Learn Hardcore Hausa: Yara suna wasa a wajen gida. - The children are playing outside the house.

So the whole sentence is something like:
Yara suna wasa a wajen gida ≈ Children are playing in the outside area of the house → The children are playing outside the house.

What is the singular form of yara, and how is this plural formed?

Yara is the plural: children.
The singular is yaro: child / boy (often with a slight male implication, though context matters).

So:

yaro – one child
yara – children

This is a common plural pattern in Hausa: -o in the singular becomes -a in the plural (yaro → yara).

What exactly is suna – is it a verb like “are” in English?

Suna is a combination of:

su – they (3rd person plural subject pronoun)
-na – marker of continuous / ongoing or habitual aspect

Together, suna marks “they are (doing something)”. Hausa does not use a separate verb “to be” in this structure the way English does; instead, the subject pronoun plus -na shows that the action is in progress or habitual.

Other forms from the same pattern are:

ina – I am (doing)
kana / kina – you (m./f. sg.) are (doing)
yana / tana – he / she is (doing)
muna – we are (doing)
kuna – you (pl.) are (doing)
suna – they are (doing)

Why is wasa used without yi here? Can I also say suna yin wasa?

In Hausa:

wasa is originally a noun: play, a game.
The usual verb to play is yi wasa – literally do play.

So the fully “spelled out” version of Yara suna wasa is:

Yara suna yin wasa – The children are doing play / are playing.

In everyday speech, when using the continuous pronouns like suna, speakers very often drop yi (or its verbal noun yin) and just say:

Yara suna wasa.

Both Yara suna wasa and Yara suna yin wasa are acceptable.
You will hear the shorter suna wasa very often in casual, natural speech.

What does the preposition a mean, and when is it used?

a is a general locative preposition, most commonly translated as:

in, at, on, into, to (depending on context)

In this sentence:

a wajen gida – outside / at the outside area of the house

Other examples:

a gida – at home / in the house
a makaranta – at school
a kasuwa – at the market
a kan tebur – on the table

So a is the default preposition to mark where something happens.

What is the difference between waje and wajen?

waje by itself means outside, outdoors, a place / area.
wajen is waje + -n, where -n is a linker (a kind of genitive marker) that connects waje to the next noun.

So:

a waje – outside (in general)
a wajen gida – in the outside area of the house

You typically use wajen when waje is followed by another noun that specifies whose / which outside or place you mean:

wajen gida – outside (of) the house
wajen aiki – at work (lit. the place of work)
wajen likita – at the doctor’s (the doctor’s place)

Does a wajen gida strictly mean outside the house, or can it also mean near/by the house?

a wajen gida is somewhat flexible. It most naturally suggests:

outside the house, around the outside of the house, in the area by the house.

Depending on context, it can cover:

outside (not inside) the house,
around the yard or area next to the house,
and more generally by / at the area of the house.

If you need to be very clear that something is simply near / close to the house (not with the “outside vs inside” contrast), you might also hear:

kusa da gida – near the house
gefen gida – by the side of the house

But in many everyday contexts, a wajen gida will be understood as outside, around the house.

What does gida mean here: house or home?

Gida in Hausa can mean:

a physical house / building,
or more abstractly home, household, family home.

In a wajen gida, it usually carries the sense of their home / (the) house. English often has to choose house or home, but Hausa gida comfortably covers both, depending on context.

So:

a gida – at home / in the house
a wajen gida – outside the house / around the home

What is the basic word order in Yara suna wasa a wajen gida?

The order here is:

Subject: Yara – children
Verb / predicate: suna wasa – are playing
Locative phrase: a wajen gida – outside the house

So the pattern is Subject – Verb – (Other elements like place/time), which fits the general Hausa tendency toward S–V–(O)–Adverbials.

Other examples:

Yara suna karatu a makaranta. – The children are studying at school.
Mutane suna cin abinci a gida. – People are eating food at home.

How would I say “The children were playing outside the house” (past continuous / progressive)?

Hausa continuous forms like suna wasa do not change form between present and past; the time is usually made clear with adverbs or context.

So you keep suna wasa and add a past-time expression:

Jiya, yara suna wasa a wajen gida.
– Yesterday, the children were playing outside the house.

Or:

Lokacin da na iso, yara suna wasa a wajen gida.
– When I arrived, the children were playing outside the house.

The form suna wasa itself is used for are playing / were playing / will be playing, with the time clarified by extra words like yanzu (now), jiya (yesterday), gobe (tomorrow), or by the broader context.

How do I say “The children are not playing outside the house”?

A common negative of the continuous form suna wasa is:

Yara ba sa wasa a wajen gida.
– The children are not playing outside the house.

Notes:

ba ... sa ... is a pattern used to negate this kind of continuous construction.
You may also hear a slightly fuller version with yin:
- Yara ba sa yin wasa a wajen gida.
  – The children are not playing outside the house.

In everyday speech, the final ba sometimes used in longer negative sentences is often dropped, so Yara ba sa wasa a wajen gida is very natural.

Can I move a wajen gida to the beginning or the end of the sentence?

Yes, Hausa allows some flexibility with adverbials (like place phrases) for emphasis.

All of these are grammatical, with slightly different emphasis:

Yara suna wasa a wajen gida.
– Neutral: The children are playing outside the house.
A wajen gida yara suna wasa.
– Emphasises the location: It’s outside the house that the children are playing.
Yara, a wajen gida suke wasa.
– Also gives strong focus to outside the house, and uses a focus form suke.

For everyday use, the original order Yara suna wasa a wajen gida is the most straightforward and common, but fronting a wajen gida is perfectly fine when you want to stress the location.