A Hausa command can act on a noun object—Ki buɗe ƙofar “Open the door”—or on a pronoun object—Ki buɗe ta “Open it.” The object normally follows the verb, while ka, ki, ku before the verb mark the addressee in a subjunctive command. The direct-object pronoun paradigm is distinct from independent and recipient forms. With Grade 2 verbs such as saya “buy” and ɗauka “take,” the form of the verb also changes according to whether no object, a noun object, or a pronoun object follows.
All unlabelled examples below are (neutral Nigerian Standard Hausa). Ordinary boko does not mark tone or vowel length. This page gives dependable written object frames; the full tonal and grade-specific formation of special bare imperatives belongs to Verb Morphology.
The object follows the command verb
With a regular verb, the basic patterns are:
bare singular imperative + object
ka/ki/ku + verb + object
| Addressee | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| one person, gender unstated | bare imperative + object | Rufe ƙofar. |
| one man | ka + verb + object | Ka rufe ƙofar. |
| one woman | ki + verb + object | Ki rufe ƙofar. |
| group | ku + verb + object | Ku rufe ƙofar. |
Rufe ƙofar kafin ka fita.
Close the door before you leave. (bare singular imperative, followed by masculine ka in the next clause)
Ki rufe ƙofar kafin ki fita.
Close the door before you leave. (to one woman)
Ku karanta saƙon kafin taron gobe.
Read the message before tomorrow's meeting. (to a group)
The object does not replace the preverbal person marker. Ki identifies the female singular addressee; ƙofar identifies what she should close. English uses no visible subject in close the door, which can tempt learners to omit ki/ku even where Hausa uses a subjunctive command.
The direct-object pronoun paradigm
When the object is already known, use the direct-object series. These forms are written separately after the verb.
| Object | Pronoun | Command with kira “call” |
|---|---|---|
| me | ni | ka kira ni |
| you, one man | ka | ta kira ka |
| you, one woman | ki | ya kira ki |
| him / masculine it | shi | ka kira shi |
| her / feminine it | ta | ka kira ta |
| us | mu | ka kira mu |
| you all | ku | ta kira ku |
| them | su | ka kira su |
Some table phrases with third-person subjects illustrate the object form rather than a direct command. The position is the diagnostic: preverbal ki in ki kira is a feminine singular subjunctive subject marker, but postverbal ki in ya kira ki is “you” as direct object.
Ka kira ni idan ka isa tashar.
Call me when you reach the station. (to one man)
Ki karanta shi a hankali.
Read it slowly. (to one woman; shi refers to a masculine saƙo 'message')
Ku wanke su kafin baƙi su zo.
Wash them before the guests arrive. (su refers to plural dishes)
Buɗe ta yanzu; muna jira.
Open it now; we are waiting. (bare singular imperative; ta refers to a feminine ƙofa 'door')
Hausa grammatical gender controls shi/ta even for things. Masculine akwati “box” is resumed by shi, while feminine ƙofa “door” is resumed by ta.
Ka buɗe akwatin, ka duba shi da kyau.
Open the box and inspect it carefully. (to one man)
Ki buɗe ƙofar, ki riƙe ta kada ta rufe.
Open the door and hold it so that it does not close. (to one woman)
Regular verbs versus Grade 2 verbs
Regular verbs such as rufe “close,” karanta “read,” and kama “catch/hold” keep a recognizable written form before a noun or pronoun object. Spoken vowel length and tone may differ even when ordinary boko spelling looks the same.
Ka karanta littafin yau.
Read the book today. (noun object)
Ka karanta shi yau.
Read it today. (pronoun object, referring to the book)
Grade 2 verbs make a visible three-way distinction. The safest A2 practice is to learn the whole frame. The examples below use subject-marked commands so that the object-conditioned verb form is clear without requiring the separate tonal rules of the special bare imperative.
| Verb | No following object | Before noun object | Before pronoun object |
|---|---|---|---|
| saya “buy” | ka saya | ka sayi littafi | ka saye shi |
| ɗauka “take/pick up” | ki ɗauka | ki ɗauki jaka | ki ɗauke ta |
| nema “look for” | ku nema | ku nemi likita | ku neme shi |
The useful generalization is -a with no following object, -i before a noun object, and -e before a direct-object pronoun. This is a property of Grade 2, not a tense contrast.
Ka sayi maganin yanzu.
Buy the medicine now. (to one man; noun object)
Ka saye shi idan farashinsa ya yi kyau.
Buy it if its price is good. (to one man; pronoun object)
Ki ɗauki jakar daga mota.
Take the bag out of the car. (to one woman; noun object)
Ki ɗauke ta daga mota.
Take it out of the car. (to one woman; pronoun object)
Ku nemi likitan kafin azahar.
Look for the doctor before noon. (to a group; noun object)
Ku neme shi kafin azahar.
Look for him before noon. (to a group; pronoun object)
Changing sayi to saye does not turn past into future. The command time comes from directive mood and expressions such as yanzu or kafin azahar. The final vowel responds to the following object type.
Overt subjects inside reported commands
Commands can be reported. An overt noun subject still takes its matching subjunctive marker, and its object remains after the verb.
Malam ya ce Amina ta ɗauki jakar gobe.
The teacher said Amina should take the bag tomorrow.
Malam ya ce Amina ta ɗauke ta gobe.
The teacher said Amina should take it tomorrow. (ta refers to a feminine bag)
In both clauses, subject Amina is followed by feminine singular ta before the verb. In the second, another ta follows the verb as the feminine direct object. The word order and the Grade 2 shape ɗauke distinguish the two jobs.
