Learn Hardcore Swahili: Wanafunzi wawili wanakula samaki sokoni. - Two students are eating fish at the market.

In Swahili, the numbers mbili (two), tatu (three), nne (four) and tano (five) behave like adjectives: they follow the noun they modify and take that noun’s class-prefix. Here wanafunzi (‘students’) is class 2, so wili (‘two’) takes the class-2 prefix wa-, giving wawili. Thus wanafunzi wawili literally means students two, i.e. two students.

How does subject-verb agreement work in wanakula?

Swahili verbs agree with their subject’s noun class by using a subject-prefix. In wanakula, we have: • Subject-prefix wa- for class 2 (because of wanafunzi)
• Tense/aspect marker -na- for present
• Verb root kula (‘eat’)
Putting them together gives wa + -na- + kula = wanakula, meaning they eat or they are eating.

What does the -na- infix in wanakula indicate? Is it “they eat” or “they are eating”?

The infix -na- marks the present tense (which can cover both habitual and progressive aspects). So wanakula can mean either: • They eat (habitually)
• They are eating (right now)
Context (and sometimes a time-word) tells you which sense is intended.

How would I say “two students ate fish at the market” in Swahili?

To change to the simple past, replace -na- with the past marker -li-. The subject-prefix wa- stays the same. So wanakula → walikula. The full sentence becomes:
wanafunzi wawili walikula samaki sokoni
(‘two students ate fish at the market’).

Why doesn’t samaki change form when it’s plural?

Samaki (‘fish’) is one of several invariable nouns in Swahili whose singular and plural forms are identical. You tell whether it’s singular or plural by context or by adding a number or quantifier (e.g. samaki wawili, samaki mengi).

How would you say “two fish” or “some fish” in Swahili?

You follow the same pattern as with other nouns: • Two fish: samaki wawili
• Some fish: samaki kadhaa or samaki mengi
Numbers 2–5 and quantifiers like kadhaa (‘a few’) and mengi (‘many’) follow the noun.

What does the -ni suffix in sokoni mean? Why is there no separate “at” or “in”?

Swahili often expresses location by adding the locative suffix -ni directly to a noun.
• soko (‘market’) + -ni → sokoni (‘at/in/on the market’)
You don’t need a separate preposition. Alternatively, you can use katika soko to mean “inside the market,” but sokoni is more idiomatic for “at the market.”

How would you ask “Are two students eating fish at the market?” in Swahili?

You can either use the question-word je at the start or rely on rising intonation:
• Je wanafunzi wawili wanakula samaki sokoni?
• Wanafunzi wawili wanakula samaki sokoni?
Both mean Are two students eating fish at the market?