Mwalimu wa shule ya msingi anahitaji sahihi ya mzazi kwenye ripoti za wanafunzi.

The primary school teacher needs a parent’s signature on the students’ reports.

Breakdown of Mwalimu wa shule ya msingi anahitaji sahihi ya mzazi kwenye ripoti za wanafunzi.

• mwanafunzi: the student
• kwenye: at
• mwalimu: the teacher
• shule: the school
• mzazi: the parent
• kuhitaji: to need
• msingi: primary
• ripoti: the report

Questions & Answers about Mwalimu wa shule ya msingi anahitaji sahihi ya mzazi kwenye ripoti za wanafunzi.

What does Mwalimu mean, and how does its noun class affect verb conjugation in this sentence?

Mwalimu means teacher and refers to a person. Being a human noun (Class 1), it influences verb prefixes—in this case, the verb anahitaji uses the a- prefix to match the singular human subject.

How is the phrase shule ya msingi structured, and why is the possessive marker ya used here?

Shule ya msingi translates as primary school. Shule means school, while ya msingi functions as a modifier meaning of primary or primary-level. The marker ya is a possessive/genitive connector that agrees with shule based on its noun class, linking the two words to specify the type of school.

What does the verb anahitaji mean, and how is it formed grammatically?

Anahitaji means requires or needs. It comes from the base verb hitaji (to need) with the prefix a- attached, which shows third-person singular agreement. This prefix matches the singular human subject Mwalimu, following Swahili’s subject-verb agreement rules.

What is the role of sahihi ya mzazi in the sentence, and how does its possessive structure work?

Sahihi ya mzazi means parent's signature. Here, sahihi stands for signature, while ya mzazi indicates that the signature belongs to a parent. The possessive marker ya is used because it agrees with the noun mzazi according to its specific noun class, clearly establishing ownership.

How is the phrase kwenye ripoti za wanafunzi constructed, and what does it indicate?

Kwenye ripoti za wanafunzi translates as on the student reports. The preposition kwenye means on, while ripoti (a loanword from English “report”) names the document. The phrase za wanafunzi uses the possessive marker za—which agrees with the plural noun wanafunzi (students)—to show that the reports belong to the students.

Are there any distinctive features of noun class agreement in this sentence that differ from English?

Yes, Swahili’s noun class system means that adjectives, possessives, and even verbs must agree with the noun’s class. For example, the possessive markers (wa, ya, za) change depending on the linked noun’s class, and the verb anahitaji incorporates a prefix matching the subject. This kind of systematic agreement is far more pronounced in Swahili than in English, where such markers are generally absent.