Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mkalimani yule alitusaidia kutafsiri tangazo la kimataifa. - That interpreter helped us translate the international announcement.

a- = 3rd person singular subject marker (he/she; here agreeing with class 1 person “mkalimani”)
-li- = past tense marker (simple past)
-tu- = 1st person plural object marker (“us”)
saidi = verb root “help”
-a = final vowel (indicative mood) Together: a-li-tu-saidi-a = “he/she helped us.”

Why is the demonstrative "yule" used here instead of "huyu" or "huyo"?

Swahili has a three-way distance contrast in demonstratives:

huyu = this (near the speaker)
huyo = that (near the addressee or just mentioned)
yule = that (far from both, or more remote in context) Because the interpreter is conceptually “that one (over there/that previously mentioned)”, “yule” fits. It’s the class 1 form (for people) of the distal demonstrative.

Can the demonstrative come before the noun (e.g., “Yule mkalimani”)?

Yes. Both orders are correct:

Post-nominal (neutral/default): mkalimani yule
Pre-nominal (more contrastive/emphatic): yule mkalimani The pre-nominal version puts extra focus on “that interpreter (as opposed to another).”

What exactly does "mkalimani" mean? Is it the same as “translator”?

mkalimani = interpreter (typically for spoken language)
mtafsiri/mfasiri = translator (typically for written texts) The verb used here, kutafsiri, means “to translate,” and can be used generally for translating or interpreting, but the noun mkalimani points specifically to an interpreter.

Why is it “tangazo la kimataifa” and not “tangazo ya/cha kimataifa”?

The connector “of” agrees with the noun class of the head noun:

tangazo is class 5 (ji-/Ø), so its connector is la in the singular. Thus “tangazo la kimataifa” = “an international announcement/advertisement.” If plural (matangazo, class 6), the connector becomes ya: “matangazo ya kimataifa.”

How would the whole sentence look in the plural (interpreters … announcements …)?

Wakalimani wale walitusaidia kutafsiri matangazo ya kimataifa. Changes:

mkalimani → wakalimani (class 1 → class 2 plural)
yule → wale (class 1 distal → class 2 distal)
a- (SM3sg) → wa- (SM3pl)
tangazo → matangazo (class 5 → class 6)
la → ya (class 5 connector → class 6 connector)

Do I need the “ku-” before “tafsiri” in “kutafsiri”?

Yes. When one verb is the complement of another (e.g., “help us to translate”), Swahili uses the infinitive formed with ku-: kutafsiri. Without ku-, tafsiri would be treated as a noun or would be ungrammatical in this slot.

Could I also say “alitusaidia kwa kutafsiri …” to mean “helped us by translating …”?

Yes. “Alitusaidia kwa kutafsiri tangazo la kimataifa” emphasizes the manner (“by translating”). Subtly different meaning:

alitusaidia kutafsiri … = helped us to translate (we did the translating, with help)
alitusaidia kwa kutafsiri … = helped us by translating (the helper did the translating)

How would I say “He/She translated the announcement for us” using an applicative?

Alitutafsiria tangazo la kimataifa. Here -ia is the applicative suffix on tafsiri, meaning “translate for (someone).” Breakdown: a-li-tu-tafsiri-ia = he/she - past - us - translate - for.

Can I replace the object marker -tu- with the full pronoun “sisi”? Can I use both?

You can use just the object marker: alitusaidia … = “helped us …” (normal).
You can add the independent pronoun for emphasis: alitusaidia sisi … = “helped us (as opposed to others) …”
Don’t drop the object marker if “us” is required by meaning; the pronoun alone doesn’t normally replace it in standard Swahili.

How do I make the sentence negative (“didn’t help us …”)?

Mkalimani yule hakutusaidia kutafsiri tangazo la kimataifa. Negative past uses ha- … -ku-:

ha- (neg) + -ku- (past negative) + -tu- (us) + saidi + -a = haku-tu-saidi-a (“did not help us”).

What does “kimataifa” literally come from?

It’s built from taifa (“nation”), with the ki- … -a pattern that makes descriptive adjectives/adverbs meaning “pertaining to X.” So kimataifa ≈ “international/global.” You’ll see this pattern in words like kisiasa (political), kijamii (social), kitaalamu (technical/professional).

Does “tangazo” mean “announcement” or “advertisement”?

Both are possible. Tangazo covers “announcement, notice, advertisement; broadcast item.” Context decides. If you want “advertisement” unambiguously in some contexts, matangazo ya biashara (“commercial advertisements”) can make it clearer.