Tunatarajia shirika letu litakuwa limepokea kibali cha mwisho kabla ya Jumatatu.

We expect that our organisation will have received the final permit before Monday.

Breakdown of Tunatarajia shirika letu litakuwa limepokea kibali cha mwisho kabla ya Jumatatu.

• sisi: we
• kuwa: to be
• kabla ya: before
• kupokea: to receive
• mwisho: final
• kutarajia: to expect
• letu: our
• shirika: the organisation
• kibali: the permit
• Jumatatu: Monday

Questions & Answers about Tunatarajia shirika letu litakuwa limepokea kibali cha mwisho kabla ya Jumatatu.

What does tunatarajia mean, and how is it formed?

Tunatarajia means “we expect” or “we are expecting.”
It breaks down as follows:

• tu- (subject prefix for “we”)
• -na- (present-tense marker)
• tarajia (verb root “to expect”)

How would you say “we will expect” instead of “we expect”?

To switch to the simple future, replace the present marker -na- with the future marker -ta-:

• tutarajia = “we will expect.”

Why are there two verbs in litakuwa limepokea?

This is the Swahili way to form the future perfect (“will have ...”).

• litakuwa = future of “to be” (class 5 subject li
  • future -ta-
    • kuwa) = “it will be”
• limepokea = present perfect of “to receive” (class 5 subject li
  • perfect -me-
    • pokea) = “it has received”
      Together, litakuwa limepokea means “it will have received.”

Why use litakuwa limepokea instead of just litapokea?

• litapokea = “it will receive” (simple future)
• litakuwa limepokea = “it will have received” (future perfect)
  You use the future perfect when you want to stress that the receipt is completed by a certain time (in this case, Monday).

What role does cha play in kibali cha mwisho?

Cha is the genitive connector (“of”) for class 7 nouns.

• kibali is class 7 (“permit”)
• cha links kibali to the modifier mwisho (“last/final”)
  So kibali cha mwisho literally is “permit of last,” i.e. “the final permit.”

Why is it kabla ya Jumatatu and not something else for “before Monday”?

• kabla ya is a fixed phrase meaning “before.”
• ya is the genitive connector used here because Jumatatu functions like a time noun.
  You never double ya, and you must keep kabla
  • ya when specifying “before” a time.

How do you express “our” in shirika letu?

Swahili uses possessive pronouns, not separate words for “our.”

• shirika = “organization”
• letu = “our”
  Together: shirika letu = “our organization.”
  The form etu stays the same across most noun classes; you only change the genitive connector (if any).

What about articles like “the” or “a”? Why aren’t they in the sentence?

Swahili has no articles.
Definiteness (the vs. a) is understood from context or added with demonstratives (e.g. hicho kibali “that permit”). In most cases, you simply omit “the” or “a.”

Can I move kabla ya Jumatatu to the front of the sentence?

Yes. Swahili freely allows time‐phrases at the beginning:
“Kabla ya Jumatatu, tunatarajia shirika letu litakuwa limepokea kibali cha mwisho.”
This emphasizes the time constraint (“by Monday…”).

What exactly is Jumatatu?

Jumatatu is “Monday” in Swahili. The days of the week are borrowed from Arabic; you’ll learn Jumanne (Tuesday), Jumatano (Wednesday), and so on.