Learn Hardcore Swahili: Tafadhali uniletee maji sasa; baadaye nitaletea wageni kahawa. - Please bring me water now; later I will bring coffee to the guests.

u- = subject marker “you (singular)”
-ni- = object marker “me”
-letee = subjunctive of letea “bring for” So u-ni-letee literally means “you bring-for me” (in a polite/subjunctive request form).

Why is it uniletee and not niletee?

niletee is the plain imperative: “bring (for) me.” It’s direct.
uniletee uses the subjunctive with a subject marker and often sounds more polite or less abrupt, especially with tafadhali “please.” Both are correct; the sentence chooses the more deferential tone.

Is uniletee a subjunctive?

Yes. The final -e on -letee marks the subjunctive, and the presence of the subject marker u- (“you”) is typical of a polite request in Swahili: (tafadhali) u…e. You’ll often hear requests like Uje hapa, Unisaidie, Ukae, etc.

Why does letea become letee here?

In the imperative/subjunctive, the final -a of many verbs changes to -e. For letea (“bring for”), replacing the final -a with -e gives letee. That’s why you see uniletee in the request, but nitaletea (with final -a) in the future tense clause.

Could I say Tafadhali nilete maji instead of Tafadhali uniletee maji?

No. nilete is from leta (“bring”) and with ni- as the object marker it would literally mean “bring me (as an object),” which is wrong for “bring me water.” To express “bring me water,” Swahili uses the applicative letea: (tafadhali) niletee maji or (tafadhali) uniletee maji.

What’s the difference between leta and letea?

leta = “bring (something).” Focus is on the thing being brought.
letea = “bring (something) for/to (someone).” The applicative -ea adds a beneficiary/recipient. Examples: Lete maji “Bring water.” vs Niletee maji “Bring me water.”

How is nitaletea formed?

ni- = subject “I”
-ta- = future tense
-letea = “bring for” So ni-ta-letea means “I will bring (for).”

Can I add an object marker for “the guests” in the second clause?

Yes. Since “guests” are class 2, the object marker is wa. You can say:

Nitawaletea wageni kahawa (with both object marker and noun, more emphatic/topical)
or just Nitaletea wageni kahawa (as in the sentence), which is perfectly normal.
If you drop the noun, keep the object marker: Nitawaletea kahawa = “I will bring them coffee.”

Is the word order nitaletea wageni kahawa fixed?

Typical order with the applicative is: Verb + Beneficiary + Theme. So nitaletea wageni kahawa sounds most natural. nitaletea kahawa wageni can occur but is less common and may sound marked or focus-shifted.

Why is wageni used, and what’s the singular?

Wageni is the plural “guests” (class 2). The singular is mgeni (class 1) “guest.” Pair: mgeni/wageni.

Is maji plural? How does that affect the sentence?

Maji (“water”) is a mass noun in class 6 and is grammatically plural in form but usually treated as uncountable. You don’t need any agreement with it here because there’s no adjective or verb agreeing with maji in the sentence.

What noun class is kahawa, and does it have a plural?

Kahawa (“coffee”) is class 9 and commonly used as a mass noun; it typically has no plural in everyday use. It behaves like many class 9 liquids/foods that are uncountable.

Is there a nuance difference between sasa and sasa hivi?

Both mean “now,” but sasa hivi often feels like “right now/this very moment,” a bit stronger. sasa can be “now/at the moment” without the extra urgency.

What’s the difference between baadaye and baada ya?

baadaye = adverb “later/afterwards.”
baada ya = preposition “after (something),” e.g., baada ya chakula “after the meal.”
Here baadaye stands alone to mean “later.”

Do I need tafadhali to be polite? Are there other polite options?

Tafadhali helps, but you can also use:

Naomba uniletee maji sasa (“I request that you bring me water now.”)
Tafadhali, unaweza kuniletea maji sasa? (“Please, can you bring me water now?”)
Using the subjunctive with a subject marker already softens the tone: Uniletee maji, tafadhali.

How do I make the negative forms for these clauses?

Negative request (2sg): Usiniletee maji sasa (“Don’t bring me water now.”)
Negative future (1sg): Sitaletea wageni kahawa (“I will not bring the guests coffee.”)
For 2nd person plural: Msiniletee maji sasa (“Don’t you all bring me water now.”) and Hatutaletea wageni kahawa (“We won’t bring the guests coffee.”)