English says Amina to take it after many request verbs and has no repeated agreement. Hausa requires Amina ta ɗauke ta. Do not drop the first ta merely because Amina is named.
Direct objects versus recipients
An English object pronoun after a verb is not always a Hausa direct object. A beneficiary or recipient normally uses the fused ma series: mini, maka, miki, masa, mata, mana, muku, musu.
Ka saye shi.
Buy it. (shi is the thing bought: direct object)
Ka saya masa littafi.
Buy him a book. (masa is the beneficiary; littafi is the thing bought)
The Grade 2 verb also shows a different frame: direct-pronoun saye shi versus dative saya masa littafi.
The verb ba “give” is an important exception. Its recipient uses ni, ka, ki, shi, ta, mu, ku, su, not the fused ma forms.
Don Allah, ka ba ni littafin.
Please give me the book. (ni is the recipient selected by ba)
Ki ba shi ita idan ya zo.
Give it to him when he comes. (shi is recipient; ita is the feminine thing given)
Do not “correct” ba ni to ba mini. By contrast, saya mini littafi “buy a book for me” uses ordinary benefactive mini.
Active actions and object-related states
Most commands with direct objects direct an action: open it, carry it, read it. Some predicates ask the addressee to reach or maintain a state of knowledge.
Ka san iyakarka kafin ka yi alƙawari.
Know your limits before making a promise. (to one man)
Ki fahimci matsalar kafin ki ba da amsa.
Understand the problem before answering. (to one woman)
The object iyakarka or matsalar remains after the verb. The active–stative interpretation belongs to the lexical predicate and context, not to a special object-command tense.
Plain and relative forms are separate from object placement
Subjunctive commands do not have separate plain and relative paradigms. A question can use a relative marker in one clause and a command with an object in the next.
Wane littafi kake nema? Ka ɗauke shi daga shiryayyen sama.
Which book are you looking for? Take it from the top shelf. (to one man)
Question-clause kake is relative continuative because wane littafi is questioned. The next clause uses subjunctive command ka ɗauke shi, with the Grade 2 -e form before the pronoun object. The object and grade frame must be chosen inside its own clause; relative does not mean past tense.
Practice
Replace each noun object with its pronoun and adjust a Grade 2 verb where necessary. (1) Ki rufe ƙofar → Ki rufe ta. (2) Ka karanta littafin → Ka karanta shi. (3) Ki ɗauki jakar → Ki ɗauke ta. (4) Ku nemi likitan → Ku neme shi. (5) Keep the recipient distinction: Ka ba ni littafin “Give me the book,” but Ka saya mini littafi “Buy me a book.”
Common Mistakes
1. Putting the pronoun before the verb
❌ Ka shi karanta yanzu.
Incorrect — the neutral direct-object pronoun follows the verb.
✅ Ka karanta shi yanzu.
Read it now. (to one man)
2. Using the noun-object Grade 2 form before a pronoun
❌ Ki ɗauki ta daga mota.
Incorrect — Grade 2 ɗauka takes -e before a direct-object pronoun.
✅ Ki ɗauke ta daga mota.
Take it out of the car. (to one woman)
3. Using the pronoun-object Grade 2 form before a noun
❌ Ka saye littafin yanzu.
Incorrect — Grade 2 saya takes -i before a noun object.
✅ Ka sayi littafin yanzu.
Buy the book now. (to one man)
4. Dropping the marker after an overt subject
❌ Malam ya ce Amina ɗauki jakar.
Incorrect — Amina still requires feminine subjunctive ta.
✅ Malam ya ce Amina ta ɗauki jakar.
The teacher said Amina should take the bag.
5. Giving ba the ordinary dative series
❌ Ka ba mini littafin.
Incorrect in Standard Hausa — ba 'give' selects recipient ni.
✅ Ka ba ni littafin.
Give me the book. (to one man)
Key Takeaways
- Put the direct object after the command verb; ka/ki/ku stays before the verb in a subject-marked command.
- The direct-object series is ni, ka, ki, shi, ta, mu, ku, su.
- Regular verbs keep a recognizable written form, while Grade 2 distinguishes no object -a, noun object -i, and pronoun object -e.
- Shi/ta track Hausa grammatical gender, including for things.
- An overt subject still requires agreement: Amina ta ɗauki jakar / ta ɗauke ta.
- Ba “give” exceptionally takes recipient ni/ka/ki/shi/ta/mu/ku/su; ordinary benefactives use the fused ma series.
Related Topics
- Direct-Object Pronouns: Core ParadigmA2 — Learn Hausa ni, ka, ki, shi, ta, mu, ku, and su as direct objects and keep them distinct from independent, subject–TAM, indirect-object, and possessive forms.
- Direct Objects after Regular VerbsA2 — Place Hausa direct-object pronouns immediately after regular Grade 1 and Grade 4 verbs while preserving the verb's correct pre-pronoun form.
- Direct Objects after Grade 2 VerbsA2 — Use the Grade 2 ending -e before Hausa direct-object pronouns, contrasting it with -i before noun objects and -a when no object follows.
- Subjunctive versus ImperativeB1 — Distinguish Hausa's subject-marked subjunctive commands from the special bare imperative available only for affirmative commands to one person.
- Subjunctive after Commands and RequestsB1 — Use the Hausa subjunctive for direct exhortations and for the reported content of commands and requests.