Learn Hardcore Swahili: Tunatumia mwiko huu kuchanganya wali; mwiko huu ni mrefu. - We use this cooking stick to stir the rice; this cooking stick is long.

Both are possible, depending on context. Morphology: tu-na-tumia = we + present marker + use. The present marker -na- covers present progressive and general/habitual present in Swahili. So tunatumia can be read as either “we are using” (right now) or “we use” (in general).

Why is there no preposition before kuchanganya (“to mix”)? Shouldn’t it be “to use … to mix”?

In Swahili, the infinitive (ku- form) can directly follow a verb to express purpose: tunatumia … kuchanganya … = “we use … to mix …”. You can also make the purpose explicit with:

kwa: Tunatumia mwiko huu kwa kuchanganya wali (“… for mixing rice”).
ili: Tunatumia mwiko huu ili tuchanganye wali (“… so that we mix the rice”). All are idiomatic; the original is concise and natural.

What exactly is a mwiko? Is it just any spoon?

Mwiko is a cooking spoon/stirring stick—typically a long wooden utensil used for stirring food in a pot. It’s not the small table spoon you eat with; that is kijiko. Note: mwiko can also mean “taboo” in other contexts, but here it clearly means the cooking utensil.

Why is it mwiko huu and not mwiko huyu or mwiko hii?

Noun class agreement. Mwiko is Class 3 (m-/mi-). The proximal demonstrative for Class 3 singular is huu:

Class 3 singular: mti huu, mwiko huu (“this tree/spoon”)
Class 4 plural (mi-): miti hii, miiko hii (“these trees/spoons”) So huu is correct here. Huyu is for people (Class 1), and hii is for Class 4 (mi-) or Class 9/10 nouns.

How would I say the whole sentence in the plural (“these spoons are long”)?

Change Class 3 (singular) to Class 4 (plural) forms:

Tunatumia miiko hii kuchanganya wali; miiko hii ni mirefu. Note the changes: miiko (plural), hii (these, Class 4), and adjective agreement mirefu (Class 4 plural).

Why is it mrefu and not just refu or ndefu?

Adjectives agree with noun class:

Base adjective: -refu (“long/tall”).
With Class 3 singular (m-/mw-), it takes the prefix m- → mrefu: mwiko huu ni mrefu.
With Class 4 plural (mi-), it takes mi- → mirefu: miiko hii ni mirefu. You see ndefu with nouns in the N-class because the nasal prefix assimilates: e.g., nguo ndefu (“a long dress”). For mwiko (Class 3), mrefu is the correct agreement.

How can I avoid repeating mwiko huu in the second clause?

Two natural options:

Use the copula with context: Tunatumia mwiko huu kuchanganya wali; ni mrefu. (“… it is long.”)
Use an object marker earlier: Tunautumia kuchanganya wali; ni mrefu. Here tu-na-u-tumia = we + present + it (Class 3 object marker u) + use. Don’t also repeat the full noun unless you want emphatic/colloquial doubling.

What’s the role of the semicolon here?

It links two closely related independent clauses without an explicit connector. In English you could use a period, “and,” or “because.” In Swahili you could also write: Tunatumia mwiko huu kuchanganya wali kwa sababu ni mrefu.

Could I say “we mix rice with this spoon” instead?

Yes. Two common ways:

Tunachanganya wali kwa mwiko huu.
Tunachanganya wali kwa kutumia mwiko huu. Both mean you use that spoon as the instrument.

Why is it wali and not mchele?

wali = cooked rice (ready to eat); often a mass noun.
mchele = uncooked/raw rice grains. Here you’re mixing the cooked rice in the pot, so wali is correct.

What does the ku- in kuchanganya mean?

ku- is the infinitive marker. kuchanganya = “to mix/stir.” Infinitives can function like verbal nouns, purpose clauses, or complements after verbs like kutumia (“to use”).

Pronunciation tips for tricky parts like changanya and mwiko?

cha in changanya = “cha” as in “charm.”
ng in changanya is [ŋg] (like “finger,” not like “sing”); syllabify roughly cha-NGAN-ya.
ny in changanya is a palatal [ɲ], like “ñ” in Spanish “niño.”
mw in mwiko is pronounced with a brief w-glide: MWI-ko.
huu is two syllables: hu-u.

Can changanya also mean “to confuse”?

Yes. changanya can mean “mix” or “confuse.” Context disambiguates. Examples:

Mix: Tunachanganya wali.
Confuse: Umenichanganya. (“You’ve confused me.”)

Is there a way to say “mix into/for” with this verb?

Use the applicative suffix -ia/-ea: changanyia. It adds a beneficiary/location/content nuance.

Tumewachanganyia watoto wali. (“We mixed rice for the children.”)
Amechanganyia mboga kwenye wali. (“She mixed vegetables into the rice.”)

How do I say “that spoon is long” (not near me)?

Use the distal demonstrative for Class 3:

Mwiko ule ni mrefu. Three-way distance for Class 3: huu (this, near speaker), huo (that, near listener/medial), ule (that over there/distal).

How do I negate these sentences?

Verb clause: Hatutumii mwiko huu kuchanganya wali. (“We don’t use this spoon to mix rice.”) Negation: ha- … -i in the present.
Copula clause: Mwiko huu si mrefu. (“This spoon is not long.”) Negative of ni is si.

Is there any cultural/lexical pitfall with mwiko?

Yes: outside the kitchen context, mwiko commonly means “taboo/prohibition.” So be aware of context to avoid ambiguity. In cooking contexts, it’s clearly the utensil.