Afadhali uulize swali mbele ya wote kuliko kunong’ona na jirani yako.

It is better to ask a question in front of everyone than to whisper with your neighbor.

Breakdown of Afadhali uulize swali mbele ya wote kuliko kunong’ona na jirani yako.

• na: with
• yako: your
• kuliko: than
• swali: the question
• jirani: the neighbor
• mbele ya: in front of
• kuuliza: to ask
• kunong'ona: to whisper
• afadhali: better
• wote: everyone

Questions & Answers about Afadhali uulize swali mbele ya wote kuliko kunong’ona na jirani yako.

What does Afadhali mean exactly, and is it different from bora or ni afadhali?

Afadhali is a comparative word meaning roughly “it is better (that)…” or “you’d better…”.

• In this sentence it introduces a preferred option: doing one thing rather than another.
• You can also say Ni afadhali uulize… with ni, and the meaning is basically the same. The ni just makes it sound slightly more “complete” or formal, like saying “It is better that you ask…” rather than “Better you ask…”.
• Bora can often replace afadhali in this kind of sentence:
  
  • Bora uulize swali… = Afadhali uulize swali… (very similar meaning: “It’s better if you ask a question…”).

So here Afadhali sets up the comparison between the two actions in the rest of the sentence.

Why is it uulize and not unauliza or just uliza?

uulize is the subjunctive form of the verb kuuliza (“to ask”) for “you (singular)”.

• uulize = “(that) you ask / you should ask”
• unauliza = “you are asking / you ask (habitually)” (present tense)
• uliza! = “ask!” (imperative command)

In this sentence, the speaker is expressing what you should do, not describing what you are doing, so Swahili uses the subjunctive:

• Afadhali uulize swali… ≈ “Better that you ask a question…” / “You’d better ask a question…”

The subjunctive is very common after words like afadhali, bora, ni vizuri, ni heri, when giving advice or stating what would be preferable.

Why is there no word for “that” after Afadhali? In English I’d say “It’s better that you ask…”.

Swahili normally doesn’t use “that” (like English that) to introduce this kind of clause. The structure is simply:

• Afadhali + [subjunctive clause]

So:

• Afadhali uulize swali… literally: “Better you ask a question…”

You only use words like kwamba or eti (both can translate as “that”) in more specific contexts, and you do not need them here. Putting kwamba in this sentence would sound odd and unnatural:

• ✗ Afadhali kwamba uulize swali… (not how people would say it)

What is the structure of mbele ya wote? Why ya and not some other form?

mbele ya wote breaks down like this:

• mbele – “front” / “in front”
• ya – connective preposition “of” / “belonging to”
• wote – “all” (here: “all (people)”)

Literally: “in front of all (of them)”.

The ya is the usual form of “of” used with words like mbele, chini, juu, ndani, when they act like prepositional nouns:

• mbele ya nyumba – in front of the house
• chini ya meza – under the table
• juu ya mlima – on top of the mountain

So mbele ya wote is grammatically “the front of all (of them)”, understood as “in front of everyone”.

Where does wote come from, and why isn’t there a noun like watu before it?

wote is a form of the word meaning “all” or “everyone / all of them”. It agrees with noun class 1/2 (people):

• mtu mmoja – one person
• watu wote – all people

In mbele ya wote, the noun watu (“people”) is simply understood and left out because it’s obvious from context:

• mbele ya watu wote → mbele ya wote (more compact, very natural)

So wote here means “everyone / all (the people)” without repeating watu.

What does kuliko do in this sentence? Is it always used for “than / rather than”?

kuliko is a comparative word roughly meaning “than” or “rather than”.

In this sentence, it links the preferred action to the less-preferred action:

• Afadhali uulize swali mbele ya wote
• kuliko kunong’ona na jirani yako.

= “It’s better you ask … than whisper with your neighbor.”

Common uses of kuliko:

• Mimi ni mrefu kuliko yeye. – I am taller than him.
• Afadhali niseme ukweli kuliko kudanganya. – I’d better tell the truth than lie.

So yes, kuliko is the normal word for “than / rather than” in comparisons.

Why is kunong’ona in the infinitive (“to whisper”) instead of another subjunctive form like unong’one?

After kuliko, Swahili often uses a verb in the infinitive to talk about the alternative action:

• Afadhali uende kulala kuliko kuangalia TV.
  – It’s better you go to sleep than (to) watch TV.

Here:

• kunong’ona is the infinitive “to whisper”.

The pattern is:

• Afadhali + [subjunctive clause] + kuliko + [infinitive]

You could make both sides full clauses (Afadhali uulize…, kuliko unong’one…), but the infinitive after kuliko is shorter and more natural in this type of advice sentence.

What’s the difference between ng and ng’ in kunong’ona, and how is ng’ pronounced?

In Swahili spelling:

• ng usually represents the sound in English “sing” – a single [ŋ] sound.
• ng’ (with apostrophe) usually represents the sequence [ŋg], like the “ng” in “finger”.

In kunong’ona:

• nong’ is pronounced roughly like “nong-go-na”, with a small g sound after ng.

The apostrophe ’ tells you not to pronounce it like English “song”, but more like “hong-ga” (with the g heard):

• ng (no apostrophe): [ŋ] – nasal only
• ng’ (with apostrophe): [ŋg] – nasal + g

So kunong’ona is koo-nong-goh-nah.

What exactly does jirani mean, and how do you say “neighbors” in plural?

jirani means “neighbor”.

It’s a bit irregular in its noun classes:

• Singular: jirani – neighbor
• Plural: majirani – neighbors

Examples:

• Huyu ni jirani wangu. – This is my neighbor.
• Majirani zetu ni wapole. – Our neighbors are gentle.

In this sentence jirani yako is “your neighbor” (one person), the person sitting next to you.

Why is it jirani yako and not jirani wako?

The possessive for “your” (singular) changes form depending on the noun class. For jirani, the singular is treated as class 9 (like many borrowed nouns), which takes y- in the possessive:

• nyumba yako – your house
• safari yako – your trip
• jirani yako – your neighbor

If you were talking about majirani (plural, class 6), you’d say:

• majirani wako – your neighbors

So:

• Singular: jirani yako
• Plural: majirani wako

How strong or polite is this sentence? Does it sound like a harsh scolding?

The sentence is mildly firm but not rude.

• Afadhali uulize… is advice or gentle correction: “You’d be better off asking…”
• Contrasted with the more direct imperative: Uliza swali mbele ya wote, usinong’one na jirani yako. – “Ask a question in front of everyone, don’t whisper with your neighbor.” (sharper)

So the original wording suggests a teacher-like, corrective tone: pointing out the better behavior, not angrily ordering it.