Learn Hardcore Hausa: Yara suna koya cewa gaskiya ta fi ƙarya, ko da yake suna jin tsoro a lokacin tambaya. - The children are learning that truth is better than lies, even when they feel afraid at the time of a question.

To learn (no person being taught, or the learner is the subject):
- yara suna koya cewa gaskiya ta fi ƙarya
  → The children are learning that truth is better than lies.
To teach (you mention who is being taught with an object, often using wa “to”):
- malam ya koya wa yara gaskiya
  → The teacher taught the children the truth.
- ana koya wa yara cewa gaskiya ta fi ƙarya
  → They are teaching the children that truth is better than lies.

In your sentence, yara (children) are clearly the ones acquiring knowledge, so koya = “to learn”.

What does cewa do in suna koya cewa gaskiya ta fi ƙarya?

Cewa is a conjunction that works like English “that” introducing a clause.

suna koya cewa … = they are learning that …

You can think of it this way:

suna koya – they are learning
gaskiya ta fi ƙarya – truth is better than lies
suna koya cewa gaskiya ta fi ƙarya – they are learning that truth is better than lies

After verbs of saying, thinking, or knowing (e.g. faɗa, gani, sani, tunani, koya), cewa is very common:

ya faɗa cewa zai dawo gobe – he said that he will come back tomorrow
na sani cewa kai ɗalibi ne – I know that you are a student

Sometimes cewa can be dropped in very casual speech, but using it is always safe and clear.

Why do we say gaskiya ta fi ƙarya? What is the function of ta?

In gaskiya ta fi ƙarya, the ta is the 3rd person feminine subject marker that agrees with gaskiya (truth), which is grammatically feminine.

Pattern for fi (“to be more / to surpass”) is:

X ya fi Y … if X is masculine
X ta fi Y … if X is feminine

So:

gaskiya ta fi ƙarya – truth is better than lies
Abdullahi ya fi Musa tsawo – Abdullahi is taller than Musa
Ladidi ta fi Zainabu wayo – Ladidi is smarter than Zainabu

Abstract nouns like gaskiya are usually treated as feminine, hence ta fi, not ya fi.

Can I also write gaskiya tafi ƙarya as one word? Does it change the meaning?

You will see both spellings:

gaskiya ta fi ƙarya
gaskiya tafi ƙarya

They mean the same thing.

Writing ta fi separately shows the grammar more clearly (ta = she/it, fi = to surpass). Writing tafi together is very common in informal or fast writing, especially because people say it quickly.

For learning purposes, it is better to remember the structure as ta fi so that you recognize the subject ta and the verb fi separately.

How does fi work for comparatives like “X is better than Y” in Hausa?

Fi is used to express comparisons like “more … than” or “X is better than Y.” The basic pattern:

X (subject marker) fi Y + quality

Examples:

gaskiya ta fi ƙarya kyau – truth is better than lies (literally: truth surpasses lies in goodness/beauty)
Abdu ya fi Musa tsawo – Abdu is taller than Musa
wannan littafi ya fi wancan muhimmanci – this book is more important than that one
Faransa ta fi Italiya sanyi – France is colder than Italy

Sometimes, as in your sentence, the quality word (like kyau) is left out when the meaning is obvious:

gaskiya ta fi ƙarya – truth is better than lies (better in a general sense)

What does ko da yake mean, and how is it different from just using amma (“but”)?

Ko da yake is a conjunction meaning “although / even though.”

In your sentence:

ko da yake suna jin tsoro a lokacin tambaya
→ even though they feel afraid at question time

Compare:

gaskiya ta fi ƙarya, amma suna jin tsoro
→ truth is better than lies, but they feel afraid
gaskiya ta fi ƙarya, ko da yake suna jin tsoro
→ truth is better than lies, even though they feel afraid

Amma simply contrasts two statements.
Ko da yake introduces something that goes against expectation but doesn’t cancel the first statement.

Other similar expressions:

duk da cewa – even though / despite the fact that
kodayake – a more contracted/spoken form of ko da yake

Why do we say suna jin tsoro, not just suna tsoro?

The expression jin tsoro literally means “feeling fear”.

ji – to hear, to feel
jin – the verbal noun: hearing/feeling
tsoro – fear

So suna jin tsoro = they are feeling fear / they feel afraid.

This pattern is very common with feelings, pain, and sensations:

ina jin daɗi – I feel good / I enjoy it
ina jin zafi – I feel pain / I feel hot (depending on context)
suna jin yunwa – they are hungry (literally: they feel hunger)

Saying suna tsoro is not idiomatic; native speakers say jin tsoro for “to be afraid.”

What is the difference between tsoro, tsorata, and related forms?

tsoro – fear (a noun)
- suna jin tsoro – they are afraid / they feel fear
tsorata – to frighten / to be startled (verb)
- na tsorata – I got scared / I was startled
- ya tsorata ni – he scared me
mai tsoro – a fearful person / easily scared person

In your sentence, tsoro is used as a thing that is felt: jin tsoro = “to feel fear.”

What does a do in a lokacin tambaya?

A is a preposition meaning “in / at / on”, depending on context.
A lokacin tambaya literally means “at the time of questioning” or “during questioning.”

a gida – at home
a makaranta – at school
a dare – at night
a lokacin sanyi – in the cold season

So suna jin tsoro a lokacin tambaya = they feel afraid at the time of questioning / when they are being asked.

What exactly does tambaya mean in a lokacin tambaya?

Tambaya is a noun meaning:

a question
questioning / the act of asking

In a lokacin tambaya, it refers to the time when questions are being asked, for example:

in class, when the teacher asks students
in an exam, when oral questions are asked
in any situation where they are being questioned

Related forms:

tambayi (verb) – to ask (someone) a question
- na tambayi malam – I asked the teacher
tambayar malam – the teacher’s question
tambayoyi – questions (plural)

What is the difference between a lokacin tambaya and lokacin da ake tambaya?

Both can be translated as “when they are being questioned / at question time.”

a lokacin tambaya – literally “at the time of questioning.”
- Shorter, uses a prepositional phrase.
lokacin da ake tambaya – literally “the time that one is being asked / questioned.”
- Uses lokacin da (“the time that/when”) + passive/impersonal ake tambaya.

Both are correct. Your sentence chooses the simpler, more compact a lokacin tambaya.

Is yara definite (“the children”) or indefinite (“children” in general)?

Yara on its own can mean either “children” in general or “the children” depending on context.

In a generic moral statement like yours, it is naturally understood as children in general:
- yara suna koya cewa gaskiya ta fi ƙarya
  → children (in general) are learning that truth is better than lies.
If the context is clearly about a specific group of children (e.g., ones already mentioned), then yara would be understood as “the children.”

Hausa does not use a separate word for “the” (like English the); definiteness is usually understood from context.

How is ƙarya pronounced, and is it different from karya?

Yes, ƙarya and karya are different words in Hausa, both in sound and meaning:

ƙarya (with ƙ) – lie / falsehood
- gaskiya ta fi ƙarya – truth is better than lies
karya (with plain k) – breaking (from the verb karya, to break)
- ya karya ƙafa – he broke a leg

The letter ƙ represents an ejective k sound (a “harder,” glottalized k).
For learning:

Treat ƙ as a separate consonant from k.
In this sentence, you definitely need ƙarya (lie), not karya (breaking).