Aisha tana karanta littafi a makaranta.

Aisha is reading a book at school.

Breakdown of Aisha tana karanta littafi a makaranta.

• Aisha: Aisha
• littafi: the book
• makaranta: the school
• karanta: to read

Questions & Answers about Aisha tana karanta littafi a makaranta.

Why is the word tana used here instead of yana or ina?

In Hausa, tana is the third-person singular continuous form used for feminine subjects. Yana is the masculine equivalent, and ina is used for the first-person singular (meaning "I am ...").

Why do we have the word a before makaranta?

The word a in Hausa often translates to a meaning similar to "in" or "at." It indicates a location where the action is taking place, so here it shows that Aisha is reading "at school."

What does karanta mean and how is it different from karatu?

Karanta is the verb root meaning "to read" or "to study," and it’s used in conjugation for continuous or other tenses (e.g., tana karanta). Karatu is the noun form referring to the act of reading or studying in a more general sense.

Is littafi singular or plural here?

Littafi is singular (meaning "a book"). The plural form is littattafai ("books").

What would change in the sentence if Aisha were a male?

If Aisha were male, we’d use the masculine continuous marker yana instead of tana. The sentence would become Ali yana karanta littafi a makaranta ("Ali is reading a book at school").