Learn Hardcore Swahili: Wanafunzi wengi walijitokeza kusafisha darasa jioni. - Many students stepped forward to clean the classroom in the evening.

In wanafunzi, wa- is the plural noun prefix of the human noun class (class 2), turning singular mwanafunzi (student) into plural wanafunzi (students).
In walijitokeza, wa- is the subject marker meaning “they” (class 2). They sound the same but serve different roles; they agree because the subject is a class‑2 plural.

Why is wengi placed after wanafunzi? Why not wengi wanafunzi?

Adjectives normally follow the noun in Swahili. So it’s wanafunzi wengi (“students many”). Also, wengi is the class‑2 form of “many” agreeing with wanafunzi. Singular would be mwanafunzi mmoja (“one student”), plural wanafunzi wengi (“many students”).

Could wengi be something like nyingi or vingi?

No. “Many/much” agrees with the noun class:

Class 2 (people): wengi → wanafunzi wengi
Class 6 (ma‑): mengi → madarasa mengi
Class 8 (vi‑): vingi → vitabu vingi
Class 10 (N/N): nyingi → ndizi nyingi Using the wrong form sounds ungrammatical.

How is walijitokeza built morphologically?

wa-li-ji-tokez-a

wa- = they (class‑2 subject marker)
-li- = past tense
-ji- = reflexive (“oneself”)
tokez- = verb root (“to appear/come forward”)
-a = final vowel So it literally means “they-past-themselves-appear,” i.e., “they showed up/turned up (came forward).”

What nuance does kujitokeza have compared with kufika or kujitolea?

kujitokeza = to show up/step forward/come forward (often implies initiative).
kufika = to arrive (neutral arrival, no implication of volunteering).
kujitolea = to volunteer (explicitly offering services). In the sentence, walijitokeza suggests they came forward (possibly willingly) to help clean.

Is kusafisha just the infinitive “to clean,” and does it indicate purpose without ili?

Yes. ku- marks the infinitive. In Swahili you can show purpose by placing an infinitive after the main verb:

walijitokeza kusafisha = “they turned up to clean (in order to clean).” You can also add ili for emphasis: walijitokeza ili kusafisha (a bit more formal/explicit).

Why kusafisha and not kuosha or kusafua?

kusafisha = to clean/make clean (general cleaning; from the adjective safi
- causative -isha).
kuosha = to wash (with water) items like hands, dishes, a car.
kusafua = to wash/launder (especially clothes). For a classroom, kusafisha darasa is the idiomatic choice.

Should it be darasa or darasani here? What does -ni do?

darasa (class 5) is the object “the classroom.” kusafisha darasa = “to clean the classroom.”
darasani is the locative “in the classroom/in class.” walikuwa darasani = “they were in the classroom.” Use darasa as the object of cleaning; darasani would focus on the location where an action happens.

Do I need a preposition before jioni? In English we say “in the evening.”

No preposition is needed. Time-of-day nouns like asubuhi (morning), mchana (afternoon), jioni (evening), usiku (night) can stand alone: … darasa jioni = “ … the classroom in the evening.”

How would I say “this evening” or “yesterday evening” in this sentence?

Add leo (today), jana (yesterday), kesho (tomorrow) before jioni:

… darasa leo jioni = this evening
… darasa jana jioni = yesterday evening
… darasa kesho jioni = tomorrow evening Position is flexible, but leo/jana/kesho jioni is very common.

Is there an object marker in this sentence? Could I add one?

There isn’t one here. You could add a class‑5 object marker -li- if the classroom is a specific, known one:

Finite verb: wali-li-safisha (they-past-it5-cleaned) → Walilisafisha darasa.
In an infinitive: ku-li-safisha → … kulisafisha (darasa). However, you normally don’t add the object marker when the full noun (darasa) follows, unless for emphasis/topicalization.

What noun class is darasa, and what’s the plural?

darasa is class 5; its plural is class 6: madarasa. So “classroom(s)” = darasa/madarasa.

Where does jioni fall in the day compared with mchana and usiku?

Roughly:

asubuhi = morning
mchana = midday/afternoon
jioni = late afternoon/evening (around late afternoon to early night)
usiku = night Exact boundaries are flexible and can vary by context/region.

Can I move the time to the front: Jioni, …?

Yes. Fronting time for emphasis is natural: Jioni, wanafunzi wengi walijitokeza kusafisha darasa. Meaning and grammar remain the same.

How would I change the tense to present or future?

Swap the tense marker:

Past: wa-li- → Walijitokeza … (they turned up)
Present/habitual: wa-na- → Wanafunzi wengi wanajitokeza kusafisha … (they turn up/usually turn up)
Future: wa-ta- → Watajitokeza kusafisha … (they will turn up)

Does anything change if the students are all female or all male?

No. Swahili noun classes are not based on gender. mwanafunzi/wanafunzi and agreements like wengi and wa- don’t change with the natural gender of the people.