Learn Hardcore Hausa: Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku? - Have you ever spent the night in a hotel near the sea?

But in Hausa, taɓa is also used in a special grammatical way with a perfective subject like Ka / Kin / Kun / Na to express “ever done something (in your life / before)”.

Pattern:

Ka taɓa + verb …? = Have you ever + past participle …?
Ban taɓa + verb ba. = I have never + past participle.

So:

Ka taɓa kwana a otel…?
= Have you ever stayed overnight in a hotel…?
Ban taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku ba.
= I have never stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea.

Here taɓa has bleached its literal meaning and functions more like an “ever” / “never” marker.

Could I just say “Ka kwana a otel kusa da teku?” without taɓa? What’s the difference?

You can say Ka kwana a otel kusa da teku?, but the meaning changes.

Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?
= Have you ever stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea?
(in your life / at some time in the past)
Ka kwana a otel kusa da teku?
= Did you stay overnight in a hotel near the sea?
(refers to a more specific time, like last night or on a particular trip, depending on context)

So:

Use taɓa when you mean “ever in your life / before now”.
Drop taɓa when you mean a more definite past event.

What exactly does kwana mean here? Is it just “to sleep”?

Kwana literally means “to spend the night” somewhere. It’s a bit broader than just “to sleep.”

Nuances:

kwana = to stay overnight / pass the night in a place
(you might sleep, but the focus is on being there for the night)
yin barci = to sleep (the physical act of sleeping)

So:

Na kwana a otel. = I spent the night / stayed overnight at a hotel.
Na yi barci. = I slept.

In the sentence Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?, the idea is:

“Have you ever stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea?” not just “Have you ever slept in a hotel…?”

What tense/aspect is this? Is it like English “Have you ever…?” or “Did you ever…?”

The form Ka taɓa + verb is a kind of perfective / experiential aspect, and its most natural English equivalent is usually present perfect:

Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?
≈ “Have you ever stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea?”

Depending on context, it can also be translated with “Did you ever…?”, but the Hausa structure itself focuses on the idea of past experience at any time before now, which matches English “have you ever…?” best.

How is taɓa pronounced, especially the letter ɓ?

The letter ɓ represents an implosive “b” sound, which is different from the ordinary b.

b: like English b in “bat”.
ɓ: produced by slightly drawing air inward as you make the b sound. The lips look similar, but there is a “gulping” quality.

So:

taba (with b) and taɓa (with ɓ) are not the same word.
In careful pronunciation, taɓa here should clearly use the implosive ɓ.

For learners, it often sounds like a stronger, “tenser” b. Native speakers will hear the difference, especially in minimal pairs.

What does a mean in a otel? Is it like “in”, “at”, or “on”?

The preposition a in Hausa is quite flexible. It most often covers meanings that in English would be in, at, or on, depending on context.

In a otel:

a = at / in
a otel ≈ “in a hotel” or “at a hotel”

Other examples:

a gida = at home / in the house
a makaranta = at school
a hanya = on the road

So in the sentence:

kwana a otel = to spend the night at a hotel

What does kusa da teku mean exactly, and why is there da there?

kusa da teku means “near the sea / close to the sea.”

Breakdown:

kusa = near, close
da = here it works like “to” or “with” to connect kusa to the thing it is near
teku = sea, ocean

So kusa da X is a common pattern meaning “near X / close to X”:

kusa da teku = near the sea
kusa da titi = near the road
kusa da kasuwa = near the market

In the sentence a otel kusa da teku:

The phrase kusa da teku is describing the otel:
- “a hotel (which is) near the sea”

Why is it a otel kusa da teku and not something like a kusa da teku otel?

Hausa normally keeps the head noun first, followed by its modifiers.

So the natural order is:

otel (the main noun: hotel)
kusa da teku (a phrase describing the hotel: near the sea)

Hence:

a otel kusa da teku
= “at a hotel near the sea”

Putting kusa da teku before otel would be very unnatural:

✗ a kusa da teku otel – this is not normal Hausa word order.

If you wanted a more explicit relative clause, you might hear:

a otel da ke kusa da teku
= in/at a hotel that is near the sea
But the shorter a otel kusa da teku is perfectly fine and common.

How do I turn this into a polite or plural “you” question?

You just change the subject pronoun:

To one man:
Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?
To one woman:
Kin taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?
To 2 or more people (or polite plural):
Kun taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?

Everything else in the sentence stays the same. Hausa doesn’t have separate special politeness pronouns — Kun also works as a polite form if you are addressing someone respectfully in plural form.

How would I answer this question in Hausa, both “yes, I have” and “no, I haven’t (ever)”?

For “yes, I have (ever)”, you usually repeat the verb phrase:

Na taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku.
= I have (ever) stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea.

You can add emphasis:

Eh, na taɓa. = Yes, I have (ever).

For “no, I have never”, Hausa uses negative + taɓa + ba:

Ban taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku ba.
= I have never stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea.

Structure:

Ba
- n (I) + taɓa
  - verb phrase + ba
    → Ban taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku ba.

Is there any special question word or particle here, or is it just word order and intonation?

In this sentence, there is no separate question word or particle. It is a yes/no question, formed by:

Normal declarative order:
- Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku.
  = You have ever stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea. (as a bare statement, odd in English but structurally fine)
Rising intonation / question mark in writing:
- Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?
  = Have you ever stayed overnight in a hotel near the sea?

Hausa can add ne? or ko? in some kinds of questions for nuance, but here it’s completely natural and correct without any extra question particle.

Is otel a Hausa word, and are there other ways to say “hotel”?

Otel is a loanword from English “hotel” (via English or sometimes via French-influenced forms). It is fully accepted in everyday Hausa.

You might also see or hear:

hotal / hotel – spelling/pronunciation variation
More formal / descriptive terms like:
- masaukin baƙi = literally “lodging of guests” (guesthouse, hotel)
- masauki alone can mean lodging/accommodation (not necessarily a modern hotel)

But in casual speech, otel is very common and understood as the regular word for “hotel.”

Could I rearrange the sentence as “Ka taɓa kwana kusa da teku a otel?”? Would that still be correct?

Ka taɓa kwana kusa da teku a otel? is not the most natural order. It sounds a bit off because it suggests:

“Have you ever spent the night near the sea at a hotel?”
rather than clearly describing what kind of hotel it is.

The natural, preferred order is:

Ka taɓa kwana a otel kusa da teku?
(at a hotel which is near the sea)

Hausa tends to keep:

The main location with a (here: a otel) close to the verb.
Then extra detail like kusa da teku after the noun.

So it’s best to keep a otel kusa da teku in that order.