Mwanafunzi anachora atomi.

• Mwanafunzi = student
• anachora = is drawing / draws
• atomi = atom

So the sentence is built very directly as:

student + is drawing + atom

In Swahili, mwanafunzi is a single noun meaning student or learner.

It can be understood historically as:

• mwana = child/person
• -funzi = learning

But in normal modern use, you should learn mwanafunzi as one vocabulary word meaning student.

anachora can be broken down like this:

• a- = he/she
• -na- = present / ongoing tense
• -chora = draw

So:

a-na-chora = he/she is drawing

Because the subject is mwanafunzi, the verb agrees with it using a-, which is the normal singular marker for a person.

It can mean either, depending on context.

In many beginner translations, a-na-chora is often given as is drawing, because -na- commonly refers to a present or ongoing action.

But in real use, it can also sometimes be understood more generally as draws.

So:

• anachora = is drawing
• sometimes also draws

Swahili usually does not use articles like English the, a, or an.

So mwanafunzi can mean:

• the student
• a student

And atomi can mean:

• the atom
• an atom

The exact choice depends on context and translation style.

In Swahili, the subject is often built into the verb.

In anachora, the a- already means he/she.

So instead of saying something like he is drawing, Swahili can just use the verb form itself.

Since the sentence already has mwanafunzi as the subject, the a- in the verb agrees with that noun.

Because mwanafunzi is singular: it means student, not students.

So the verb uses the singular subject marker a-.

Compare:

• Mwanafunzi anachora atomi. = The student is drawing an atom.
• Wanafunzi wanachora atomi. = The students are drawing an atom/atoms.

Here:

• mwanafunzi = singular
• wanafunzi = plural
• a- = singular subject marker
• wa- = plural subject marker for people

Mwanafunzi belongs to the m-wa noun class, the class commonly used for people.

Typical singular/plural pairing:

• singular: mwanafunzi
• plural: wanafunzi

This matters because nouns in Swahili affect agreement, especially on verbs and adjectives.

That is why a singular person noun like mwanafunzi takes the singular agreement marker a- in anachora.

Atomi is a borrowed word, ultimately from international scientific vocabulary, like English atom.

Many modern scientific terms in Swahili are borrowings or adapted forms.
Here, atom becomes atomi, which fits Swahili sound patterns more naturally.

Swahili often adapts borrowed words so they fit common Swahili syllable patterns.

A final consonant like the m in English atom is less typical in Swahili pronunciation, so a vowel is often added:

• atom → atomi

This kind of vowel addition is very common in borrowed words in Swahili.

The basic word order here is:

Subject + Verb + Object

So:

• Mwanafunzi = subject
• anachora = verb
• atomi = object

This is similar to normal English word order:

• The student is drawing an atom.

Yes, in many contexts you can.

Because anachora already includes he/she is drawing, the sentence Anachora atomi can mean:

• He/she is drawing an atom

But if you want to be clear about who is doing the action, you include mwanafunzi:

• Mwanafunzi anachora atomi.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• Mwanafunzi ≈ mwa-na-FOON-zi
• anachora ≈ a-na-CHO-ra
• atomi ≈ a-TO-mi

Helpful notes:

• Swahili vowels are usually very regular:
  • a as in father
  • e as in bed (but often a bit purer)
  • i as in machine
  • o as in more (without a strong glide)
  • u as in rule
• Stress is often on the second-to-last syllable:
  • mwanaFUNzi
  • anaCHOra
  • aTOmi

Usually, in a simple beginner reading, atomi here would most naturally be understood as an atom or the atom.

But Swahili nouns do not always show number in the same obvious way English does, especially with loanwords. In real context, atomi might sometimes be interpreted more generally.

For a beginner, though, the safest reading of this sentence is:

• Mwanafunzi anachora atomi. = The student is drawing an atom.

Change the subject to plural and make the verb agree with it:

• Wanafunzi wanachora atomi.

Breakdown:

• wanafunzi = students
• wa- = they (for people)
• -na- = present
• -chora = draw

So it means:

• The students are drawing an atom or
• Students are drawing an atom

You would change the tense marker in the verb:

• Mwanafunzi alichora atomi.

Breakdown:

• a- = he/she
• -li- = past tense
• -chora = draw

So:

• anachora = is drawing / draws
• alichora = drew

Use the future tense marker -ta-:

• Mwanafunzi atachora atomi.

Breakdown:

• a- = he/she
• -ta- = future
• -chora = draw

So:

• atachora = he/she will draw