Breakdown of Mlinzi alinipa kitambulisho kipya cha shule ambacho nilipoteza juzi.
mimi
I
shule
the school
ambacho
which
kupoteza
to lose
kipya
new
cha
of
kupa
to give
mlinzi
the guard
kitambulisho
the ID
juzi
day before yesterday
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Questions & Answers about Mlinzi alinipa kitambulisho kipya cha shule ambacho nilipoteza juzi.
What does alinipa mean and how is it constructed?
alinipa breaks down as a-li-ni-pa
- a = 3rd person singular subject prefix (“he/she”)
- li = past tense marker
- ni = object prefix for “me”
- pa = verb root “give”
So alinipa literally means “he/she gave me.”
Why is the adjective kipya used instead of something like mpya?
Swahili adjectives must agree with the noun class of the noun they modify.
- kitambulisho (“identification”) is in noun class 7 (ki-/vi-).
- Adjectives in class 7 take the prefix ki-, so “new” becomes kipya (not mpya, which would be class 3).
What role does cha play in kitambulisho kipya cha shule?
cha is the genitive (of) connector for class 7 nouns. It links kitambulisho kipya (“new ID”) to shule (“school”), so kitambulisho kipya cha shule = “new school ID.”
Why is the word ambacho used before nilipoteza?
ambacho is the relative pronoun for class 7 (non-human) nouns. It replaces “that/which” and agrees with kitambulisho (class 7), so you get ambacho nilipoteza = “that I lost.”
In the relative clause, why is the verb nilipoteza and not alipoteza?
Because the subject of the relative clause is different from the main clause.
- Main clause subject: mlinzi (“the guard”) → 3rd person → ali-…
- Relative clause subject: “I” → 1st person → ni-…
Thus “I lost” (past) is ni-li-poteza, giving nilipoteza.
What does juzi mean, and where does it go in the sentence?
juzi means “the day before yesterday.”
It functions as a time adverb and typically appears at the end of a clause in Swahili, as here: …nilipoteza juzi.
Can you show the full morphological breakdown of nilipoteza?
nilipoteza = ni-li-poteza
- ni- = 1st person singular subject prefix (“I”)
- li- = past tense marker
- poteza = verb root “lose” (transitive)
Together they form “I lost.”
How does word order work in Swahili relative clauses?
In Swahili, the relative clause follows the noun it modifies. Structure:
- Noun + (adjective) + (genitive phrase) + relative pronoun + verb clause.
Example: kitambulisho kipya cha shule (noun phrase) + ambacho nilipoteza juzi (relative clause).