Swali la kuvunja sare ni gumu.

La is the connective that links two nouns or noun-like elements, often meaning of, for, or something like about depending on context.

So:

• swali = question
• la kuvunja sare = of breaking the tie / about breaking the tie

In Swahili, this connector changes to match the noun class of the first noun. Because swali belongs to noun class 5, the connector is la.

Compare:

• swali la... = question of/about...
• kitabu cha... = book of/about...
• habari za... = news of/about...

So here, la is not a separate word chosen at random; it agrees with swali.

Kuvunja is the infinitive form of the verb -vunja (to break).

In Swahili:

• vunja! = break! (command)
• kuvunja = to break / breaking

After a connector like la, Swahili often uses the infinitive when English might use to + verb or an -ing form.

So:

• swali la kuvunja sare = the question of breaking the tie / about how to break the tie

This is very normal Swahili structure.

Sare here is part of the fixed expression kuvunja sare, which means to break a tie or to break a deadlock.

So it is best learned as a phrase:

• kuvunja sare = to break a tie

Even if you know the individual words, the whole expression is what matters most here. Native speakers often use such verb+noun combinations as set phrases.

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

That means a sentence like:

• Swali la kuvunja sare ni gumu

can be understood in English as:

• The question of breaking the tie is difficult
• A question about breaking the tie is difficult

Which English article you choose depends on context, not on a separate Swahili word.

Ni here is the basic Swahili copula, meaning is / are.

So the sentence structure is:

• Swali la kuvunja sare = the question of breaking the tie
• ni = is
• gumu = difficult

This is a very common pattern in Swahili:

• Maji ni baridi = The water is cold.
• Kazi ni nyingi = The work is a lot / The tasks are many.
• Swali ni gumu = The question is difficult.

This is because adjectives agree with noun classes in Swahili.

The noun swali belongs to noun class 5, and with this class the adjective appears as gumu.

So:

• swali gumu = a difficult question
• maswali magumu = difficult questions

You may also know the form ngumu, but that is used with other noun classes. For example:

• ndizi ngumu = a hard/tough banana
• nyumba ngumu = a solid/tough house

So in your sentence, gumu is correct because it matches swali.

Yes. Swali la kuvunja sare is one complete noun phrase.

Its head noun is:

• swali = question

And it is being further described by:

• la kuvunja sare = about breaking the tie

So the full subject of the sentence is:

• Swali la kuvunja sare

Then the predicate is:

• ni gumu

This is why the sentence feels structurally similar to English:

• The question of breaking the tie
  • is difficult

Normally, in a full sentence like this, you need ni:

• Swali la kuvunja sare ni gumu.

Without ni, it would sound incomplete or unnatural as a standard statement.

However, inside a noun phrase, an adjective can follow the noun directly:

• swali gumu = a difficult question

So there is a difference between:

• swali gumu = noun phrase
• swali ni gumu = full sentence

Your sentence is a full sentence, so ni is the right choice.

The word order here is actually quite close to English once you break it down.

Swahili:

• Swali la kuvunja sare ni gumu
• subject + copula + adjective

English:

• The question of breaking the tie is difficult
• subject + copula + adjective

The main difference is inside the subject:

• English often uses of + verb-ing or about + verb-ing
• Swahili uses la + infinitive

So:

• English: question of breaking the tie
• Swahili: swali la kuvunja sare

That pattern is very common and worth remembering.

The plural of swali is maswali, and the adjective must also change to agree.

So:

• Swali la kuvunja sare ni gumu. = The question of breaking the tie is difficult.
• Maswali ya kuvunja sare ni magumu. = The questions of breaking the tie are difficult.

Notice two changes:

• la → ya
• gumu → magumu

Both change because the noun class changes from singular class 5 to plural class 6.

A useful pattern to remember is:

[noun] + [class-matching connector] + [infinitive phrase] + ni + [class-matching adjective]

Applied here:

• swali
  • la
    • kuvunja sare
      • ni
        • gumu

You can build similar sentences:

• Jambo la kufanya ni rahisi. = The thing to do is easy.
• Tatizo la kuelewa somo ni kubwa. = The problem of understanding the lesson is big.
• Swali la kujibu ni gumu. = The question to answer is difficult.

If you learn this frame, many sentences like this become much easier to understand.