Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mama hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku, na baba huchemsha maji zaidi kwa usalama. - Mother uses a water filter every day, and father boils extra water for safety.

hu- in hutumia and huchemsha is a habitual tense marker. It describes actions that someone does regularly, usually, or as a habit.

Mama hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku
= Mom uses a water filter every day / usually uses a water filter.
baba huchemsha maji zaidi kwa usalama
= Dad (usually) boils more water for safety.

How it differs from ana-:

ana- = present progressive/continuous (action happening now or around now)
- Mama anatumia chujio cha maji
  = Mom is using a water filter (right now / these days).
hu- = habitual (general routine or habit)
- Mama hutumia chujio cha maji
  = Mom (always / usually) uses a water filter.

Also note: when hu- is used, the subject prefix (like a-, wa-, ni-, u-) disappears:

Anatumia → hutumia
Wanachemsha → huchemsha
Natumia → hutumia (still hutumia, the subject is understood from context or a noun like Mama).

If hu- replaces the subject prefix, how do we know who is doing the action in hutumia and huchemsha?

In habitual sentences with hu-, the subject is usually shown by:

A noun before the verb:
- Mama hutumia chujio cha maji
  → Mama is the subject.
- Baba huchemsha maji
  → Baba is the subject.
Or by context (if the subject is already known in the conversation):
- Hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku.
  → He/She uses a water filter every day.
  The he/she must be clear from the previous sentence or situation.

So, hu- tells you the action is habitual, and the noun or context tells you who is doing it.

Could we say Mama anatumia chujio cha maji kila siku instead of Mama hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku? Is it wrong?

It is not wrong, but the feeling is slightly different.

Mama hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku
→ Emphasizes a habit/routine. This is the most natural form when you clearly mean a regular action.
Mama anatumia chujio cha maji kila siku
→ Grammatically OK, and still understandable as uses every day, but:
- It focuses more on what is happening in the present time, not neutral habitual.
- It can sound like: These days, Mom is using a water filter every day (perhaps she started recently).

In many everyday contexts, teachers and books will prefer hu- for clearly habitual actions like kila siku (every day).

What does chujio cha maji literally mean, and why is it cha and not ya?

chujio cha maji literally means “filter of water” → water filter.

Breakdown:

chujio = a filter / strainer (noun class 7: ki-/vi-, but this one has no ki- prefix in the singular form)
cha = associative connector “of” for class 7 nouns
maji = water

In Swahili, when you say “X of Y”, the connector (cha, ya, wa, la, vya etc.) agrees with the first noun (the head), not the second one.

Here:

Head noun: chujio (class 7)
Class 7 associative: cha

So:

chujio cha maji = filter of water → water filter

More examples:

kisu cha mkate = knife of bread → bread knife (kisu = class 7 → cha)
kitabu cha Kiswahili = book of Swahili → Swahili book (kitabu = class 7 → cha)

You would only use ya if the first noun is in a noun class that uses ya, e.g.:

siku ya leo = the day of today → today (siku = class 9/10 → ya)

How does kila siku work? Why is it not kila siku zote or plural?

kila means “every / each” and it is always followed by a singular noun in form, even though the meaning is plural in English.

kila siku = every day (literally: every day [singular])
kila mtu = every person
kila mwanafunzi = every student

You generally do not say kila siku zote; that would be mixing kila (every) with zote (all) in an unnatural way.

If you want “all the days”, you would use siku zote:

Siku zote anatumia chujio = All the time / on all days she uses a filter.

But for the meaning every day, the standard form is kila siku.

What does zaidi mean in maji zaidi, and where does it go in the sentence?

zaidi means more, extra, or in addition.

In baba huchemsha maji zaidi kwa usalama:

maji zaidi = more water / extra water

Position:

zaidi usually comes after the noun it modifies:
- maji zaidi = more water
- chakula zaidi = more food
- pesa zaidi = more money

Other common uses:

zaidi ya = more than
- zaidi ya mara tatu = more than three times
- watoto zaidi ya kumi = more than ten children
With verbs (often at the end):
- Tunasoma zaidi. = We are studying more.
- Nataka kujifunza Kiswahili zaidi. = I want to learn Swahili more / further.

What does kwa usalama mean, and what is the role of kwa here?

kwa usalama means “for safety” or “for the sake of safety”.

kwa is a preposition with several uses. Here it shows reason/purpose or manner.
usalama = safety, security (a noun formed from the root salama = peaceful, safe)

So:

baba huchemsha maji zaidi kwa usalama
≈ Dad boils more water for safety / to be safe.

Other examples of kwa used similarly:

Nafanya hivi kwa tahadhari. = I do this as a precaution.
Alizungumza kwa utulivu. = He/She spoke calmly.
(kwa utulivu = in a calm way)

You could also say:

kwa ajili ya usalama = for the purpose of safety
but kwa usalama is shorter and very natural.

