Basi kubwa inakwenda mjini.

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Breakdown of Basi kubwa inakwenda mjini.

• mji: the town
• kubwa: big
• kuenda: to go
• basi: the bus

Questions & Answers about Basi kubwa inakwenda mjini.

What does basi mean in the sentence?

Basi means bus in Swahili. It refers to the vehicle and is a commonly used loanword in the language.

Why is the adjective kubwa placed after basi instead of before it?

In Swahili, adjectives typically follow the noun they modify. So, kubwa (which means big) comes after basi, following the natural word order of the language.

How is the verb inakwenda constructed, and what does each part signify?

The verb inakwenda is built from several components:
• i-: This is the subject marker for inanimate nouns (like basi).
• na-: This is the present tense (or continuous aspect) marker.
• kwenda: This is the base form of the verb meaning to go.
Together, they form inakwenda, which translates to “it is going.”

What role does the locative form mjini play in the sentence?

Mjini is derived from mji (meaning town or city) by adding the locative suffix -ni. This suffix indicates location, translating the word to “in town” or “to town,” and tells us where the bus is headed.

Why are there no articles like the before basi or mjini in the sentence?

Swahili does not use articles such as the or a/an. Definiteness or indefiniteness is usually understood from context, so no article is needed before nouns like basi or mjini.

How does the subject prefix ina- differ from the human subject prefix, and why is it used here?

For human subjects in Swahili, the subject prefix is typically a- (as in anaenda, “he/she is going”). However, basi is an inanimate noun, so it takes the corresponding subject prefix i-. When combined with the present marker na-, it becomes ina- in inakwenda to ensure proper subject–verb agreement.