Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mjomba anapenda kuogelea baharini asubuhi. - Uncle likes to swim in the ocean in the morning.

In Swahili, mjomba most precisely means your mother’s brother (maternal uncle). For a father’s brother (paternal uncle), common terms are baba mdogo/baba mkubwa (younger/older “father”) or, in some regions, ami. In everyday modern speech, many people also use mjomba loosely for any uncle, but the maternal sense is the traditional core meaning.

Why is the subject marker a- in anapenda—where is “he/she”?

Swahili usually drops independent pronouns. The subject is encoded by the prefix a- (3rd person singular) on the verb: a- + -na- (present) + penda (like/love) → anapenda. If you want to make “he/she” explicit for emphasis, add yeye: Yeye anapenda... Swahili doesn’t mark gender, so a-/yeye can mean either he or she.

What tense/aspect does -na- express here?

The infix -na- marks present time in a broad sense: general present or current/habitual tendency. So anapenda is “likes/loves.” It is not a progressive “is liking” (which English rarely uses anyway).

Why is kuogelea used—what does the ku- do?

ku- forms the infinitive/gerund: ku- + ogelea → kuogelea “to swim / swimming.” After verbs like penda (like), you use the verb in the ku- infinitive: anapenda kuogelea “likes to swim.”

Is there a difference between kuogelea and kuoga?

Yes:

kuogelea = to swim.
kuoga = to bathe/wash oneself. So kuogelea baharini is “swim in the sea,” while kuoga baharini would be “bathe in the sea.”

What does the -ni on baharini mean?

The suffix -ni is a locative marker meaning “in/at/on.” bahari (sea/ocean) → baharini = “in/at the sea.” You can often choose between the locative suffix and a preposition: baharini ≈ kwenye bahari “at/in the sea.”

Can I just say bahari without -ni?

Not in this structure. You’d normally use the locative -ni or a preposition:

Correct: kuogelea baharini or kuogelea kwenye bahari.
Avoid: kuogelea bahari (sounds incomplete in standard Swahili).

Why is there no preposition before asubuhi?

Time-of-day words like asubuhi (morning), mchana (afternoon), jioni (evening), usiku (night) function as adverbs. You simply add them: asubuhi = “in the morning.” If you want to say “every morning,” use kila asubuhi.

Is the order “baharini asubuhi” the only correct one?

Both orders are possible:

Neutral/default: place then time → ... baharini asubuhi.
To emphasize time, put it first → Asubuhi, mjomba anapenda kuogelea baharini. Swahili is flexible with adverb order; moving an element to the front adds emphasis to it.

How would I say My uncle likes to swim...?

Add a possessive after the noun: Mjomba wangu anapenda kuogelea baharini asubuhi. Possessives agree with the noun class; for the m-/wa- class singular, it’s -angu (wangu).

How do I make it clearly habitual, like He swims in the sea in the mornings?

Use the habitual prefix hu- (which replaces the tense marker and takes no subject prefix on the verb):

Mjomba huogelea baharini asubuhi (kila siku/kila asubuhi). Compare:
anapenda kuogelea... = he likes to swim.
huogelea... = he (typically/regularly) swims.

What’s the plural: Uncles like to swim...?

Plural of mjomba is wajomba. The verb takes the plural subject marker wa-:

Wajomba wanapenda kuogelea baharini asubuhi. Breakdown: wa- (they) + -na- (present) + penda.

Does anapenda mean like or love?

Both, depending on context and intensity—Swahili penda covers the range from “like” to “love.” With activities (e.g., anapenda kuogelea) it’s usually “likes/enjoys.”

Any pronunciation tips for this sentence?

Mjomba: “j” like English j; say m + j together: [m-jo...].
anapenda: vowels are pure; e as in “bet.”
kuogelea: all vowels pronounced; hear the sequence u-o-ge-le-a.
baharini: flap the r lightly.
asubuhi: u like “oo”; pronounce the h.