Can na in “…kila siku, na baba huchemsha…” mean “with”, or is it only “and” here?

In this sentence, na means “and” (joining two clauses):

Mama hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku, na baba huchemsha maji zaidi kwa usalama.
= Mom uses a water filter every day, and Dad boils more water for safety.

The word na has two common meanings:

“and” (linking words/phrases/clauses)
- Mama na baba = Mom and Dad
- Anakunywa chai na anakula mkate. = He/She drinks tea and eats bread.
“with”
- Anaenda na mtoto wake. = He/She is going with his/her child.
- Chai na sukari can also be understood as tea with sugar depending on context.

In your sentence, na is clearly the conjunction “and”, not “with”.

What’s the difference between kuchemsha and kuchemka? Why is it huchemsha here?

kuchemka = to boil (by itself)
The liquid boils on its own (intransitive).
- Maji yanachemka. = The water is boiling.
kuchemsha = to boil (something)
You cause something to boil (transitive).
- Anaochemsha maji. = He/She boils water.

In your sentence:

baba huchemsha maji
= Dad is actively boiling the water (he is causing it to boil), so kuchemsha is correct.

If you said:

Maji huchemka haraka. = Water (habitually) boils quickly.

So huchemsha is the habitual form of kuchemsha:

hu- (habitual) + chemsha (boil something) → huchemsha.

Why is it chujio cha maji and not something like maji chujio? Is the word order fixed?

Yes, the normal Swahili order for “X of Y” or a compound noun like water filter is:

[main noun] + [associative “of” + other noun]

So:

chujio cha maji
→ main noun: chujio (filter)
→ associative: cha
→ second noun: maji
= filter of water → water filter

maji chujio is not correct Swahili structure.

More patterns:

gari la mizigo = truck (car of cargo)
sanduku la barua = mailbox (box of letters)
kitabu cha watoto = children’s book (book of children)

The associative connector (like cha, la, ya, wa, vya) must be there to link the two nouns, and the first noun comes before it.

What noun class is chujio, and how does that affect the sentence?

chujio belongs to noun class 7/8 (ki-/vi-), even though it does not show ki- in the singular form.

You can see this from the plural:

singular: chujio = a filter
plural: vichujio = filters

Effects in the sentence:

The associative “of” form:
- Class 7 uses cha for “of”, so:
  - chujio cha maji (not chujio ya maji)
If you referred to it with an adjective or demonstrative:
- chujio chetu = our filter (class 7 agreement)
- chujio kile = that filter (far)
- plural: vichujio vile = those filters

In your one sentence, the most visible effect is the choice of cha in chujio cha maji.

How would you add an object pronoun like “she uses it” with chujio in a habitual sentence?

To add an object marker for “it” referring to chujio (class 7), you use the object marker ki-, even in the habitual form.

Pattern with hu-:

Subject is often shown by a noun (e.g., Mama), hu- marks habitual tense, and the object marker goes between hu- and the verb stem.

For Mama hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku:

Mama hukitumia chujio cha maji kila siku.
= Mom uses it (the filter) every day.

Breakdown:

Mama = Mom
hu- = habitual marker
-ki- = object marker “it” (for class 7 noun chujio)
-tumia = use

So:

hu
- ki
  - tumia → hukkitumia in theory, but in writing and speech it shows as hukkitumia or huki-tumia with double k often simplified in pronunciation; many learners and texts just show huki-.
    In practice you will hear hukitumia clearly enough.

Are Mama and Baba always written with capital letters like in English Mom and Dad?

In Swahili:

mama and baba can be used both as common nouns (a mother, a father) and as titles/names (Mom, Dad).

Capitalization:

In many modern texts, when used like names or titles, people often capitalize them:
- Mama anatumia chujio. = Mom uses a filter.
- Baba huchemsha maji. = Dad boils water.
When talking about any mother or father in general, you might more often see lower-case:
- mama wa mtoto = the child’s mother
- baba yake = his/her father

So, in your sentence, Mama and Baba with capitals are natural if we understand them as Mom and Dad (specific people).

Is there any difference in meaning if I move kila siku earlier, like Kila siku mama hutumia chujio cha maji?

The meaning stays essentially the same: Every day, mom uses a water filter.

Mama hutumia chujio cha maji kila siku.
Kila siku mama hutumia chujio cha maji.

Both are correct and natural.

Small nuance:

Putting kila siku first can give it a slight emphasis: “Every single day, Mom uses a water filter.”
Keeping it at the end is very standard and neutral.

Swahili word order is fairly flexible for time expressions (leo, kesho, jana, kila siku), so both positions work.