Hausa instructions often present several actions as one ordered chain. The first clause establishes the directive, future, habitual, or procedural frame; each closely linked next step commonly uses the subjunctive: Ku wanke tumatir, ku yanka shi, ku zuba shi a tukunya “Wash the tomato, cut it, and put it in the pot.” Unlike English, Hausa does not normally leave cut and put as unmarked bare verbs.
The repeated forms are instances of the general Hausa subject–TAM complex, not optional resumptive pronouns.
All unlabelled examples are (neutral Nigerian Standard Hausa). This page concentrates on the subject–TAM pattern in a sequence. The special object-conditioned and grade-specific shapes of individual verb stems belong to verb morphology.
The marker repeated before every step
The sequential subjunctive uses the ordinary short, low-tone subjunctive series. Standard boko leaves those tones unmarked.
| Subject | Marker | Possible next step in a sequence |
|---|---|---|
| 1st singular | in | in rufe ƙofa |
| 2nd masculine singular | ka | ka rufe ƙofa |
| 2nd feminine singular | ki | ki rufe ƙofa |
| 3rd masculine singular | ya | ya rufe ƙofa |
| 3rd feminine singular | ta | ta rufe ƙofa |
| 1st plural | mu | mu rufe ƙofa |
| 2nd plural | ku | ku rufe ƙofa |
| 3rd plural | su | su rufe ƙofa |
| impersonal | a | a rufe ƙofa |
The marker agrees with the actor of its own verb. If the actor remains the same, the marker still repeats:
Ku ɗauki fom ɗin, ku cika shi, ku kawo shi gobe.
Take the form, fill it in, and bring it tomorrow. (to a group)
Ki kashe murhun, ki rufe tukunyar, ki jira minti goma.
Turn off the stove, cover the pot, and wait ten minutes. (to one woman)
Ka shiga ofis, ka ajiye takardun a tebur, ka jira manaja.
Go into the office, put the documents on the desk, and wait for the manager. (to one man)
The repeated ku, ki, ka are not ordinary independent pronouns. Each occupies the preverbal slot that packages subject agreement and subjunctive mood.
What licenses the sequence
The first action provides the discourse frame. In direct instructions, it may itself be a subjunctive command. With one addressee, it may instead be the special bare imperative, after which the following verbs take subjunctive markers.
Buɗe akwatin, ka cire littafin, ka sa hannu a nan.
Open the box, take out the book, and sign here. (to one man)
The bare imperative buɗe has no subject marker. The later ka cire and ka sa are not independent statements that “you removed” or “you put”; they continue the directive.
A future can also launch a planned sequence:
Gobe za ku je ofishin, ku miƙa takardun, ku karɓi rasit.
Tomorrow you will go to the office, submit the documents, and collect a receipt.
Only za ku je explicitly marks future. The later ku miƙa and ku karɓi are sequential subjunctives within the same plan. Repeating za ku before every verb is possible if the speaker deliberately makes separate future assertions, but it is not the neutral packaging of one compact action chain.
An initial subjunctive can likewise govern the rest:
Mu shiga, mu gaishe su, mu koma aiki.
Let’s go in, greet them, and return to work.
The shared logic is dependency. Later actions are presented as steps flowing from one instruction or plan, not as separately timed assertions.
Impersonal a in recipes and procedures
Procedural texts often avoid naming an actor. Hausa then uses impersonal subjunctive a before each step. This is common in recipes, manuals, public instructions, and demonstrations (neutral/formal depending on the text).
A wanke shinkafar, a zuba ta a tukunya, a ƙara ruwa kaɗan.
Wash the rice, put it in a pot, and add a little water.
Idan ruwan ya tafasa, sai a rage wuta, a rufe tukunyar, a jira minti goma sha biyar.
When the water boils, lower the heat, cover the pot, and wait fifteen minutes.
Sai can introduce the next procedural stage as “then.” It does not replace a. The actor remains impersonal, so every verbal step still needs impersonal subjunctive marking.
This structure does not mean that a person is grammatically absent from the world; it means the instruction leaves the responsible actor unspecified. English recipe imperatives do the same pragmatically, but English does it with bare verbs, whereas Hausa makes the impersonal subject explicit in a.
Overt noun subjects still require agreement
If the actor changes or needs to be named, insert the noun phrase and keep the matching subjunctive marker:
Malam ya ce ɗaliban su buɗe littattafansu, su karanta shafi na goma, su rubuta amsoshin.
The teacher said the students should open their books, read page ten, and write the answers.
The plural noun ɗaliban is followed by su. The next two verbs also repeat su because the students remain the actors. Hausa does not permit ɗaliban buɗe as a finite subjunctive clause.
When the actor changes, the marker changes with it:
Ku gama rubutun, sai shugaban ƙungiya ya tattara takardun, ya kawo su ofis.
Finish the writing; then the group leader should collect the papers and bring them to the office.
The addressees are plural ku in the first clause. Shugaban ƙungiya is masculine singular, so the new chain uses ya…ya.
Sequential subjunctive versus completed narration
Do not use the sequential subjunctive merely because events occur one after another. In a report of completed facts, completive forms are appropriate:
Jiya mun shiga ofis, mun miƙa takardun, mun karɓi rasit.
Yesterday we entered the office, submitted the documents, and collected a receipt. (completed report)
Gobe za mu shiga ofis, mu miƙa takardun, mu karɓi rasit.
