Questions & Answers about Mimi ninahitaji pesa ziada.
Swahili verbs follow the pattern:
subject-marker + tense/aspect-marker + verb-root.
In ninahitaji:
• ni- = 1st-person-singular subject marker
• -na- = present-tense (or habitual/continuous) marker
• hitaji = verb root “need”
So ninahitaji literally means “I (am) needing.”
In Swahili most adjectives and quantifiers follow the noun they modify. You place the modifier directly after the noun:
noun + adjective/quantifier
Hence pesa ziada = “money extra.”
• pesa ziada = “extra money” (beyond what you normally have or planned)
• pesa zaidi = “more money” (an increased amount, often in comparison)
• pesa nyingi = “a lot of money” (a large quantity)
Change the tense marker:
• Future: Nitahitaji pesa ziada (“I will need extra money”)
• Past: Nilihitaji pesa ziada (“I needed extra money”)
Adjust the subject marker at the start of the verb:
• You (sing.): Unahitaji pesa ziada
• You (pl./polite): Mnahitaji pesa ziada
• We: Tunahitaji pesa ziada
• He/She: Anahitaji pesa ziada
• They: Wananahitaji pesa ziada