Idan har akwai ƙwari kusa da ƙaya, sa maganin ƙwari.

Idan means if (and sometimes when, depending on context).

In idan har, the word har adds emphasis, so the phrase feels like:

• if indeed
• if it happens that
• if really

So idan har akwai ƙwari... is a slightly stronger or more emphatic way to say if there are insects...

You can often drop har and simply say idan akwai ƙwari... without changing the basic meaning very much.

Akwai is an existential expression meaning there is / there are.

So:

• akwai ƙwari = there are insects
• akwai ƙaya = there is a thorn / there are thorns (depending on context)

A useful thing to remember is that akwai does not change the way English is/are does. The noun after it tells you whether the idea is singular or plural.

Ƙwari is the plural form, meaning insects, bugs, or pests.

The singular is ƙwaro.

So:

• ƙwaro = an insect / a bug
• ƙwari = insects / bugs

In this sentence, ƙwari is used because the idea is plural or general: pests/insects in the area.

Kusa da is a fixed expression meaning near or close to.

Breakdown:

• kusa = near / close
• da = the word that links it to what follows

So:

• kusa da ƙaya = near the thorn / close to the thorn

You should learn kusa da as a set phrase. English speakers sometimes want to translate word-for-word, but it is best to remember that Hausa normally uses da after kusa.

Hausa does not use articles the way English does. There is no direct equivalent of a/an/the in most ordinary noun phrases.

So:

• ƙaya can mean a thorn or the thorn
• ƙwari can mean insects or the insects, depending on context

That means Hausa often leaves definiteness to be understood from the situation, instead of marking it with a separate word.

Sa here is an imperative, a command to one person.

So sa maganin ƙwari means apply/put the insecticide.

In Hausa, singular commands are often just the bare verb:

• sa! = put! / apply!
• zo! = come!
• tafi! = go!

There is no need to say you in the command.

If you were speaking to more than one person, Hausa often adds ku:

• ku sa = you all put/apply

Sa is a very common Hausa verb with a broad meaning, including ideas like:

• put
• place
• apply
• set

In this sentence, the natural English translation is apply or put on/use, because the object is maganin ƙwari.

So sa maganin ƙwari is not just physically put insect medicine in a random place; it means apply insecticide/pesticide.

This is a very common Hausa pattern.

• magani = medicine, remedy, treatment
• maganin ƙwari = literally medicine of/for insects

The -n links magani to the following noun. This kind of linking is very common in noun combinations.

So:

• maganin ƙwari = insect medicine
• more naturally in English: insecticide or pesticide

It is best to think of maganin ƙwari as a compound phrase rather than translating each word separately every time.

The letter ƙ is different from ordinary k.

It represents a stronger, glottalized/ejective k sound. For an English speaker, a good first approximation is:

• say a k sound
• make it sharper and more forceful than normal k

So:

• ƙwari
• ƙaya

should not be pronounced exactly like words with plain k.

Even if your pronunciation is not perfect at first, it is worth noticing the distinction, because Hausa treats k and ƙ as different consonants.