Hausa karɓa covers “receive,” “accept,” “collect,” and “take over,” depending on what is transferred and on the situation. It is an object-sensitive Grade 2 verb: karɓa when no direct object follows, karɓe shi before a direct-object pronoun, and karɓi saƙo before a noun-like direct object. The Grade 2 overview gives the larger pattern. The source is normally introduced separately with daga, daga wurin, or daga hannun; it is not an English-style second direct object.
All ordinary examples are (neutral Nigerian Standard Hausa). They use unaccented boko with ɓ, ɗ, ƙ, ’y where required. Tone and vowel length are important in speech but are not marked in ordinary spelling. The forms below have been organized by syntactic environment, not by English tense.
Compact form and environment table
| Environment | Form | Natural frame |
|---|---|---|
| A: no following direct object | karɓa | Ya miƙa mini takardar, na karɓa. “He handed me the document, and I accepted it.” |
| B: direct-object pronoun | karɓe | na karɓe ta “I received/collected it” |
| C: noun-like direct object | karɓi | na karɓi takarda “I received a document” |
| D: licensed beneficiary immediately after the verb | karɓa | ta karɓa masa kaya “she took the load for him” |
| strong verbal noun, no object | karɓa | ana karɓa “things/people are being received” |
| verbal noun + noun object | karɓar | karɓar takardu “receiving documents” |
| verbal noun + pronominal object | karɓarsa / karɓarta / karɓarsu | karɓarta “receiving/accepting her or it” |
Bayan na duba adadin da ke jikin rasit, sai na karɓi kayan.
After checking the amount on the receipt, I accepted the goods. (C-form before a noun object)
Wayata ta gama gyaruwa, don haka zan je in karɓe ta da yamma.
My phone has been repaired, so I will go and collect it this evening. (B-form before feminine ta)
Ɗan aiken ya miƙa mini ambulaf, amma na ƙi karɓa saboda ba sunana a jiki.
The courier handed me an envelope, but I refused to accept it because my name was not on it. (A-form; the object is understood)
Receiving, accepting, collecting, and welcoming
With something transferred, karɓi can mean physically receive or officially take delivery of it. With an offer, proposal, correction, or responsibility, it often means accept. At an office, repair shop, or collection point, English frequently prefers collect or pick up.
Mun karɓi wasiƙarku da safe, kuma za mu ba ku amsa kafin Juma’a.
We received your letter this morning, and we will reply before Friday. (formal administrative register)
Kwamitin bai karɓi shawarar ba domin ba a bayyana kuɗinta ba.
The committee did not accept the proposal because its cost was not stated. (formal decision context)
Safiya ta je wurin tela ta karɓi rigarta kafin bikin.
Safiya went to the tailor and collected her dress before the celebration. (everyday collection)
With people, the verb can mean receive or welcome them in an organized or social role: karɓi baƙi “receive guests,” karɓi majiyyaci “admit/receive a patient.” It does not by itself guarantee the warmth conveyed by English welcome; expressions such as maraba add that social act.
Yau Amina ce za ta karɓi baƙi a ƙofar ɗakin taro.
Today Amina is the one who will receive the guests at the entrance to the meeting room.
The source is introduced with daga
The received item is the direct object. The giver or source normally appears in a daga phrase: daga Musa, daga wurin manaja, or daga hannun jami’i. This is a crucial difference from English, which can place the source next to receive without making the underlying roles obvious.
Na karɓi makullin daga hannun mai gadin bayan na sa hannu.
I received the key from the guard after I signed.
Daga wurin wa kuka karɓi wannan umarni?
From whom did you receive this instruction? (formal or careful question)
The source phrase does not create the Grade 2 D-environment. The noun direct object still immediately follows the verb, so the form is karɓi. In karɓi makullin daga hannun mai gadi, makullin is the C-environment trigger and the later phrase names the source.
Do not use the fused ma series merely to mean “from him/her.” Masa means “for him/to him,” not “from him.” A source must be expressed as a source.
A real beneficiary frame, but not a source frame
Karɓa wa mutum kaya or karɓa masa kaya is licensed when someone takes over a load or receives something on another person’s behalf. This is a benefactive D-frame: the person immediately after the verb benefits from the taking-over, and the later noun is the thing received.
Da muka haɗu da tsohon a hanya, Bala ya karɓa masa kayan ya kai gida.
When we met the elderly man on the road, Bala took his load for him and carried it home. (benefactive D-frame)
In the neutral benefactive frame taught here, this does not mean “Bala received the goods from him.” For that meaning, say Bala ya karɓi kayan daga wurinsa. Some grammatical descriptions record a speaker-dependent final-r D-form, karɓar wa..., for an adverse “take from” interpretation. That specialized pattern does not turn ordinary karɓa masa into a source frame: for productive receipt and acceptance, keep source daga distinct from beneficiary wa/ma.
