Language/Yoruba/Grammar/Future-Tense

Yoruba Grammar - Future Tense

Hi Yoruba learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn how to form the future tense in Yoruba. The future tense is used to talk about events that will happen in the future. It is important to know the future tense when expressing plans and intentions. Let's get started!

Forming the Future Tense

In Yoruba, the future tense is formed by adding the suffix “-na” to the verb stem. Here is an example:

Yoruba	Pronunciation	English
Mo le fi ẹ̀ ọmọ yorùbá ṣeré àti ọrọ̀ Yoruba	Moh lay fee eh oh-moh yor-oo-bah shareh ahtee oh-roh Yoruba	I can teach Yoruba culture and language
Mo le fi ẹ̀ ọmọ yorùbá ṣeré àti ọrọ̀ Yoruba-na	Moh lay fee eh oh-moh yor-oo-bah shareh ahtee oh-roh Yoruba-nah	I will teach Yoruba culture and language

As you can see, the verb “ṣeré” (to teach) becomes “ṣeré-na” in the future tense.

It's important to note that the verb “gbé” (to carry) is an exception in the future tense. Instead of adding “-na” to the verb stem, we add “lo” and then “ni”:

Yoruba	Pronunciation	English
Mo ma gbé ọmọ mi lo si omi	Moh mah gbay oh-moh mee low see oh-mee	I will carry my child to the water

"Going to" Future

In English, we often use “going to” to discuss future plans. In Yoruba, we also have a similar way of expressing future plans. We use “ni adiẹ” (to have a plan) or “ni asoju” (to have intention). Here is an example:

Yoruba	Pronunciation	English
Ọlá ni adiẹ lati ṣeré àti ọrọ̀ Yoruba	Oh-lah nee ah-dye-eh lahtee shareh ahtee oh-roh Yoruba	Ola plans to teach Yoruba culture and language

In the example above, the verb “ṣeré” (to teach) is not conjugated in the future tense. Instead, we use “ni adiẹ” to indicate that Ola has a plan to teach Yoruba culture and language.

Dialogues

Here are a few dialogues to help you practice forming the future tense:

• Person 1: Máa mú ẹ̀yin owó. (Give me your hand.)
• Person 2: Má máa mú owó mi na. (I will give you my hand.)

• Person 1: Káàbọ̀ sí ilé-iwé lẹ́ẹ̀kan. (Let's go to school early.)
• Person 2: Káàbọ̀ sí ilé-iwé lẹ́ẹ̀kan-na. (We will go to school early.)

• Person 1: Ó dé ẹ̀jìrẹ́. (He/She arrived yesterday.)
• Person 2: Ó yìí dá Ìbàdàn lọ sọ́jàbọ̀. (He/She will go to Ibadan on Friday.)

Culture and Interesting Facts

In Yoruba culture, predicting the future is an important practice. Yoruba people consult divination systems to help them understand what the future holds. One of the most popular divination systems is the Ifá divination system. This system involves interpreting the patterns made by palm nuts thrown on the ground, and using the patterns to provide insight into future events.

In addition, the Yoruba calendar includes four market days known as “Ẹ̀kẹ́̀ Ọ́run”. Each day is associated with a particular Orisha (a deity or supernatural being). The market days are used for shopping and can also be used for divination purposes.

To improve your Yoruba Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

Sources

• Yoruba language
• Divination
• Yoruba calendar

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