Language/Shona/Grammar/Noun-Classes

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◀️ Introducing Yourself — Previous Lesson	Next Lesson — Personal Pronouns ▶️

Shona → Grammar → 0 to A1 Course → Nouns and Pronouns → Noun Classes

Shona is a Bantu language spoken in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Botswana. As we saw in the previous lesson, in Shona, the basic sentence structure is Subject-Verb-Object. In this lesson, we will learn about the Shona noun classes and how they affect the grammar of a sentence.

Don't hesitate to look into these other pages after completing this lesson: Descriptive Adjectives & Common Prepositions.

Noun Classes

In Shona, every noun belongs to a specific noun class, which determines the form of the noun in certain grammatical contexts, such as possessive constructions and agreement with adjectives and verbs. There are 18 noun classes in Shona, which are distinguished by singular and plural prefixes. The singular prefixes are used to indicate a single item or entity, whereas the plural prefixes indicate more than one.

Here are some examples of singular and plural prefixes in Shona:

Class	Singular Prefix	Plural Prefix
1	mu-	mi-
2	va-	ma-
3	mu-	mi-
4	i-	zi-
5	li-	ma-

As you can see, some noun classes have the same singular prefix but different plural prefixes (Classes 1 and 3), while others have different prefixes for both singular and plural forms (Classes 2, 4, and 5).

Each noun class also has its own set of concords, which are used to agree with adjectives, verbs, and possessive constructions. The correct use of concords is important for sentence construction in Shona.

Here are some examples of noun classes and their concords in Shona:

Class	Noun	Adjective Concord	Verb Concord	Possessive Concord
1	munhu (person)	mu-, --, gwe	a-, ha-, -ye	a-, sa-, -ake
2	vana (child)	va-, --, vavo	ba-, ha-, -vavo	va-, sa-, -vavo
3	musikana (girl)	mu-, --, gake	a-, ha-, -gake	a-, sa-, -gake
4	imba (house)	i-, --, yake	ya-, ha-, -yake	ya-, sa-, -yake
5	chema (lie)	che-, --, chavo	cha-, ha-, -chavo	cha-, sa-, -chavo

Note that the concords for adjectives, verbs, and possessive constructions depend on the noun class of the subject. For example, if the subject is "munhu" (person), the adjective concord is "mu-", which means that the adjective must begin with "mu-" as well, such as "mukuru" (big), "murume" (man), or "mukadzi" (woman). Similarly, the verb concord for "munhu" is "a-", "ha-", or "-ye", depending on the tense and aspect of the verb, as well as the mood and voice of the sentence. The possessive concord for "munhu" is "a-", "sa-", or "-ake", depending on the possessor and the syntactic role of the possessed item.

Here are some examples of complete sentences using different noun classes and their concords in Shona:

Munhu mukuru anorara. (The big person is sleeping.)
Vana vavo vakurasika pakarepo. (Their children are playing outside.)
Musikana gake akarohwa. (Her girl was beaten.)
Imba yake yakura. (His/her house is big.)
Chema chavo chiri pamaoko. (Their lie is obvious.)

As you can see, the concords follow the noun class of the subject, and they must be used consistently throughout the sentence.

Conclusion

In Shona, noun classes play a crucial role in sentence construction and agreement with adjectives, verbs, and possessive constructions. As we saw in this lesson, each noun class has its own set of singular and plural prefixes, as well as concords that must be used correctly to form grammatically correct sentences. With practice, you can become familiar with the different noun classes and their concords, and use them to express yourself fluently in Shona.

With this lesson finished, you may want to explore these additional pages: Past Tense & The Shona Alphabet.

Table of Contents - Shona Course - 0 to A1

Course Presentation

Introduction to Shona

Greetings and Introductions

Nouns and Pronouns

Numbers and Time

Verbs and Tenses

Family and Relationships

Adjectives and Adverbs

Food and Dining

Prepositions and Conjunctions

Travel and Transportation

Shona Culture and Traditions

Asking Questions

Shopping and Money

Music and Dance

Other Lessons

Sources

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