Learn Hardcore Swahili: Kiingilio cha sinema hii ni nafuu, hivyo watu wengi wanafurahia kuja. - The entrance fee for this movie is cheap, so many people enjoy coming.

It translates roughly to "the cinema ticket" or "entrance fee for this cinema". Here, kiingilio means “ticket” or “entrance,” cha acts as the possessive “of,” sinema means “cinema” (or “movie”), and hii is the demonstrative “this.”

Why is the adjective nafuu used in this sentence?

Nafuu means "cheap" or "inexpensive." It describes the cost of the cinema ticket, indicating that it is low-priced and therefore attractive to many people.

What function does hivyo serve in the sentence?

Hivyo functions as a connector, meaning "so" or "therefore." It links the idea that the ticket is cheap with the resulting notion that many people enjoy coming, signaling a cause-and-effect relationship.

How is the present tense expressed in the phrase watu wengi wanafurahia kuja?

In this phrase, wanafurahia combines the plural subject prefix wana- (referring to “people”) with the verb furahia (to enjoy) to indicate a present, habitual action. The word kuja is the infinitive form meaning "to come," so the phrase translates as "many people enjoy coming."

Why is cha placed after kiingilio when referring to sinema?

In Swahili, cha is a possessive marker that means "of." It connects kiingilio with sinema, showing that the ticket belongs to or is associated with the cinema—much like saying "ticket of the cinema" in a more literal sense.

How do demonstrative adjectives work in this sentence, particularly with sinema and hii?

In Swahili, demonstrative adjectives must agree with their corresponding nouns in terms of class and number. Hii is the appropriate demonstrative to describe sinema in its singular form, so sinema hii properly means "this cinema."

How does the structure of this sentence compare to typical English sentence order?

While both Swahili and English generally follow a subject-verb-object pattern, Swahili places modifiers such as possessives and demonstratives after the noun they modify. In this sentence, sinema is immediately followed by hii (meaning “this”), and the possessive cha links kiingilio with sinema. Additionally, the use of hivyo to connect clauses may seem different from English conjunctions, but it serves a similar purpose in conveying cause and effect.