Breakdown of Kila mtoto huosha sahani yake mara tu baada ya kula.
kula
to eat
mtoto
the child
kila
every
baada ya
after
sahani
the plate
kuosha
to wash
yake
his
mara tu
as soon as
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Questions & Answers about Kila mtoto huosha sahani yake mara tu baada ya kula.
What does the prefix hu- in huosha signify?
The hu- prefix marks the present habitual aspect in Swahili: it indicates that the action happens regularly or as a routine. It also incorporates the third person singular subject, so no separate pronoun is needed.
Why is it huosha and not anaosha for “washes”?
anaosha (a-na-osha) is the present continuous tense, meaning “is washing” right now. huosha (hu-o-sha) expresses a habitual or customary action, i.e. “(he/she) washes” routinely.
How does kila mtoto mean “every child” when mtoto is singular?
kila means “each” or “every” and always pairs with a singular noun to express a distributive sense. So kila mtoto literally “each child” = “every child.”
Why do we say sahani yake for “his/her plate”? How do possessives work here?
sahani is a noun in class 7. To form a third person singular possessive in class 7, you use the concord ya- plus the possessive pronoun -ke, giving yake. Thus sahani yake = “his/her plate.”
What does mara tu baada ya mean and why include tu?
baada ya means “after.” Adding mara tu before it emphasizes immediacy: mara tu baada ya = “immediately after” or “as soon as.”
Why is kula in the infinitive form after baada ya?
In Swahili, verbs following prepositions (like baada ya) must be in the infinitive. The infinitive always starts with ku-, so baada ya kula = “after eating.”
What is the basic word order of this sentence?
It follows Subject–Verb–Object (SVO):
• Kila mtoto (subject)
• huosha (verb)
• sahani yake (object)
…followed by the adverbial phrase mara tu baada ya kula.