Tomorrow we will enter the office, submit the documents, and collect a receipt. (planned sequence)
The lexical verbs name comparable actions, but the preverbal complexes organize them differently. Mun…mun…mun reports completed events; za mu…mu…mu establishes a future and continues it with subjunctives. English tense labels cannot be assigned to an isolated mu miƙa without its constructional context.
No plain–relative pair inside the subjunctive
The sequential subjunctive has one marker series, not separate plain and relative forms. A question that requests a constituent can have relative TAM in the clause that contains the question word, while an answer or embedded instruction uses subjunctive markers:
Yaya ake haɗa na’urar? A saka batir, a danna maɓallin kore, a jira haske ya bayyana.
How is the device assembled? Insert a battery, press the green button, and wait for the light to appear.
Ake is relative continuative in the yaya question. The instruction chain uses impersonal subjunctive a. Do not remodel the instruction as ake saka… merely because the preceding sentence contains a constituent question.
Active and stative meanings
Most instruction steps are active: wash, carry, open, write. A sequence can also aim at a state of knowledge or readiness:
Ku karanta ƙa’idojin, ku fahimci abin da ake buƙata, sannan ku fara aikin.
Read the rules, understand what is required, and then begin the work.
Fahimci describes reaching or holding understanding, but its marker is still ku because that state is a projected step. The subjunctive does not itself mean “action” or “ongoing.” Aktionsart comes from the predicate; instruction and dependency come from the preverbal construction.
Negating a step
Negative instructions use kada/kar + subjunctive, never the ordinary double ba frame. Full kada is neutral and especially clear in careful instructions; kar is frequent (informal/conversational).
Ku kashe wutar, amma kada ku taɓa wayar da hannunku a jike.
Turn off the power, but do not touch the wire while your hands are wet.
The contrastive amma starts a negative instruction. Kada ku taɓa retains plural agreement and takes no final ba.
Practice
Turn each English list into one Hausa instruction chain, repeating the marker.
- To one woman: “Open the message, read it, and answer today.” Model: Ki buɗe saƙon, ki karanta shi, ki ba da amsa yau.
- To a group: “Enter, sit down, and wait.” Model: Ku shiga, ku zauna, ku jira.
- Impersonal recipe: “Add salt, stir it, and taste it.” Model: A ƙara gishiri, a juya, a ɗanɗana.
- Planned first-person plural chain: Gobe za mu tashi da wuri, mu shirya kayanmu, mu kama hanya. Identify za mu as future and the later two mu forms as sequential subjunctives.
Common Mistakes
1. Leaving later verbs bare
❌ Ku wanke kwanukan, goge tebur, rufe ƙofa.
Incorrect — the later finite steps have lost their subject–TAM markers.
✅ Ku wanke kwanukan, ku goge tebur, ku rufe ƙofa.
Wash the dishes, wipe the table, and close the door.
2. Repeating future za through one tight chain
❌ Gobe za mu je kasuwa, za mu saya, za mu dawo.
Marked as three separately framed predictions, not the intended compact planned sequence.
✅ Gobe za mu je kasuwa, mu yi sayayya, mu dawo.
Tomorrow we will go to the market, shop, and return.
3. Dropping the marker after a noun subject
❌ Malam ya ce yara buɗe littattafansu.
Incorrect — the plural noun does not replace subjunctive su.
✅ Malam ya ce yara su buɗe littattafansu.
The teacher said the children should open their books.
4. Using relative continuative as an instruction marker
❌ Sai ake danna maɓallin ja.
Incorrect for the intended direct procedural step in this sequence.
✅ Sai a danna maɓallin ja.
Then press the red button.
5. Adding ba after kada
❌ Kada ku buɗe murfin ba.
Incorrect — negative subjunctive does not close with ba.
✅ Kada ku buɗe murfin.
Do not open the cover.
Key Takeaways
- Repeat an agreeing subjunctive marker before every closely linked instruction step.
- A bare singular imperative can launch the chain; following steps still take ka or ki.
- Future, habitual, continuative, or subjunctive framing may appear on the first verb; later linked verbs commonly use subjunctive markers.
- Procedures often use impersonal a, including after sai “then.”
- Use completive forms, not sequential subjunctives, when reporting a chain as completed fact.
- An overt noun subject never licenses a bare finite verb: ɗaliban su…, shugaban ya….
Related Topics
- Subjunctive PronounsA2 — Use the low-tone Hausa subjunctive series in commands, wishes, purpose clauses, necessity expressions, and dependent event sequences.
- The Hausa Subject–TAM ComplexA1 — Understand the preverbal Hausa forms that express subject agreement together with tense, aspect, mood, and polarity.
- Aspect Rather Than English TenseA1 — Interpret Hausa completive and continuative forms as viewpoints on events, using time words and predicate meaning instead of one-to-one English tense labels.
- Plain and Relative TAM FormsA1 — Choose plain Hausa completive and continuative forms for neutral clauses, and relative forms for focus, constituent questions, and relative clauses.
- Future with za: Core UsesB1 — Use the Hausa za future for intentions, predictions, commitments, and situations later than a contextually relevant time.
- Why Hausa Requires a Subject–TAM MarkerA2 — Understand the preverbal Hausa forms that jointly express subject agreement and tense, aspect, or mood, even when a full noun names the subject.