Breakdown of Acha nikupigie simu kesho ili tukamilishe mpango wetu.
mimi
I
sisi
we
kesho
tomorrow
simu
the phone
ili
so that
kupiga
to call
kumaliza
to finish
wetu
our
mpango
the plan
acha
to let
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Questions & Answers about Acha nikupigie simu kesho ili tukamilishe mpango wetu.
What does Acha mean in this sentence?
Acha is the imperative of kuacha. Literally it can mean to stop or to leave alone, but in this context it functions as let me or allow me. So Acha nikupigie… translates to “Let me call you…”.
How is nikupigie built from Swahili verb parts?
nikupigie breaks down into:
- ni- (subject prefix “I”)
- -ku- (object prefix “you”)
- -pig- (root from piga, “call”)
- -e (final vowel used here as a subjunctive/future marker)
Put together, nikupigie literally means “I-call-you”, i.e. “I will call you.”
Why is it piga simu for “make a phone call”?
In Swahili, you pair the verb piga (“to hit/play”) with the noun simu (“phone”) to express “to make a call.” There is no preposition like “on” or “by”; piga simu is an idiom literally meaning “hit the phone.”
What role does kesho play, and can its position change?
Kesho means “tomorrow.” It acts as an adverb of time. In Swahili you often place time adverbs after the verb, but you can move kesho for emphasis:
- Kesho nitakupigia simu (“Tomorrow I will call you.”)
- Nitakupigia simu kesho (standard word order)
- Nitakupigia kesho simu (less common, but still clear)
What does ili mean here?
Ili is a conjunction meaning “so that” or “in order that.” It introduces a purpose clause, showing why the speaker will call: “so that we finish our plan.”
Why is the verb tukamilishe in the subjunctive rather than a future tense like tutakamilisha?
After the conjunction ili Swahili uses the subjunctive mood, which ends in -e. Thus tukamilishe (subjunctive) means “we complete” in the sense of purpose. If you said tutakamilisha, it would be the future indicative “we will complete,” but purpose clauses require the subjunctive.
What is mpango wetu, and why is wetu placed after mpango?
- Mpango = “plan”
- Wetu = “our”
In Swahili, possessive pronouns follow the noun they modify. So mpango wetu literally means “plan our,” i.e. “our plan.” The form -etu agrees with the noun class of mpango, but you don’t see extra prefixes here because wetu is the full pronoun.