Nimefurahi sana leo kwa sababu sikuchelewa kazini, na nimepata zawadi ndogo.

I am very happy today because I was not late to work, and I have received a small gift.

Breakdown of Nimefurahi sana leo kwa sababu sikuchelewa kazini, na nimepata zawadi ndogo.

• mimi: I
• kwenye: at
• leo: today
• kazi: the work
• na: and
• sana: a lot
• kupata: to get
• kuchelewa: to be late
• ndogo: small
• kufurahi: to be happy
• kwa sababu: because
• zawadi: the gift

Questions & Answers about Nimefurahi sana leo kwa sababu sikuchelewa kazini, na nimepata zawadi ndogo.

What does nimefurahi mean, and why is it in the present perfect tense?

Nimefurahi translates to “I am happy” or “I have become happy.” It uses the present perfect tense, combining the subject prefix ni- (for “I”) with -me- (indicating the perfect aspect) and the verb furahi (“to be happy”). This tense is often used in Swahili to describe a state or an experience with current relevance.

What is the role of sana in the sentence?

Sana means “very” in English. It acts as an intensifier, emphasizing the degree of the emotion. Thus, nimefurahi sana means “I am very happy.”

How does leo function in this sentence?

Leo means “today.” It serves as a time marker, indicating when the happiness is experienced. This straightforward temporal reference helps to situate the action or emotion in a specific context.

What does kwa sababu mean, and how is it used here?

Kwa sababu translates to “because.” It introduces the reason for the speaker’s happiness by linking the cause (not being late to work) to the effect (feeling very happy). This structure is similar to English, where a cause-and-effect relationship is explicitly expressed.

How is the phrase sikuchelewa kazini constructed, and what does it mean?

Sikuchelewa kazini means “I was not late to work.” Breaking it down: • sikuchelewa is the negative form of chelewa (“to be late”), where the positive subject marker ni- is replaced by the negative si- and combined with the perfect marker, forming siku-. • kazini comes from kazi (“work”) with the locative suffix -ni, which indicates location, translating to “at work.”

What does nimepata zawadi ndogo mean, and how is it structured?

Nimepata zawadi ndogo translates as “I got a small gift.” Here: • Nimepata is in the present perfect tense, meaning “I have received” or “I got.” • Zawadi means “gift.” • Ndogo is the adjective “small,” placed after the noun in accordance with Swahili word order.

Why do the verbs in the sentence use different subject markers, such as ni- in nimefurahi and si- in sikuchelewa?

In Swahili, the affirmative and negative forms use different subject markers. Nimefurahi uses ni- (with -me- for the perfect aspect) to convey an affirmative statement (“I am happy”). In contrast, sikuchelewa employs si- to indicate negation. This change in the subject marker is a typical feature of Swahili verb conjugation when switching from positive to negative forms.