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Questions & Answers about Daraja ni ndefu.
What does daraja mean in this sentence?
Daraja translates to bridge. It is the noun being described in the sentence.
What role does ni play in "Daraja ni ndefu"?
Ni is the copula, which functions as the linking verb in the sentence. It connects the subject daraja with the adjective ndefu, much like the English "is" in "The bridge is long."
What is the meaning of ndefu in the sentence?
Ndefu means long. It describes the characteristic of the bridge, indicating that the bridge has considerable length.
How does the word order in "Daraja ni ndefu" compare to English?
The structure is similar to English. The sentence follows a Subject (daraja) – Copula (ni) – Adjective (ndefu) pattern, which directly mirrors the English construction "The bridge is long."
Why doesn’t ndefu have a noun class prefix to agree with daraja?
In Swahili equative or descriptive sentences using the copula ni, adjectives typically appear in their base forms without the noun class prefixes that are common in attributive positions. Thus, ndefu remains unchanged even though it describes daraja.
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