Breakdown of Nilipokea cheti baada ya mtihani wa kwanza.
wa
of
baada ya
after
kupokea
to receive
kwanza
first
mtihani
the exam
cheti
the certificate
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Questions & Answers about Nilipokea cheti baada ya mtihani wa kwanza.
What does nilipokea literally mean and how is it formed?
nilipokea is built from the subject prefix n- (I) + the past-tense marker -li- + the verb root -pokea (receive). Literally, “I received.”
Why is there no “a” or “the” before cheti?
Swahili does not use articles. cheti on its own can mean either “a certificate” or “the certificate,” depending on context.
How would you say “my first exam” instead of just “first exam”?
You insert the possessive adjective wangu after the noun:
mtihani wangu wa kwanza = “my first exam.”
Why is there an ya after baada?
baada is a noun meaning “after,” so it requires the genitive connector ya to link it to the following noun phrase.
Can I start the sentence with the time phrase Baada ya mtihani wa kwanza?
Yes. You can reverse the clauses and say:
Baada ya mtihani wa kwanza nilipokea cheti
without changing the meaning.
What’s the difference between nilipokea and nimepokea?
nilipokea (with -li-) marks simple past: “I received (then).”
nimepokea (with -me-) marks present perfect: “I have received (by now).”
Why is it mtihani wa kwanza and not mtihani ya kwanza?
mtihani belongs to noun class 3, whose genitive connector is wa. Class 4 nouns use ya, but class 3 takes wa before its modifiers.