Breakdown of Daktari alimchoma Asha sindano; sindano hiyo ilipunguza maumivu.
Questions & Answers about Daktari alimchoma Asha sindano; sindano hiyo ilipunguza maumivu.
It’s a typical agglutinative Swahili verb. Breakdown:
- a- = subject marker (3rd person singular for class 1: he/she; here it agrees with daktari)
- -li- = past tense
- -m- = object marker (him/her; here it refers to Asha)
- chom = verb root (from choma “pierce/burn/stab; inject (with sindano)”)
- -a = final vowel
So a-li-m-chom-a = “he/she past her pierced/injected.”
Using the object marker with a full noun is very common (and often preferred) when the object is a specific, human referent (like a proper name). It adds definiteness/topicality and is standard style.
- Without it: Daktari alichoma Asha sindano — often understood, but less natural to many speakers.
- With it: Daktari alimchoma Asha sindano — sounds natural and respectful of the human object.
It is strictly obligatory if the object is only a pronoun (no noun present) or if the object is fronted before the verb. In other contexts, it’s a strong preference rather than an absolute rule.
That word order is not natural. With “double-object” verbs of this type, the human recipient/affected person typically comes right after the verb, and the thing administered follows:
- Natural: … alimchoma Asha sindano.
- Unnatural/avoided: … alimchoma sindano Asha.
You can also use other common patterns:
- Daktari alimpa Asha sindano. (gave Asha an injection)
- Daktari alimdunga Asha sindano. (pierced/injected Asha with a needle)
- Daktari alimpiga Asha sindano. (colloquial; “piga” is widely used for medical procedures)
No. Choma is broad: “pierce/stab,” “burn/roast,” even “to be stung.” With sindano, it idiomatically means “to give an injection.” Other very common verbs for injections:
- dunga (sindano) = to pierce/inject (often more precise for needles)
- piga (sindano) = to give an injection (very common colloquially)
- For vaccination specifically: chanja (e.g., Daktari alimchanja Asha).
Because the subject of the second clause is sindano, which is a class 9 noun. Class 9 takes the subject marker i- on verbs:
- i- (SM for class 9) + -li- (past) + punguza (reduce) → ilipunguza. Using a- would agree with a class 1 human subject, which is not the case here.
Yes:
- i- = subject marker for class 9 (agreeing with sindano)
- -li- = past tense
- punguza = verb stem “reduce” So: i-li-punguza = “it reduced.”
Swahili has a three-way demonstrative system, and demonstratives agree with noun class 9 (sindano is class 9):
- hii = this (near the speaker)
- hiyo = that (near the listener or previously mentioned/just referred to)
- ile = that (far from both, or more distant in space/time)
Here hiyo points back to the injection just mentioned (anaphoric reference), so it’s the natural choice.
Both orders are possible, but the nuance differs:
- sindano hiyo (post-nominal) typically refers back to a known/mentioned item (“that injection [we just mentioned]”).
- hiyo sindano (pre-nominal) is more deictic/emphatic (“that injection [right there/that specific one]”). In this sentence, the post-nominal form fits the anaphoric reference.
Sindano is class 9 (its plural is also class 10: sindano). Key agreements:
- Subject marker on verbs: i- (e.g., sindano imefika, “the needle has arrived”)
- Demonstratives: hii/hiyo/ile (as seen)
- Possessive “its”: yake (e.g., sindano yake)
Maumivu (“pain/pains”) is class 6 and usually acts like a plural/mass noun:
- Subject marker: ya- (present) / ya- (past with appropriate TAM), e.g., maumivu yamepungua (“the pain has lessened”), maumivu yalipungua (“the pain lessened”).
- Adjectival agreement: maumivu makali (“severe pain”).
In our sentence it’s an object, so we just see it after the verb.
- punguza is transitive: something reduces something else. Here, the injection actively reduced the pain: sindano hiyo ilipunguza maumivu.
- pungua is intransitive: something becomes less on its own: maumivu yalipungua (“the pain decreased”).
Both are correct; the choice depends on whether you want an external cause (the injection) or just the state change.
Yes, it’s used much like in English: to link two closely related independent clauses. You could also write:
- Daktari alimchoma Asha sindano, na sindano hiyo ilipunguza maumivu.
- … kisha sindano hiyo ilipunguza maumivu. The semicolon here is clear and correct.
Absolutely:
- Daktari alimchoma Asha sindano iliyopunguza maumivu. Here iliyo- is the class-9 relative marker agreeing with sindano, meaning “which/that.” So: “The doctor injected Asha with an injection that reduced the pain.”