Breakdown of Ukifika mapema, utaepuka msururu huo wa jioni.
jioni
the evening
wa
of
mapema
early
kufika
to arrive
kuepuka
to avoid
msururu
the queue
huo
that
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Questions & Answers about Ukifika mapema, utaepuka msururu huo wa jioni.
What does Ukifika mean grammatically and how is it formed?
Ukifika breaks down into three parts:
- u- = 2nd-person-singular subject prefix (“you”)
- -ki- = conditional marker (“if/when”)
- fika = verb stem “arrive”
All together, Ukifika means “if/when you arrive.”
Why is there no hyphen or space in Ukifika?
In Swahili, subject prefixes and tense/aspect/conditional markers attach directly to the verb stem. They become one orthographic word with no spaces or hyphens.
What tense and structure is utaepuka, and how is it built?
utaepuka =
- u- (2nd-person-singular subject prefix)
- -ta- (future-tense marker)
- epuka (verb stem “avoid”)
This yields “you will avoid.”
What does mapema mean, and can its position change?
mapema is an adverb meaning “early.” Adverbs in Swahili are flexible, so you can say:
- Ukifika mapema (if you arrive early)
- Mapema ukifika (early, if you arrive)
Both are grammatically correct, though the first is very common in conditional clauses.
What is msururu, and how is it used here?
msururu means “line” or “queue” (of people or cars). In this sentence it’s the thing being avoided: “that evening queue.”
Why is the demonstrative huo used with msururu?
Swahili has three degrees of demonstratives for each noun class. For class 3 (m-/mi- inanimate) the forms are:
- huu = this (near the speaker)
- huo = that (near the listener)
- ule = that (far from both)
So msururu huo means “that queue.”
What is the role of wa in wa jioni?
wa is the genitive (linker) for class 3 nouns, meaning “of.” It connects msururu (queue) to jioni (evening), giving “queue of evening” = “evening queue.”
How would you say “If they arrive early, they will avoid that evening queue”?
Swap the subject prefix to 3rd-person plural (wa-):
Wakifika mapema, wataepuka msururu huo wa jioni.
Can you use ikiwa instead of the -ki- conditional marker?
Yes. ikiwa means “if.” You then put the personal prefix on the verb:
Ikiwa utifika mapema, utaepuka msururu huo wa jioni.
How would you change it for “I”?
Use ni- for 1st-person singular:
Nikifika mapema, nitaepuka msururu huo wa jioni.