Learn Hardcore Hausa: Malami ya ba da misali biyu don mu fi fahimtar lissafi. - The teacher gave two examples so that we understand math better.

Malami – teacher
ya – 3rd person singular perfective marker (“he/it [did]”)
ba da – to give (literally “give out”)
misali – example
biyu – two
don – so that / in order that / for the purpose that
mu – we
fi – to be more / to surpass (here: “to understand more/better”)
fahimtar – understanding of (verbal noun fahimta “understanding/understand” + linking ‑r)
lissafi – maths, arithmetic, calculation

So the structure is:

Subject (Malami) + perfective subject marker (ya) + verb (ba da) + object (misali biyu) + purpose clause (don mu fi fahimtar lissafi).

What exactly does ya do here? Is it just the word “he”?

ya is more than just “he” in simple translation.

It’s a 3rd person singular masculine perfective subject marker.
In sentences like this, Hausa often has: Full subject noun + subject marker + verb.

So:

Malami ya ba da…
Literally: “Teacher he‑gave…”, but grammatically it just means “The teacher gave…”.

Key points:

ya shows:
- the subject (3rd person singular)
- the aspect/tense: perfective (completed action, roughly past).
It does not need a separate word for “did” or “has”; ya already carries that information.

Why is ba da written as two words? Is it one verb or two, and can I write bada?

ba da functions as a single verb “to give”, but is normally written as two words.

ba – core verb “to give”
da – an extension that often appears with ba, especially in expressions like:
- ba da misali – to give an example
- ba da shawara – to give advice
- ba da gudummawa – to give a contribution

Writing:

In careful/standard writing you will usually see ba da as two words.
In informal writing or texting, some people do write bada, but if you’re learning, it’s safer to stick to ba da.

You can also see ba on its own, especially when you add an object pronoun:

Ya ba ni littafi. – He gave me a book.
Ya ba su kudi. – He gave them money.

But in “give an example”, the fixed expression is very often ba da misali.

Why is biyu (two) after misali, not before it like in English?

In Hausa, cardinal numbers usually come after the noun they count.

So you say:

misali biyu – two examples (literally “example two”)
littattafai uku – three books
yara biyar – five children

This is just a regular word order rule in Hausa:

Noun + Number
not Number + Noun as in English.

Should it be misali biyu or misalai biyu? Do I need a plural form with numbers?

Both forms are heard, but the more regular/standard pattern with numbers above 1 is to use the plural noun:

misalai biyu – two examples (standard/plural)
misali biyu – also occurs, especially in informal speech.

Compare:

littafi daya – one book (singular + “one”)
littattafai biyu – two books (plural + “two”)
mutane uku – three people (plural + “three”)

If you want to be safest and most textbook‑like, use:

Malami ya ba da misalai biyu… – The teacher gave two examples…

What does don mean here, and how is it used?

In this sentence, don means “so that / in order that / for the purpose that.”

It introduces a purpose clause:
- don mu fi fahimtar lissafi – so that we will understand maths better.

Common uses of don:

Purpose (like here):
- Na zo don in taimake ka. – I came to help you.
“For / because of” (with a noun):
- Na yi wannan don kai. – I did this for you.

About form:

don is a common shortened form of domin (“for the sake of, in order to”).
In everyday speech, don is extremely frequent.

Don’t confuse it with saboda, which is mostly “because”, although in some contexts they overlap.

How does the structure don mu fi fahimtar lissafi work grammatically?

Break it down:

don – so that / in order that
mu – we (subject pronoun)
fi – to be more / to surpass (here: “to do [something] more/better”)
fahimtar lissafi – understanding of maths

So the logical structure is:

don + subject (mu) + fi + verbal noun phrase (fahimtar lissafi)

Literal idea:

“so that we may surpass in understanding of maths”
→ “so that we will understand maths better / more.”

Instead of using a finite verb fahimci (“to understand”), Hausa here uses:

fi + verbal noun (fahimtar lissafi) to mean “understand X more/better.”

What is the role of fi in mu fi fahimtar lissafi? I thought fi meant “more than”.

You’re right that fi is a comparative verb meaning “to be more / to surpass”.

Typical comparative:

Ina fi ka tsawo. – I am taller than you. (literally: I surpass you in height.)

In mu fi fahimtar lissafi, fi is used in a slightly more abstract way:

The thing in which we “surpass” is fahimtar lissafi – the understanding of maths.
So mu fi fahimtar lissafi means “we have more understanding of maths” → “we understand maths better.”

Pattern to notice:

[Subject] + fi + [verbal noun phrase]
expresses “to do X more / better / to a higher degree.”

Why is it fahimtar lissafi and not just fahimta lissafi?

fahimtar lissafi is a genitive (possessive/“of”) construction.

Base verbal noun: fahimta – understanding
When it directly links to another noun (lissafi), Hausa often adds a linking consonant ‑r (or ‑n in other cases):
- fahimta + r + lissafi → fahimtar lissafi
  “understanding of maths”

This ‑r / ‑n is a linker between two nouns in a genitive‑like relationship:

littafin malam – the teacher’s book / book of the teacher
yaron gida – the child of the house / the household child

So:

fahimta lissafi is not the normal way to say it.
fahimtar lissafi is the correct linked form: “understanding of mathematics.”

How would I say “The teacher gave us two examples so that we would better understand maths” using this pattern?

You can keep almost the same structure and add mu as an indirect object of “give”:

Malami ya ba mu misalai biyu don mu fi fahimtar lissafi.

Breakdown of the first part:

Malami – teacher
ya – he (perfective marker)
ba – gave
mu – to us
misalai biyu – two examples

So the whole sentence:

Malami ya ba mu misalai biyu don mu fi fahimtar lissafi.
“The teacher gave us two examples so that we would understand maths better.”

How would this sentence change if I want to say “The teacher is giving two examples…” or “The teacher will give two examples…”?

Change the tense/aspect marker:

Present/progressive: “is giving”
- Malami yana ba da misalai biyu don mu fi fahimtar lissafi.
  - yana – he is (progressive)
  - “The teacher is giving two examples so that we (will) understand maths better.”
Future: “will give”
- Malami zai ba da misalai biyu don mu fi fahimtar lissafi.
  - zai – he will (future)
  - “The teacher will give two examples so that we (will) understand maths better.”

The rest of the structure (ba da misalai biyu don mu fi fahimtar lissafi) stays the same; only ya / yana / zai changes.