Bibi hutumia fimbo kutembea kwenda kanisani kila Jumapili.

Grandmother usually uses a stick to walk to church every Sunday.

Breakdown of Bibi hutumia fimbo kutembea kwenda kanisani kila Jumapili.

• kwenye: at
• kila: every
• kwenda: to go
• kutembea: to walk
• kutumia: to use
• kanisa: the church
• bibi: grandmother
• fimbo: stick
• Jumapili: Sunday

Questions & Answers about Bibi hutumia fimbo kutembea kwenda kanisani kila Jumapili.

Could we say Bibi anatumia fimbo instead of Bibi hutumia fimbo?

Yes, but they aren’t identical.

• anatumia (present progressive) means “she is using” right now.
• hutumia (with the hu- habitual marker) means “she usually/regularly uses.”
  Since the sentence describes her routine (every Sunday), hutumia is the natural choice.

Why is kutembea in the infinitive form (with ku-) after hutumia fimbo?

In Swahili, when one verb governs another to show purpose or result, the second verb appears as an infinitive. The prefix ku- turns tembea (“walk”) into kutembea (“to walk”). So hutumia fimbo kutembea literally means “uses a stick to walk.”

What would happen if we dropped the ku- and just said tembea?

Without ku-, tembea acts as a root/imperative form (“walk!”). It cannot function as a standalone infinitive meaning “to walk.” To express the purpose after hutumia, you must keep ku-.

What does kanisani mean, and why the -ni at the end?

kanisani = kanisa (“church”) + locative suffix -ni. It means “at the church” or “to the church” (depending on context). The -ni suffix alone indicates location or destination without needing a separate preposition.

Could we use kwenye kanisa instead of kanisani?

Yes. kwenye kanisa also means “at/in the church” or “to the church.” Swahili often prefers the shorter locative suffix -ni, but kwenye … is equally correct.

What does kila Jumapili mean?

kila means “each” or “every,” and Jumapili is “Sunday.” Together, kila Jumapili = “every Sunday.” Note that kila always takes a singular noun; you don’t pluralize after it.

Why is Jumapili capitalized?

In strict Swahili orthography, days of the week are not normally capitalized (you’d see jumapili). The capital J here reflects English influence, not a Swahili rule.

Do we ever need ili (in order to) before kutembea?

No—you can place the infinitive right after hutumia to show purpose. Adding ili is optional and more formal or emphatic. For example:

• Bibi hutumia fimbo kutembea…
• Bibi hutumia fimbo ili kutembea…
  Both are grammatically correct; the first is more concise.

Is the word order Subject–Verb–Object–Infinitive–Location–Time always fixed?

That is the most common, yes:

1. Subject (Bibi)
2. Verb (hutumia)
3. Object (fimbo)
4. Infinitive (kutembea)
5. Location/destination (kanisani)
6. Time expression (kila Jumapili)
   You can move time or location to the front for emphasis, but this order is the default.