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Masharti mapya ya mkopo yametangazwa na benki leo.

Masharti mapya ya mkopo yametangazwa na benki leo.
The new loan conditions have been announced by the bank today.
FromLesson 29inHardcore Swahili
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Breakdown of Masharti mapya ya mkopo yametangazwa na benki leo.

leo
today
mpya
new
ya
of
na
by
mkopo
the loan
benki
the bank
sharti
the condition
kutangaza
to announce

Questions & Answers about Masharti mapya ya mkopo yametangazwa na benki leo.

What noun class is masharti, and how does that affect the form of mapya and ya?

masharti belongs to noun class 6 (plural counterpart of class 5). In Swahili, adjectives and genitive connectors agree with the noun’s class.

  • The adjective pya takes the class 6 prefix ma- to become mapya (“new”).
  • The genitive connector for class 6 is ya, so we say ya mkopo (“of loan”).
How is the verb yametangazwa formed, and what does each piece mean?

yametangazwa breaks down into four parts:

  • ya- (subject concord for class 6 in perfect tense)
  • -me- (perfect aspect marker, “have/has”)
  • tangaz- (verb root “announce”)
  • -wa (passive voice suffix)
    Altogether, yametangazwa means “have been announced” (referring to masharti).
What role does na benki play in this passive sentence?
In a passive construction, na introduces the agent (the doer of the action). So na benki means “by the bank,” indicating who announced the new terms.
Why is the sentence in passive voice, and how would you rephrase it in active voice?

The passive voice puts masharti mapya ya mkopo (“the new loan terms”) at the center of attention.
Active-voice alternative:
Benki imetangaza masharti mapya ya mkopo leo.
Here benki is the subject (“the bank”) and masharti becomes the object.

What is the function of leo in this sentence, and where else could it go?

leo is a temporal adverb meaning “today.” It can appear at the beginning or end of the sentence without changing the meaning:
• Leo, masharti mapya ya mkopo yametangazwa na benki.
• Masharti mapya ya mkopo yametangazwa na benki leo.

Could you use a different preposition instead of na to mark the agent in the passive?
No. In Swahili passive constructions, na (or its phonological variants) is the standard agent marker. You wouldn’t substitute it with kwa or any other preposition in this context.
What noun class is benki, and how would that affect verb agreement in an active sentence?
benki is noun class 9. In perfect tense, class 9 uses the subject prefix i-, so the active form is Benki imetangaza… rather than ametangaza.
What noun class is mkopo, and why doesn’t it change the form of ya in ya mkopo?
mkopo is noun class 3 (singular of class 4), but genitive connectors agree with the head noun (here masharti, class 6). Therefore ya stays in its class 6 form, and mkopo remains unchanged.

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