Language/Hausa/Grammar/Present-Tense

Hello Everyone, 😊

In today’s lesson we are going to study the following topic: ”PRESENT TENSE” in Hausa.

Please feel free to edit this page if you think it can be improved!

Consider exploring these related pages after completing this lesson: Future Tense, Conditional Mood, Questions & Adjectives.

How to Form the Present Tense in Hausa

The present tense in Hausa is formed by adding specific suffixes to the verb stem. The suffixes vary depending on the subject pronoun, so let's start by learning the subject pronouns in Hausa:

• Ina (I)
• Ka (You - singular)
• Shi (He)
• Tana (She)
• Mun (We)
• Ku (You - plural)
• Su (They)

Now let's see how to form the present tense in Hausa for each subject pronoun:

• Ina: Add "na" to the verb stem. For example, "Ina zama" means "I am coming."
• Ka: Add "ka" to the verb stem. For example, "Ka tafi" means "You are leaving."
• Shi: Add "a" to the verb stem. For example, "Shi tafi" means "He is leaving."
• Tana: Add "ta" to the verb stem. For example, "Tana gaji" means "She is running."
• Mun: Add "mu" to the verb stem. For example, "Mun gaji" means "We are running."
• Ku: Add "ku" to the verb stem. For example, "Ku zama" means "You all are coming."
• Su: Add "su" to the verb stem. For example, "Su tafi" means "They are leaving."

It's important to note that the verb stem doesn't change in the present tense, only the suffix changes depending on the subject pronoun.

Practice

Now that we've learned how to form the present tense in Hausa, let's practice using it in sentences:

• Ina tafi zuwa sokoto. (I am going to Sokoto.)
• Ka kawo kuskuren shi. (You bring the food to him.)
• Shi ya kashe ita. (He killed her.)
• Tana kawo karfi. (She brings the money.)
• Mun yi maganar soyayya. (We talk about love.)
• Ku shiga waje. (You all enter the room.)
• Su fita daga hanyar.

By mastering the present tense in Hausa, you will be able to communicate more effectively and confidently in everyday conversation.

Present Tense Conjugation - Examples

ENGLISH	HAUSA	ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION
I love	Ina so	ih nah soh
You love	kana so	kah nah soh
He loves	Yana so	yah nah soh
We love	Muna so	mou nah soh
You love	Kuna so	kou nah soh
They love	Suna so	sou nah soh
I speak	Ina magana	ih nah mah gah nah
You speak	kana magana	kah nah mah gah nah
He speaks	Yana magana	yah nah mah gah nah
We speak	Muna magana	mou nah mah gah nah
You speak	Kuna magana	kou nah mah gah nah
They speak	Suna magana	sou nah mah gah nah
I sleep	Ina barci	ih nah bahr chih
You sleep	kana barci	kah nah bahr chih
He sleeps	Yana barci	yah nah bahr chih
We sleep	Muna barci	mou nah bahr chih
You sleep	Kuna barci	kou nah bahr chih
They sleep	Suna barci	sou nah bahr chih
I eat	Ina ci	ih nah chih
You eat	kana ci	kah nah chih
He eats	Yana ci	yah nah chih
We eat	Muna ci	mou nah chih
You eat	Kuna ci	kou nah chih
They eat	Suna ci	sou nah chih

Other Lessons

• Definite Articles in Hausa
• Questions
• Future Tense
• Conditional Mood
• Pronouns
• Gender
• Plurals
• Past Participle in Hausa
• Past Tense