Learn Hardcore Swahili: Baba hunifundisha kuandika matumizi yangu ya pesa katika daftari kila wiki. - Father teaches me to write my money expenses in a notebook every week.

So literally: hu-ni-fundish-a = “(he) usually-me-teach(es)”.
The subject “Dad” is expressed by the separate noun Baba, so no subject prefix appears in the verb when hu- is used.

Why is the object “me” written inside the verb as -ni- instead of as a separate word?

Swahili typically puts object pronouns inside the verb as object prefixes.

ni = “me”
hunifundisha = “(he) usually teaches me”

You could say Baba hufundisha mimi and people would understand, but it sounds less natural in this kind of sentence.
The most natural way is to put the object pronoun inside the verb: hunifundisha.

So:

ni as a separate word = “I / me” (full pronoun, often used for emphasis)
-ni- inside the verb = “me” as a normal object, no extra emphasis

Could I say Baba ananifundisha instead of Baba hunifundisha? What difference does it make?

Yes, you can say both, but the meaning is slightly different:

Baba hunifundisha…
– “Dad usually/always teaches me…” (habit, routine)
Baba ananifundisha…
– “Dad is teaching me…” or “Dad teaches me (these days)…”
– more like a present / ongoing action, not specifically habitual

So hu- focuses on something that is regular or characteristic, while ana- is just the present tense without that strong habitual sense.

Why do we use kuandika here? Is ku- like “to” in English?

kuandika is the infinitive form of the verb andika (“write”).

In Swahili, the infinitive is made by putting ku- in front of the verb root:

kuandika = “to write”
kusoma = “to read”
kucheza = “to play”

After verbs like fundisha (“to teach”), penda (“to like”), taka (“to want”), you normally use the infinitive:

Baba hunifundisha kuandika… = “Dad teaches me to write…”

So yes, ku- here works much like English “to” before a verb.

What exactly does matumizi mean, and how does it relate to the verb kutumia?

matumizi is a noun meaning things like:

“use”, “usage”
“expenditure”, “spending” (especially with money)

It comes from the verb kutumia = “to use, to spend (money)”.
Swahili often forms nouns from verbs like this:

kutumia → matumizi (“use, usage, expenditures”)
kula (“to eat”) → chakula (“food”)

In this sentence, matumizi yangu ya pesa means “my use of money / my spending of money”, so matumizi is “spending” or “expenditures”.

Why is it matumizi yangu and not yangu matumizi?

In Swahili, possessive words (my, your, his, etc.) usually come after the noun they describe:

mtoto wangu = my child
kitabu changu = my book
matumizi yangu = my expenses / my use

So the order is:

[noun] + [possessive]

not:

[possessive] + [noun] (as in English “my expenses”)

That’s why you say matumizi yangu, not yangu matumizi.

Why is the linking word ya used in matumizi yangu ya pesa?

The word ya links two nouns and often translates as “of”:

matumizi yangu ya pesa
= “my use of money” / “my money spending”

In Swahili, this linking word must agree with the noun class of the first noun:

matumizi is a class 6 “ma-” noun
the class 6 linking word is ya

So:

matumizi ya pesa – “use of money”
vitabu vya Kiswahili – “books of Swahili / Swahili books”
gari la baba – “car of dad / dad’s car”

Here, ya is the correct form because it agrees with matumizi.

Could we say matumizi ya pesa yangu instead of matumizi yangu ya pesa? Would that change the meaning?

Both are possible, but they focus slightly differently:

matumizi yangu ya pesa
- literally: “my use of money”
- the possessive yangu is directly tied to matumizi
- emphasis: my spending / my pattern of use, and that use happens to be of money
matumizi ya pesa yangu
- literally: “use of my money”
- possessive yangu is tied to pesa
- emphasis: it is my money that is being used

In everyday speech, people often say matumizi yangu ya pesa when they mean “my spending of money”.
Matumizi ya pesa yangu is more like stressing that the money itself belongs to you.

What is the role of katika in katika daftari, and could we use kwenye instead?

katika is a preposition meaning “in, inside, within”:

katika daftari = “in the notebook / in a notebook”

You can usually replace katika with kwenye without changing the meaning much:

kwenye daftari – also “in the notebook”

Differences:

katika is a little more formal / neutral.
kwenye is very common in everyday speech, sometimes feels slightly more colloquial.

In this sentence, both katika daftari and kwenye daftari would be understood as “in a notebook”.

Why is there no word for “a” or “the” before baba and daftari?

Swahili does not have separate words for “a” or “the” like English does.

Nouns like baba and daftari can mean:

baba → “father”, “a father”, “the father”, often understood as “my father” from context
daftari → “notebook”, “a notebook”, “the notebook”

The exact meaning (“a” vs “the” vs “my”) comes from context, not from articles.
In this sentence, Baba naturally means “Dad / my father”, and daftari is just “a notebook/the notebook” as fits the situation.

Why is wiki singular in kila wiki, even though the meaning is “every week”?

The word kila means “every / each”, and in Swahili:

kila is always followed by a singular noun.

Examples:

kila wiki = every week (literally “every week [singular]”)
kila siku = every day
kila mtu = every person

So you do not say kila wiki with a plural form; the singular is the correct and only form here.

Does baba always mean “my father”, or can it mean “a father” in general?

baba literally means “father”, but its exact sense depends on context:

As a subject without possessive (like in this sentence):
Baba hunifundisha…
– normally understood as “(My) Dad teaches me…”
With a possessive:
baba yangu = my father
baba yako = your father
In general / generic use (less common in simple sentences like this):
it can mean “a father” or “father” as a role, especially in explanations or titles.

In ordinary conversation, Baba on its own usually refers to “Dad / my father” when the speaker is talking about their own father.