Breakdown of Nataka utulie dakika tano kabla ya kuanza kazi.
Questions & Answers about Nataka utulie dakika tano kabla ya kuanza kazi.
Nataka means “I want.” It derives from the verb root -taka (to want) with the subject prefix ni- (I) and the present‐tense marker -na-:
• ni + na + taka → ninataka
In everyday usage the initial “ni-” is often dropped in writing/speech, giving Nataka at the start of a sentence.
utulie is the 2nd person singular polite imperative, formed as:
• subject prefix u- (you)
• verb root tulia (to calm down)
• subjunctive/imperative ending -e
So u + tulia + e = utulie, a softened command “calm down.”
• tulia by itself is the infinitive (“to calm down”).
• The polite singular command uses the present‐subjunctive ending -e plus the subject prefix, yielding utulie.
• A bare root or infinitive as an order would sound unnatural or harsher in Swahili.
Swahili places numerals 5 and above after the noun they modify.
• dakika = “minute” (class 9 loanword, same in singular & plural)
• tano = “five”
→ dakika tano = “five minutes”
kabla = “before.”
When you want to say “before X,” you use the possessive/prepositional connector -a for class 9:
• kabla ya + noun → “before [that noun]”
In our sentence: kabla ya kuanza kazi = “before starting work.”
After kabla ya you need a noun. Verbs become nouns via the infinitive form, marked by ku-.
• anza = verb root “start”
• kuanza = “to start” used here as “starting” (a verbal noun)
Replace the 2nd person singular prefix u- with the plural prefix m- in utulie.
• Nataka mutulie dakika tano kabla ya kuanza kazi.
= “I want you (all) to calm down for five minutes before starting work.”
You have two easy options:
- Add Tafadhali (please) at the start:
• Tafadhali, nataka utulie dakika tano kabla ya kuanza kazi. - Use Naomba instead of Nataka (“I kindly request”):
• Naomba utulie dakika tano kabla ya kuanza kazi.