Breakdown of Mama atasafiri kwa treni kesho asubuhi.
asubuhi
in the morning
kesho
tomorrow
mama
the mother
kwa
by
kusafiri
to travel
treni
the train
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Questions & Answers about Mama atasafiri kwa treni kesho asubuhi.
What does atasafiri mean, and how is it formed?
Atasafiri means “she will travel.” It breaks down into three parts:
- a- is the class 1 subject marker (third-person singular)
- -ta- is the future-tense marker
- safiri is the verb root meaning “travel”
Why don’t we use a separate English pronoun like “she” or “her” in Swahili?
Swahili verbs carry their subject in the subject-marker. Here a- already tells you “she,” so there’s no need for an extra word. The verb alone conveys the subject, e.g. atasafiri = “she will travel.”
What does kwa indicate in kwa treni?
Kwa is a preposition used to show the means or mode, equivalent to English “by” or “via.” So kwa treni literally means “by train.”
Why is there no article like “the” or “a” before treni?
Swahili does not use indefinite or definite articles. Nouns stand alone without an article, so treni can mean “(a) train,” “the train,” or “trains,” depending on context.
What does kesho asubuhi mean and why are those two words in that order?
- kesho means “tomorrow”
- asubuhi means “morning”
Together kesho asubuhi translates as “tomorrow morning.” The general time word (kesho) comes before the more specific part of the day (asubuhi).
Could I move kesho asubuhi to the beginning of the sentence?
Yes. Swahili time expressions can appear at the start or after the verb. Both are correct:
- Kesho asubuhi, Mama atasafiri kwa treni.
- Mama atasafiri kwa treni kesho asubuhi.
Why is Mama capitalized in this sentence?
Here Mama acts like a proper name (“Mom” or “Mother”). When you refer specifically to someone’s mother as a name, you capitalize it in writing.
Does the verb safiri take any object marker here?
No. Safiri (“to travel”) is intransitive—it does not act on a direct object—so we don’t insert an object marker. The structure is simply subject-marker + tense-marker + verb root.