Filamu hiyo imetengenezwa na waigizaji maarufu.

That film has been made by famous actors.

Breakdown of Filamu hiyo imetengenezwa na waigizaji maarufu.

• na: by
• hiyo: that
• filamu: the film
• kutengenezwa: to be made
• mwigizaji: the actor
• maarufu: famous

Questions & Answers about Filamu hiyo imetengenezwa na waigizaji maarufu.

How do you form the passive voice in Swahili, as in the word imetengenezwa?

The passive is built by adding the suffix -wa to the verb root. In imetengenezwa, you have:

• tengeneza (root “to make/produce”)
• -wa (passive suffix) → tengenezwa (“be made/produced”)
  Plus tense-aspect and subject markers:
• i- (class 9 subject-marker agreeing with filamu)
• -me- (perfect aspect “has/have”)
  So i-me-tengene-zwa = “has been made.”

Why is the doer of the action introduced with na in this sentence?

In a Swahili passive construction, the agent (“by …”) is marked with na. It’s not a direct object but a prepositional phrase:
imetengenezwa na waigizaji maarufu → “has been made by famous actors.”

How do you identify the subject-marker in imetengenezwa, and which noun does it refer to?

The initial i- is the subject-marker for noun class 9. It agrees with filamu, which is a class 9 noun. Every noun class has its own subject-marker (e.g. m- for class 1, wa- for class 2, i- for class 9, etc.).

What noun class is filamu, and how can you tell?

Filamu belongs to noun class 9 (and plural class 10). Characteristics:

• No prefix in the singular (just filamu).
• Takes i- as the subject-marker.
  Loanwords and many inanimate nouns often join class 9/10.

How is the word waigizaji formed?

It’s an agent noun built from:

• igiza (verb “to act”)
• -aji (agentive suffix “one who does”) → igizaji (“actor”)
  Then class 1/2 prefixes:
• m-igizaji (singular “actor”)
• wa-igizaji (plural “actors”) → waigizaji.

Why doesn’t maarufu change its form to agree with waigizaji?

Maarufu is an invariable adjective (a common Arabic loan) that doesn’t take noun-class prefixes. It remains maarufu whether it describes singular or plural, or any noun class.

Could you express the same idea in the active voice? How?

Yes. Swap the passive for an active verb and make “famous actors” the subject: Waigizaji maarufu walitengeneza filamu hiyo.
Here wa- (class 2 subject-marker) + -li- (past tense) + tengeneza (root) = walitengeneza “they produced.”

What’s the difference between hii, hiyo, and ile when pointing at filamu?

These are class 9/10 demonstratives:

• hii filamu = “this film” (close to speaker)
• hiyo filamu = “that film” (near listener or context)
• ile filamu = “that film over there” (far from both)
  In your sentence hiyo refers to a specific film known in context.