Breakdown of Taga ɗakin tana buɗe, amma ba mu jin sanyi.
Questions & Answers about Taga ɗakin tana buɗe, amma ba mu jin sanyi.
In this sentence taga is a noun meaning “window”, not the verb.
- ta ga (two words) = she saw
- taga (one word) = window
So Taga ɗakin = “the room’s window” / “the window of the room”, not “she saw the room”.
In speech they sound very similar, but the context and spacing in writing distinguish them.
The -n on ɗaki marks a genitive/possessive relationship (“of the room”).
- ɗaki = a room
- ɗakin = the room / of the room (here: “the room’s …”)
In taga ɗakin:
- taga = window
- ɗakin = the room
Together, they mean “the room’s window / the window of the room.”
Hausa often uses Noun 1 + Noun 2(-n) to mean “Noun 1 of Noun 2”.
Many speakers would say and write tagar ɗakin in careful / standard Hausa:
- taga
- -r (linker) + ɗakin → tagar ɗakin
This -r (sometimes -ar/-ar depending on the word) is a linker used between two nouns in a genitive-like phrase:
- tagar ɗakin = “the window of the room”
In everyday speech, people often drop or weaken the -r, so you hear taga ɗakin.
So:
- taga ɗakin – very natural in speech
- tagar ɗakin – more clearly standard / careful writing
Both will be understood as “the room’s window.”
tana is the 3rd person singular feminine progressive marker:
- tana ≈ “she is / it (fem.) is …”
- yana ≈ “he is / it (masc.) is …”
In Hausa, nouns have grammatical gender, even for objects. Taga “window” is treated as feminine, so the verb agrees with it:
- Taga ɗakin tana buɗe
- literally: “The window of the room she/it (fem.) is open.”
So we use tana to agree with the (feminine) noun taga.
In this context tana buɗe means “is open” (a state), not “is opening” (an ongoing action).
Here:
- buɗe can function like an adjective meaning “open”.
- tana buɗe literally is “it is open” (feminine subject).
If you wanted to emphasize the action of opening (someone opening it), you’d more likely use a different form, e.g.:
- Ana buɗe taga ɗakin – “The window is being opened.” (impersonal / passive-like)
But as given, tana buɗe describes the current state: “the window is (standing) open.”
ji is the base verb meaning “to feel / to hear / to sense.”
In ba mu jin sanyi:
- ba … = negative marker
- mu = we
- jin = verbal noun form of ji (like “feeling/hearing”)
- sanyi = cold / coldness
So jin is like “feeling”, not just “feel”:
- mu jin sanyi (inside the larger structure) ≈ “our feeling of cold”
- ba mu jin sanyi = “we are not feeling cold” / “we don’t feel cold.”
The -n on ji → jin is a regular way to form a verbal noun in Hausa.
With progressive forms in Hausa, the pattern changes a bit in the negative:
- Affirmative progressive:
- muna jin sanyi – “we are feeling cold.”
- Negative progressive:
- ba mu jin sanyi – “we are not feeling cold.”
Notice:
- In the affirmative, you get muna (mu + na) before the verbal noun: muna jin …
- In the negative, you usually drop na and just use the short pronoun: ba mu jin …
So ba muna jin sanyi is not the normal pattern; ba mu jin sanyi is the standard way to say “we aren’t feeling cold.”
Both patterns exist, but they’re used in slightly different ways:
ba mu jin sanyi
- Very common in speech.
- Feels neutral: “We don’t feel cold.”
ba mu jin sanyi ba
- Also correct; adds a bit more emphasis / finality:
- Roughly: “We really don’t feel cold / We’re not feeling cold at all.”
Hausa often uses ba … ba as a “negative frame,” but in short, everyday sentences, the final ba is frequently dropped without changing the basic meaning.
Yes. amma functions very similarly to English “but”.
- It links two clauses where the second contrasts with the first.
In the sentence:
- First clause: Taga ɗakin tana buɗe – the window is open.
- Second clause: ba mu jin sanyi – we don’t feel cold.
amma connects them as a contrast:
“The window is open, but we don’t feel cold.”
You can also hear amma kuma (“but also/however”), which can sound slightly more emphatic or formal.
Yes, ba ma jin sanyi is possible, but it adds focus/emphasis through ma.
Compare:
- ba mu jin sanyi – neutral: “we are not feeling cold.”
- ba ma jin sanyi – more like: “we don’t even feel cold / we don’t feel cold at all.”
ma often means “also / even”, and in a negative sentence it tends to give a “not even …” flavor.
So:
- Grammar: both forms are correct.
- Meaning: ba ma jin sanyi is slightly stronger / more emphatic.
In Hausa, the subject can change from one clause to the next, just as in English.
- First clause subject: taga ɗakin – the room’s window.
- Second clause subject: mu – we.
So structurally it’s:
- “The room’s window is open, but we don’t feel cold.”
If you wanted the window to be the subject of the second clause too, you’d say something like:
- Taga ɗakin tana buɗe, amma ba ta jin sanyi.
- “The room’s window is open, but it (the window) doesn’t feel cold.”
That would sound strange in meaning, of course, but grammatically that’s how you’d keep the same subject.
In the original, mu clearly shifts the subject to “we.”
The Hausa ɗ is a implosive “d” sound, different from the ordinary d:
- d – a regular “d” like in English “day.”
- ɗ – produced by slightly drawing air inward as you pronounce the “d.”
To approximate ɗ if your language doesn’t have it:
- Start to say “d”, but
- Slightly pull the tongue and a bit of air inward at the same time.
In practice, many learners pronounce ɗ close to a strong English “d”, and they’re still understood, but it’s good to know that ɗaki and daki are phonologically different words in Hausa.
Yes, you can say:
- Taga ɗakin a buɗe take.
This is a somewhat more formal / written-like way of saying “the room’s window is open.”
Breakdown:
- a buɗe – “in an open (state)”
- take – “it (fem.) is” (3rd person feminine, stative)
So:
- Taga ɗakin tana buɗe – very natural, everyday speech.
- Taga ɗakin a buɗe take – more explicit stative form, sounds a bit more formal or literary.
Both describe the state of the window as open.