Learn Hardcore Swahili: Watoto watacheza nje ikiwa mvua haitanyesha. - The children will play outside if it does not rain.

In Swahili, the future tense is generally formed by inserting -ta- between the subject prefix and the verb stem. For example, in watacheza, wa- is the subject prefix for "they" referring to "children," -ta- indicates future tense, and -cheza is the verb stem for "play."

How do I understand the role of ikiwa in this sentence?

Ikiwa is a conjunction that can be translated as "if." It introduces a condition, so the sentence says the children will play outside under the condition that it does not rain.

Why does mvua appear before haitanyesha?

In Swahili, it’s common to start a conditional part of the sentence (after ikiwa) with the subject (in this case, mvua, meaning "rain"). Then the verb, haitanyesha, follows. This structure clarifies that the rain is the subject that "will not fall."

What does the negative form haitanyesha mean exactly?

Haitanyesha is the negative future form of the verb kunyesha ("to rain"). The ha- prefix shows negation, ita marks the future tense, and nyesha means "to rain," so haitanyesha means "it will not rain."

Is nje always used to say "outside"?

Yes, nje commonly means "outside" in Swahili. It functions as an adverb rather than a noun, so it doesn’t take typical noun class prefixes. You just use nje to indicate the location "outside."

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