The strong verbal noun karɓa
The continuative uses the strong verbal noun karɓa, not an invented unchanged infinitive. With no following object, the form is simply karɓa. Before a noun complement, feminine linker -r gives karɓar; a pronominal object attaches in a possessive-type form.
Ofishin yana karɓar takardun rajista daga ƙarfe takwas zuwa biyu.
The office accepts registration documents from eight until two. (continuative verbal noun + noun object)
Ba na karɓarsa har sai na tabbatar da lambar da ke jiki.
I do not accept it until I verify the number on it. (masculine pronominal object attached to the verbal noun)
Compare finite na karɓe shi “I received it” with continuative ina karɓarsa “I am receiving/accepting it.” The second form is noun-like internally. It is not finite karɓe with a different spelling.
Aspect, future, and negation
Completed receipt naturally uses the completive; ongoing intake, repeated acceptance, or a standing institutional practice naturally uses the continuative. Future and negation change the subject–TAM material around the same object-conditioned lexical forms.
Za mu karɓi sababbin ma’aikata goma a watan gobe.
We will take on ten new employees next month. (future + noun object)
Ban karɓe shi ba, domin sunan da ke jikin kunshin ba nawa ba ne.
I did not accept it because the name on the package was not mine. (negative completive + pronoun object)
Ba a karɓar kuɗi a wannan tebur; ku je wajen mai karɓar kuɗi.
Money is not accepted at this desk; go to the cashier. (general negative continuative)
The last sentence has negative continuative ba a, which normally has no closing ba. By contrast, bounded negative completive ban ... ba surrounds the predicate.
Frequent extensions and collocations
Common collocations include karɓi albashi “receive a salary,” karɓi baƙi “receive guests,” karɓi gyara “accept correction,” karɓi ragamar aiki “take charge of work,” and karɓi mulki “assume office/power.” These meanings share transfer into the subject’s control, but they are conventional expressions, not proof that one English verb always maps to karɓa.
Related karɓo is a Grade 6 form with an orientation toward the relevant center, as in collecting something and bringing it back. Use it only where that directional component matters; it is not the B-form of karɓa.
Common Mistakes
1. Leaving the citation form before a noun object.
❌ Na karɓa takardar daga jami’in.
Incorrect neutral Grade 2 form before noun object takardar.
✅ Na karɓi takardar daga jami’in.
I received the document from the officer.
2. Using the noun-object form before a direct pronoun.
❌ Zan karɓi ta bayan an gama gyaran.
Incorrect standard object form before feminine direct pronoun ta.
✅ Zan karɓe ta bayan an gama gyaran.
I will collect it after the repair is finished.
3. Treating masa as a source.
❌ Na karɓa masa saƙon.
Incorrect for the intended meaning ‘I received the message from him’; masa marks a beneficiary.
✅ Na karɓi saƙon daga wurinsa.
I received the message from him.
4. Keeping a finite form in the continuative.
❌ Suna karɓi takardu har ƙarfe biyu.
Incorrect continuative construction before a noun object.
✅ Suna karɓar takardu har ƙarfe biyu.
They accept documents until two o’clock.
5. Using a separate pronoun after the strong verbal noun.
❌ Ina karɓa shi ne saboda manajan ya amince.
Incorrect for neutral continuative ‘I am accepting it.’
✅ Ina karɓarsa ne saboda manajan ya amince.
I am accepting it because the manager approved it.
Key Takeaways
- Grade 2 karɓa has the core set karɓa — karɓe shi — karɓi abu.
- Its main meanings include receive, accept, collect, admit, welcome, and take over; the object and situation choose the English rendering.
- A source uses daga, while a beneficiary can use the distinct D-frame karɓa masa/wa mutum kaya.
- The strong verbal noun is karɓa: karɓar takardu, karɓarsa, karɓarta.
- TAM markers express viewpoint and polarity; the following object environment selects the lexical verb form.
Related Topics
- Grade 2 Variable-Vowel Verbs: OverviewB1 — Use the Grade 2 A, B, and C forms selected by no following object, a direct-object pronoun, or a noun-like direct object.
- Grade 2 Verbal NounsB1 — Learn Grade 2 strong verbal nouns as lexical forms and use their genitive-style objects correctly in continuative and nominal constructions.
- The Three Object EnvironmentsA2 — Choose Hausa verb forms by whether no object, a noun direct object, or a direct-object pronoun immediately follows, while treating indirect objects separately.
- daga: From and Out OfA1 — Use Hausa daga for spatial, temporal, and abstract sources, with cikin, wuri, or gare when the source relation needs to be made explicit.
- Indirect-Object Pronouns with ma-B1 — Use Hausa mini, maka, miki, masa, mata, mana, muku, and musu for recipients, beneficiaries, and other affected participants.
- Offering, Insisting, and AcceptingA2 — Manage Hausa offers as conversational sequences, from a considerate first offer through appropriate insistence, refusal, and acceptance.