Sisi tutatatua tatizo leo.

A word-by-word breakdown is:

• Sisi = we / us
• tutatatua = we will solve
• tatizo = problem
• leo = today

So the whole sentence means We will solve the problem today.

This is a very common question. In Swahili, the verb already shows the subject.

In tutatatua:

• tu- = we
• -ta- = future tense
• -tatua = solve

So tutatatua by itself already means we will solve.

That means sisi is not strictly necessary. It is often added for:

• emphasis: we will solve it
• contrast: we, not someone else
• clarity

So both of these are possible:

• Tutatatua tatizo leo.
• Sisi tutatatua tatizo leo.

The version with sisi is more emphatic.

Because the word contains two different pieces that just happen to look the same:

• tu- = we
• -ta- = future marker, meaning will
• -tatua = the verb solve

So:

• tu + ta + tatua → tutatatua

The first ta is the future tense marker. The second ta is part of the verb root tatua.

It is not a typo.

Swahili verbs are often built from several parts joined together in one word.

Here the structure is:

• tu- = subject prefix, we
• -ta- = tense marker, will
• -tatua = verb stem, solve

So the pattern is:

subject + tense + verb

This is one of the most important patterns in Swahili.

Swahili usually does not use articles like English a, an, and the.

So tatizo can mean:

• a problem
• the problem

The exact meaning depends on context.

In this sentence, English would usually translate it as the problem because it sounds like a specific problem already known to the speakers.

Tatizo means problem and its plural is matatizo = problems.

This noun belongs to the ji/ma noun class pattern, where many singular nouns have a plural in ma-.

So:

• tatizo = problem
• matatizo = problems

This is useful because noun classes affect agreement elsewhere in Swahili.

Yes. That is completely normal and very natural.

Because tu- already marks we, the shorter sentence works perfectly:

• Tutatatua tatizo leo. = We will solve the problem today.

If you include sisi, it usually adds emphasis:

• Sisi tutatatua tatizo leo. = We will solve the problem today.

So the choice is mostly about emphasis, not basic meaning.

Leo means today, and putting time words at the end is very common in Swahili.

So:

• Sisi tutatatua tatizo leo.

is a very natural word order.

Swahili word order is often similar to English here:

• subject
• verb
• object
• time expression

So this sentence is literally arranged like:

• we
• will solve
• problem
• today

Yes, sometimes time words can move, especially for emphasis. For example, Leo sisi tutatatua tatizo can also be understood as Today we will solve the problem.

But for learners, the safest and most neutral order is:

• Sisi tutatatua tatizo leo.

That is a standard, natural structure.

Swahili pronunciation is usually very regular.

You can break tutatatua into syllables like this:

• tu-ta-ta-tu-a

Each vowel is pronounced clearly:

• u like oo in food
• a like a in father

So it sounds roughly like:

• too-tah-tah-TOO-ah

The stress in Swahili is usually on the second-to-last syllable, so here the stress is on tu in ta-TU-a.

Yes. The verb contains the future marker -ta-, so it clearly means will solve.

That is why tutatatua means:

• we will solve

not:

• we solve
• we are solving
• we solved

The future meaning comes directly from -ta-.