Twende moja kwa moja nyumbani.

Let's go straight home.

Breakdown of Twende moja kwa moja nyumbani.

• nyumba: the home
• kwenda: to go
• moja kwa moja: straight

Questions & Answers about Twende moja kwa moja nyumbani.

What exactly does Twende mean, and why does it end in -e?

Twende means Let’s go. It’s the hortative/subjunctive form of the verb -enda (to go):

• tu- = we (subject marker)
• -ende = subjunctive stem of -enda
• Final -e marks the subjunctive/hortative mood, which in English is expressed with “let’s …”

Is there a difference between Twende and Tuende?

Functionally, no—they both mean Let’s go. Tuende is the “textbook” form; Twende is extremely common and perfectly acceptable. The w appears due to glide formation: the u in tu- and the following e merge into we, yielding twende in speech and writing.

Does Twende sound like a suggestion or a command?

It’s an inclusive suggestion (“let’s…”), and your tone/punctuation decides the feel:

• Twende. = Let’s go. (firm/decisive)
• Twende? = Shall we go? (polite suggestion) You can soften it further with tafadhali (please) or a lead-in like Hebu twende…

What about Twendeni—can I use that here?

Be careful: Twendeni is a second-person plural imperative meaning You (all) go! It does not include the speaker. So:

• Twende nyumbani. = Let’s go home.
• Twendeni nyumbani. = You all go home. (the speaker may or may not be going)

What does moja kwa moja mean here, and does it have other uses?

In this sentence it means straight/directly (without detours). It also commonly means:

• immediately/at once (start without preliminaries): “Tuanze moja kwa moja.”
• live (broadcast): “Matangazo moja kwa moja.” Don’t confuse it with English “one by one.” For that, Swahili uses forms like moja baada ya mwingine or mmoja mmoja.

Why does it use kwa twice in moja kwa moja?

That’s just how the idiom is built: X kwa X here conveys “directly/straight from point to point.” Although kwa often means “by/at/with,” in this fixed expression the whole unit means “direct(ly).”

Can I change the word order to Twende nyumbani moja kwa moja?

Yes. Both are natural:

• Twende moja kwa moja nyumbani.
• Twende nyumbani moja kwa moja. The meaning is the same; adverbials like moja kwa moja are flexible in placement.

What’s the difference between nyumba and nyumbani?

• nyumba = house (the bare noun)
• nyumbani = at/to home (the locative form) Swahili adds the locative suffix -ni to mark place or direction. With motion verbs like “go,” nyumbani means “home/to home”; with stative verbs, it’s “at home.”

Why is there no word for “to” before nyumbani?

Because the -ni locative on nyumbani already encodes the “to/at” sense. Swahili often uses a locative form instead of a separate preposition:

• Nenda shuleni. = Go to school. (school + -ni)
• Rudi nyumbani. = Return home.

How do I say “Let’s go straight to my/your/their home”?

Add a possessive after nyumbani using kwa- + pronoun:

• nyumbani kwangu = my home
• nyumbani kwako = your (sg) home
• nyumbani kwake = his/her home
• nyumbani kwetu = our home
• nyumbani kwenu = your (pl) home
• nyumbani kwao = their home Example: Twende moja kwa moja nyumbani kwangu.

Any pronunciation tips for these words?

• Twende: [TWEHN-deh]. The tw is a tight “t” plus “w”; final -e is like “bed.”
• moja: [MOH-jah]. j as in “jam.”
• kwa: [kwah]. A clear “k” + “w.”
• nyumbani: [nyu-BAH-nee]. ny like the “ny” in “canyon” (similar to Spanish ñ).

Is it okay to drop moja kwa moja?

Yes. Twende nyumbani simply means Let’s go home, without the “straight/directly” nuance. Add moja kwa moja when you want to stress “no stops/no detours” or “right away.”