Mfuko wangu ni nzito.

to be

Breakdown of Mfuko wangu ni nzito.

• mfuko: the bag
• nzito: heavy

Questions & Answers about Mfuko wangu ni nzito.

What does each word in the sentence mean?

“Mfuko” translates to bag (or sack/backpack), “wangu” means my, “ni” is the copula equivalent to is, and “nzito” means heavy. Thus, the sentence means “My bag is heavy.”

How is possession expressed in Swahili in the phrase “mfuko wangu”?

In Swahili, the possessive adjective follows the noun it modifies. In “mfuko wangu,” wangu indicates that the bag belongs to the speaker. This placement is different from English, where the possessive appears before the noun.

Why is “ni” used as the linking verb in this sentence?

“Ni” functions as the copula in Swahili. It connects the subject “mfuko wangu” with the descriptive predicate “nzito,” much as “is” does in the sentence “My bag is heavy.” It remains unaltered in the present tense.

Why doesn’t the adjective “nzito” have a prefix to agree with the noun “mfuko”?

When adjectives are used predicatively—after the linking verb “ni”—they usually appear in their base form without additional noun class prefixes. In contrast, adjectives directly modifying a noun (attributive adjectives) often carry a prefix to mark agreement with the noun class.

What is the typical word order in a descriptive Swahili sentence like “Mfuko wangu ni nzito”?

Swahili descriptive sentences typically follow the order: Subject + Linking Verb + Predicate Adjective. Here, “mfuko wangu” is the subject, “ni” is the linking verb, and “nzito” is the predicate that describes the subject.