuation:
Nimekuambia mara kwa mara (I have told you time and time again)
“A” of relationship: concept of relationship
Becomes NA.
As a connector between words, phrases, and clauses, “and,” or “with”:
Lete uji na mayai (bring gruel and eggs)
If used between two adjectives, they refer to two different nouns:
Watoto wadogo na wakubwa (small children and big ones)
When two verbs are joined, the second is always infinitive:
Tuliongea na kupumzika (We talked and rested)
Used in the sense of “also,” precedes a noun or pronoun in contracted form with a personal pronoun:
Nipe na mimi chai (Give me tea also)
Amechelewa naye (He is also late)
Following passive verbs, it introduces the doer of the action:
(Kuku wako wameliwa na chui (Your chickens have been eaten by a leopard)
Following certain adverbs, makes prepositions: Mbali na (far from) Karibu na (near to) Sawa na (equal to, same as)
The possessive prefix for both class 1 and 2
w (wangu, wako, wake, wetu, wenu, wao)
Negating present tense - stems that don’t end in “a”
The ending stays the same (does not change to “i”)
Demonstrative pronouns: near (this/these)
Always made with the following formula: H + (vowel of the pronominal prefix) + (pronominal prefix) mtu huyu (this person, notice use of "yu") watu hawa (these people) mti huu (this tree) miti hii (these trees) yai hili (this egg) mayai haya (these eggs) kiti hiki (this chair) viti hivi (these chairs)
The pronoun almost always follows the noun. It can also stand alone.
Demonstrative pronouns: far (that/those)
Always made with the following formula: (pronominal prefix) + LE mtu yule (that person) watu wale (those people) mti ule (that tree) miti ile (those trees) yai lile (that egg) mayai yale (those eggs) kiti kile (that chair) viti vile (those chairs)
Adjectives and subject prefixes for animate objects
Always take the prefixes of Class 1/2
Numbers and adjective agreement
The numbers used for counting are actually the forms that would be used with N-class nouns. For all other classes, to create the adjective, the appropriate nominal/adjectival prefix must be added in front. The exceptions are: -wili for two (instead of mbili), and for sita, saba, tisa, and kumi, NO prefix is needed.
In addition, prefixes are needed for combined numbers using kumi:
vitabu kumi na vitatu (13 books)
watu kumi na watano (15 people)
Telling time
Time is counted according to the number of hours past either morning or night (morning being 6 AM, night being 6 PM). The word “saa” is used in front. NOTE: this counting from morning/night is used even if another modifier (afternoon, early evening, etc.) is used in the sentence to clarify the time. The number is still what is counted from 6 AM or 6 PM.
saa kumi na mbili asubuhi (6 AM) saa moja asubuhi (7 AM, hour one of the morning) saa tano asubuhi (11 AM) saa sita mchana (12 PM) saa tisa alasiri (3 PM) saa kumi na moja jioni (5 PM) saa kumi na mbili jioni (6 PM) saa moja usiku (7 PM) saa nne usiku (10 PM)
Terms like quarter past (na robo), half past (unusu/na nusu), and quarter before (kasorobo) can also be used after the hour. “Na dakika” can be used to specify the number of minutes
saa saba unusu mchana (1:30 PM)
saa tisa na robo usiku (3:15 AM)
saa tano na dakika kumi asubuhi (11 AM)
saa kumi na mbili kasorobo alfajiri (5:45 AM)
