Language/Kinyarwanda/Grammar/Questions

Kinyarwanda Grammar - Questions

Hi Kinyarwanda learners! 😊
In this lesson, we'll learn about questions in Kinyarwanda. Questions are an essential part of any conversation. They help to get to know people, clarify information and express curiosity. In Kinyarwanda, asking questions is easy once you understand the basic sentence structure. Let's dive in!

Word Order

To form a question in Kinyarwanda, we often use the same word order as in a statement or a declarative sentence. We just have to use an interrogative particle like "uriya," "acyo," "ihu" or "naho" at the beginning of the sentence. Here are some examples:

Example 1

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Uriya ni we se wa John?	You-ree-ya nee way say wah John?	Is that John's brother?

In this example, the sentence structure is subject-verb-object. "Uriya" is the interrogative particle that serves to indicate that the speaker is asking a question. Note that the word for "brother" is "se," but "we se" is used here to emphasize the relationship with John.

Example 2

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Urakoze, ko wowe?	Oo-rah-ko-zay, ko wo-wuh?	Thank you, and you?

This example shows how to use the question word "ko". It means "and" or "also". The speaker is expressing gratitude and asking the other person if they are also doing well. Note that in this case, the verb "koze" is not inflected because it comes right after the greeting "urakoze".

Example 3

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Naho usanga ubuzima bwanjye, uzigera ukoze	Nuh-who oo-sung-guh oo-boo-zee-ma bwun-jay, oo-zee-gay-rah oo-ko-zay	If you see my life, you will be amazed

In this case, "naho" means "if". The speaker is using a conditional structure to imagine and express a hypothetical situation.

Question Words

Question words in Kinyarwanda are similar to those in English. They are used to ask about specific information such as who, what, where, why, when and how. Here are some examples:

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Icyo kirya ni iki?	Ee-cho key-rya nee ee-key?	What is this thing that's being eaten?
Ni iki cyohereza mu ishuri?	Nee ee-key cho-hair-e-za moo ee-shoo-ree?	What do you send to school?
Ko wowe uryahe?	Ko wo-wuh oo-ree-yah-he?	Where are you living?
Ni byiza cyane! Ubu wowe ugiye?	Nee bee-za cha-nay! Oo-boo wo-wuh oo-gee-yay?	That's very good! Where are you going now?
Igihe gito?	Ee-ghee-hay gee-to?	What time is it?
Ijambo ryawe ryiza iki?	Ee-jam-bo rya-way ray-za ee-key?	What is your good news?

Note that some question words have several meanings depending on the context. For example, "icyo" can mean "what" or "that" depending on whether it's used as a standalone question word or as a relative pronoun.

Using Verbs to Ask Questions

In Kinyarwanda, we can also use verbs to ask questions. By adding the question particle "se" or "sa" to the end of a verb, we can ask "is it...?" or "are you...?" questions. This can be done with almost any verb. Here are some examples:

Example 1

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Haduka se?	Hah-doo-kah say?	Are you sitting?

This example shows how to use the verb "haduka" (to sit) to form a question. By adding "se" to the end, the speaker is asking if the person is sitting.

Example 2

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Oda sa?	Oh-da sah?	Do you need this?

This example shows how to use the verb "oda" (to need) to form a question. By adding "sa" to the end, the speaker is asking if the person needs the thing they are pointing to.

Expressing Emphasis

To add emphasis to a question in Kinyarwanda, we can use the following particles: "we se," "ni se," "no se," "yo se," and "ro se". These particles are usually used to ask for confirmation or clarification. Here are some examples:

Example 1

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Ni we se warora wahari / Ni we se warora se wahari?	Nee way say wah-ro-ra wah-ha-ree / Nee way say wah-ro-ra say wah-ha-ree?	You mean "one who is ill" or "one who is not ill"?

In this example, the speaker is asking for clarification. They are asking if the other person meant "warora wahari" (one who is ill) or "warora se wahari" (one who is not ill).

Example 2

Kinyarwanda	Pronunciation	English
Ndavuga cyane... we se uzi uko nkora	Nda-voo-ga cha-nay... way say oo-zi oo-ko n-koh-ra	I am saying a lot, do you know what I do?

In this example, the speaker is asking for confirmation. They want to make sure that the other person understands what they are saying.

Dialogue

Here's an example of a dialogue to illustrate how to use questions in a conversation:

• Person 1: Kapiteni, wowe unafanya nini? (Captain, what are you doing?)
• Person 2: Ninatembea katika bahari. Unafurahia safari hii? (I'm walking on the sea. Are you enjoying the trip?)
• Person 1: Ndiyo, ninafurahi sana. (Yes, I'm really enjoying it.)
• Person 2: Unaogopa kupotea njia? (Are you afraid of getting lost?)
• Person 1: Hapana, tunaelekea kwenye kisiwa. (No, we're heading to an island.)

Conclusion

That's it for Kinyarwanda questions! Remember that questions are a great way to communicate and learn about others. Use them to gain new insights and deepen your relationships. To improve your Kinyarwanda Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

Sources

• Kinyarwanda Wikipedia
• Kinyarwanda Phrases Wikipedia