Alifanya kazi kwa hiari.

the work

Breakdown of Alifanya kazi kwa hiari.

• kufanya: to do
• kwa: by
• hiari: the choice; free will

Questions & Answers about Alifanya kazi kwa hiari.

What does alifanya break down into?

Alifanya can be divided like this:

• a- = he/she
• -li- = past tense marker
• -fanya = do / make

So alifanya literally means he/she did.

In this sentence, it combines with kazi to give the idea he/she worked or literally he/she did work.

Why is kazi used here? Doesn’t fanya already mean do?

Yes, -fanya means do/make, but in Swahili, kufanya kazi is the normal expression for to work.

So:

• kufanya = to do
• kazi = work
• kufanya kazi = to work

This is very common and natural in Swahili. It works much like expressions in English where a verb and noun go together to express one idea.

Does a- mean he or she?

It can mean either he or she.

In Swahili, the subject prefix a- is used for third person singular and does not show gender. So:

• Alifanya kazi kwa hiari. can mean:
  • He worked voluntarily
  • She worked voluntarily

You need context to know which one is meant.

What does mean exactly?