Language/Swahili-individual-language/Grammar/How-to-Use-Be

Swahili (individual language) Grammar - How to Use "Be"

Hi Swahili (individual language) learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn how to use "be" in Swahili (individual language) grammar.

After mastering this lesson, these related pages might interest you: Idioms & Conditional Clauses.

Introduction to "Be"

In Swahili (individual language), the verb "be" has different forms depending on tense, negation and subject. It can also function as a copula verb, for example, "I am a teacher" or an auxiliary verb, for example, "I am writing a book". To understand how to use "be", let's go over each of these functions.

Copula verb

A copula verb links the subject of a sentence to a predicate (usually a noun, adjective or pronoun), for example, "She is a doctor" or "He is tall". In Swahili (individual language), the copula verb "be" is "ni".

Take a look at the examples below:

Swahili (individual language)	Pronunciation	English
Mimi ni mwalimu	/mi.mi ni mwa.li.mu/	I am a teacher
Wao ni wanafunzi	/wa.o ni wa.na.fu.nzi/	They are students
Huyu ni mfanyakazi	/hu.yu ni mfa.nya.ka.zi/	This is an employee

Auxiliary verb

"Be" is also used as an auxiliary verb to form the progressive tense, for example, "I am writing an email". In Swahili (individual language), the auxiliary verb "be" is "ina".

Take a look at the examples below:

Swahili (individual language)	Pronunciation	English
Ninaandika barua pepe	/ni.na.an.di.ka ba.ru.a pe.pe/	I am writing an email
Wanafunzi wanaocheza mpira	/wa.na.fu.nzi wa.na.o.che.za mpi.ra/	The students are playing soccer
Wewe umefika hapa	/we.we u.me.fi.ka ha.pa/	You have arrived here

Negative form

To create a negative sentence using "be" in Swahili (individual language), we use the word "si" before the subject of the sentence. For example, "I am not a doctor" or "They are not happy".

Take a look at the examples below:

Swahili (individual language)	Pronunciation	English
Mimi si daktari	/mi.mi si dak.ta.ri/	I am not a doctor
Hawa si wazuri	/ha.wa si wa.zu.ri/	They are not good-looking
Hapo si salama	/ha.po si sa.la.ma/	That place is not safe

Dialogue

Person 1: Mimi ni mwanafunzi. (/mi.mi ni mwa.na.fu.nzi/) (I am a student) Person 2: Sijui kwamba wewe ni mwanafunzi. (/si.jui kwa.m.ba we.we ni mwa.na.fu.nzi/) (I did not know that you are a student) Person 1: Ndiyo, ninasoma hapa. (/n.dyo, ni.na.so.ma ha.pa/) (Yes, I am studying here) Person 2: Oh wow, mimi pia ni mwalimu, unajifunza Swahili vipi? (/oh wow, mi.mi pia ni mwa.li.mu, u.na.ji.fun.za swa.hi.li vi.pi?/) (Oh wow, I am also a teacher, how are you learning Swahili?) Person 1: Ninatumia Polyglot Club kujifunza na kuongea na watu wengine ambao wanajua lugha hii vizuri. (/ni.na.tu.mi.a Poly.gl.ot Club ku.ji.fun.za na ku.on.ge.a na wa.tu we.nge a.m.ba.o wa.na.ju.a lu.g.ha hi.i vi.zu.ri/) (I am using Polyglot Club to learn and speak with other people who know this language well) Person 2: Hiyo ni njia nzuri! (/hi.yo ni n.jia n.zu.ri/) (That's a good method!)

Conclusion

That's it for our lesson on how to use "be" in Swahili (individual language) grammar. Remember, "be" can function as a copula verb, auxiliary verb and in negative form. To improve your Swahili (individual language) Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

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Great work on completing this lesson! Take a moment to investigate these connected pages: Proverbs & Negation.

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