Tutategua fumbo isipokuwa utungaji wa swali uwe mgumu.

Swahili packs a lot into one verb word:

• tu- = we
• -ta- = future
• -tegua = solve, unravel, figure out

So tutategua means we will solve or we will figure out.

That is why Swahili does not need a separate word for we here. You could add sisi for emphasis, but it is not necessary.

Fumbo means riddle, puzzle, or enigma.

In this sentence it is the thing being solved, so it is the direct object of tutategua:

• tutategua fumbo = we will solve the riddle

Its plural is mafumbo.

Here, isipokuwa means unless.

It introduces the exception or condition that could stop the main action:

• Tutategua fumbo ... = We will solve the riddle ...
• isipokuwa ... = unless ...

In other contexts, isipokuwa can also mean except or except that, but in this sentence unless is the best fit.

Because after isipokuwa meaning unless, Swahili often uses the subjunctive.

Uwe is the subjunctive form of kuwa = to be. Here it has the class 3 subject agreement u-, because utungaji is a class 3 noun.

So:

• utungaji ... uwe mgumu literally means something like the wording ... be difficult

In natural English, we usually do not keep that subjunctive feeling, so we translate it simply as:

• unless the wording of the question is difficult

Utungaji comes from -tunga, a verb that can mean compose, formulate, arrange, or craft.

So utungaji means things like:

• composition
• formulation
• wording

Then wa swali means of the question.

So utungaji wa swali means:

• the formulation of the question
• the wording of the question

The wa here is the associative linker meaning of, and it agrees with utungaji, the head noun.

The adjective root is -gumu, meaning hard or difficult.

In Swahili, adjectives usually agree with the noun class of the noun they describe. Since utungaji is a class 3 noun, the adjective takes the class 3 agreement prefix m-:

• utungaji mgumu = difficult wording/formulation

Compare:

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

So mgumu is there because it agrees with utungaji, not with swali.

They are related, but they are not the same thing.

• fumbo = riddle / puzzle
• swali = question

A riddle is often presented in the form of a question, so the sentence talks about both:

• fumbo is the puzzle itself
• swali is the wording or phrasing of that question/prompt

So the idea is: We can solve the riddle, unless the way the question is worded is difficult.

Swahili does not have articles like a, an, and the.

So words like fumbo and swali can mean:

• a riddle or the riddle
• a question or the question

The exact meaning depends on context. English has to choose, but Swahili usually leaves that unstated.

Yes:

• tu-ta-tegua = we-will-solve
• fumbo = riddle
• isipokuwa = unless
• utungaji wa swali = wording/formulation of the question
• u-we = it be (subjunctive, agreeing with utungaji)
• mgumu = difficult

So a very literal version is:

We will solve the riddle unless the formulation of the question be difficult.

A more natural English version is:

We will solve the riddle unless the wording of the question is difficult.