Je, utapiga simu kwa dada yako leo, au unaenda kumwona nyumbani?

Will you call your sister today, or are you going to see her at home?

Breakdown of Je, utapiga simu kwa dada yako leo, au unaenda kumwona nyumbani?

• wewe: you
• je: do
• nyumba: the home
• kwenye: at
• leo: today
• kuona: to see
• yako: your
• simu: the phone
• au: or
• kwenda: to go
• kwa: to
• kupiga: to call
• dada: the sister

Questions & Answers about Je, utapiga simu kwa dada yako leo, au unaenda kumwona nyumbani?

What does Je mean at the start of the sentence?

Je is often used in Swahili to indicate that a sentence is a question. It doesn’t have a direct translation in English; it just marks the sentence as interrogative.

Why do we say kwenda kumwona instead of just kwenda kuona?

In kumwona, the extra m is an object marker that stands for her (referring to your sister). It shows you’re going to see her, rather than just saying go to see in a general way.

What is the function of kwa in utapiga simu kwa dada yako?

The word kwa here means to and indicates the person you are calling. You can think of it like call to your sister in English, though we typically say call your sister without the word to.

How is the future tense being formed in utapiga?

The future tense in Swahili is often formed by -ta- as an infix. So, uta is you will, and piga means hit or dial. Together, utapiga means you will dial/call.

What’s the difference between utapiga simu and unaenda kumwona?

Utapiga simu means you will call, focusing on the act of calling over the phone in the future. Unaenda kumwona means you are going to see her, focusing on physically visiting her. Both are different ways of interacting with the same person but in different manners.