kuishi — to Live | Swahili Grammar

Kuishi means “live”: reside in a place, be alive, experience a way of life, or continue to exist. Its stem -ishi begins with a vowel and ends in -i. These two facts shape visible forms such as niliishi “I lived,” siishi “I do not live,” plural negative hamwishi, and subjunctive niishi.

Unlike native verbs ending in -a, kuishi keeps final -i in the present negative and subjunctive. It overlaps with kukaa for residence, but kuishi reaches beyond location to life conditions, biological survival, and abstract endurance.

Complete practical paradigm

Form	I	you (sg.)	he/she	we	you (pl.)	they
present	ninaishi	unaishi	anaishi	tunaishi	mnaishi	wanaishi
past	niliishi	uliishi	aliishi	tuliishi	mliishi	waliishi
perfect	nimeishi	umeishi	ameishi	tumeishi	mmeishi	wameishi
future	nitaishi	utaishi	ataishi	tutaishi	mtaishi	wataishi
present negative	siishi	huishi	haishi	hatuishi	hamwishi	hawaishi
past negative	sikuishi	hukuishi	hakuishi	hatukuishi	hamkuishi	hawakuishi
subjunctive	niishi	uishi	aishi	tuishi	mwishi	waishi

The present ni-na-ishi gives ninaishi. Past ni-li-ishi yields niliishi with the adjacent vowels preserved. Present negative simply combines si- with unchanged -ishi: siishi, not sishi.

The imperative is ishi for one addressee and ishini for several. Because the verb already ends in -i, it does not take the native -eni plural pattern. Negative commands are usiishi/msiishi.

Ninaishi mjini, lakini wazazi wangu wanaishi kijijini.

I live in town, but my parents live in the village.

Hatuishi hapa tena; tulihamia Dodoma mwezi uliopita.

We do not live here anymore; we moved to Dodoma last month.

Natumaini utaishi maisha marefu yenye afya.

I hope you will live a long, healthy life.

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Do not force kuishi into the -a → -i/-e pattern. Its lexical final -i stays in anaishi, haishi, and aishi.

Residence and location complements

Residence can be followed directly by a place name or a locative noun.

Shangazi yangu ameishi Zanzibar tangu alipomaliza chuo.

My aunt has lived in Zanzibar since she finished university.

Tulipokuwa watoto, tuliishi katika nyumba ndogo karibu na reli.

When we were children, we lived in a small house near the railway.

Mnaishi upande gani wa jiji?

Which side of the city do you live on?

Proper place names commonly follow directly: anaishi Arusha. Locative forms such as kijijini, mjini, and nyumbani also need no English-like “in.” Katika or kwenye introduces a fuller noun phrase when the internal location matters.

Familia hiyo inaishi kwenye ghorofa ya tatu ya jengo jipya.

That family lives on the third floor of the new building.

For a temporary stay, posture, or where someone is based, kukaa is often equally natural. Anaishi Nairobi foregrounds living/residence; anakaa Nairobi can answer where the person stays or is based. See kukaa — sit, stay, live.

Manner and conditions of life

Kuishi readily combines with adverbs and kwa phrases describing how life is conducted.

Expression	Meaning
kuishi vizuri	live well
kuishi kwa amani	live in peace
kuishi pamoja	live together
kuishi peke yake	live alone
kuishi kwa shida	live with difficulty
kuishi maisha ya kawaida	lead an ordinary life

Majirani hao wameishi kwa amani kwa zaidi ya miaka ishirini.

Those neighbors have lived peacefully for more than twenty years.

Baada ya gharama kupanda, familia nyingi zinaishi kwa shida.

After costs rose, many families are living with difficulty.

The cognate expression kuishi maisha... is natural; maisha specifies the kind of life rather than functioning like an ordinary affected object.

Ishini kwa umoja na heshimuni tofauti zenu.

Live in unity and respect your differences.

This plural imperative is appropriate in advice and (formal) exhortation. A bare singular Ishi! can sound elevated; ordinary (informal) conversation usually includes a complement such as ishi vizuri.

Be alive and survive

Babu yangu bado anaishi na hutembea kila asubuhi.

My grandfather is still alive and walks every morning.

Here anaishi means “is alive,” not “resides.” Adverb bado and the following description select the biological reading.

Mimea hii haiishi bila maji ya kutosha.

These plants do not survive without enough water.

Class 4 mimea controls hai- in hai-ishi. English “survive” is often the natural translation when continued life is at issue.

Wavuvi waliishi kwa kula samaki waliowapata baharini.

The fishers survived by eating the fish they caught at sea.

With kwa + infinitive, the clause explains the means of survival.

Abstract continuation

Ideas, memories, and traditions can metaphorically “live.” This is common in (formal), (literary), and commemorative language.

Mila hiyo bado inaishi katika nyimbo za kizazi kipya.

That tradition still lives on in the songs of the new generation.

Class 9 mila controls i-na-ishi. In plainer (formal) prose, inaendelea kuwepo “continues to exist” can avoid a literary personification.

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Use context to choose the English translation: location favors “reside,” bado with a living being favors “be alive,” harsh conditions favor “survive,” and abstract subjects favor “live on.”

Do not confuse kuishi and kuisha

Kuishi “live” has stem -ishi. Kuisha “end/be used up” has stem -isha. One vowel changes the meaning completely.

Maji yameisha, lakini mimea bado inaishi.

The water has run out, but the plants are still alive.

Common Mistakes

Retaining infinitive ku in a finite form

❌ Ninakuishi Mombasa.

Incorrect — ordinary finite forms use vowel-initial stem -ishi directly.

✅ Ninaishi Mombasa.

I live in Mombasa.

Dropping one of the vowels

❌ Sishi hapa tena.

Incorrect Standard form — si- plus -ishi gives siishi.

✅ Siishi hapa tena.

I do not live here anymore.

Adding kwa before a city name

❌ Anaishi kwa Arusha tangu mwaka jana.

Incorrect ordinary location pattern with a city name.

✅ Anaishi Arusha tangu mwaka jana.

She has lived in Arusha since last year.

Using kukaa for biological survival

❌ Samaki hawa hawakai bila maji.

Wrong verb for the intended meaning ‘cannot survive.’

✅ Samaki hawa hawaishi bila maji.

These fish cannot survive without water.

Key Takeaways

Kuishi begins with a vowel and keeps final -i across indicative, negative, and subjunctive forms.
It describes residence, manner of life, being alive, survival, and abstract continuation.
Direct place names and locative nouns normally follow without a preposition.
Kukaa overlaps in residence and staying; kuisha is the unrelated verb “end/run out.”

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