Breakdown of Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi kwa uwazi darasani.
Questions & Answers about Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi kwa uwazi darasani.
Anafundisha can mean both “is teaching” (present continuous) and “teaches” (habitual present), depending on context.
Morphologically:
- a- = subject prefix for he/she (3rd person singular, noun class 1 – people)
- -na- = present tense marker (incomplete, ongoing, or habitual action)
- -fundish- = verb root teach
- -a = final vowel
So:
- Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi…
= The teacher is teaching the students… (right now)
or
= The teacher teaches the students… (in general, habitually).
Context (e.g. time expressions, previous sentences) tells you which reading is meant.
In Swahili, the subject prefix on the verb is obligatory in normal sentences. The verb almost always carries a subject marker that agrees with the subject noun.
- Mwalimu anafundisha
- Mwalimu = the teacher (full noun)
- a- in anafundisha = “he/she” (refers back to Mwalimu)
This is not felt as “the teacher, he teaches” (redundant) the way it might sound in English. It’s just how Swahili verbal grammar works.
Using Mwalimu fundisha is ungrammatical in standard Swahili (outside of special imperative or heading-like contexts).
They are singular and plural forms of “student”.
- mwanafunzi = a student (singular)
- class 1 noun (person)
- wanafunzi = students (plural)
- class 2 noun (people)
Pattern (very common with people):
- singular: m- / mw- prefix → mwanafunzi
- plural: wa- prefix → wanafunzi
So in the sentence, wanafunzi means “the students” or “students” (context decides definiteness).
No change is needed.
Swahili does not mark gender on nouns or verbs in the way English does.
Mwalimu anafundisha… can mean:
- The (male) teacher is teaching…
- The (female) teacher is teaching…
If you really need to clarify gender, you add extra words such as:
- mwalimu mwanaume – male teacher
- mwalimu mwanamke – female teacher
But the basic sentence stays the same.
Kwa is a preposition that often introduces manner or instrument (how something is done, or with what).
Here, kwa uwazi literally means “with openness” or “in an open/clear way”, which we translate naturally as “clearly / openly”.
Why not just wazi?
- wazi is usually an adjective: mlango wazi = an open door.
- To turn the idea into an abstract noun (“openness/clarity”), Swahili uses u-:
- wazi → uwazi (“openness, clarity”)
- With kwa + noun, you get an adverbial phrase of manner:
- kwa uwazi = with openness / clearly
So the structure is:
- kwa + [abstract noun] → adverbial meaning “in a … way”
- kwa upole = gently (with gentleness)
- kwa ujasiri = bravely (with courage)
- kwa uwazi = clearly/openly (with openness)
Yes, they are closely related.
- wazi = open / clear (adjective)
- e.g. mlango wazi – an open door
- uwazi = openness / clarity (abstract noun)
- e.g. uwazi katika mawasiliano – openness/clarity in communication
Swahili often uses the prefix u- to form abstract nouns from adjectives or other bases:
- safi (clean) → usafi (cleanliness)
- baya (bad) → ubaya (badness)
- wazi (open) → uwazi (openness)
Then, as in this sentence, kwa uwazi uses that noun to describe how the teacher teaches.
The -ni suffix marks a locative (place). It often means “in/at/on” depending on the noun.
- darasa = a classroom / class (as a room or group)
- darasani = in the classroom / in class
So:
- darasa – the noun
- darasani – the place where something happens (inside the classroom / during class)
You could also express location using a separate preposition:
- katika darasa = in the classroom
But darasani is shorter and very common.
Can I change the word order, for example: Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi darasani kwa uwazi?
Yes, that word order is also possible, and it’s still grammatical. Swahili word order is relatively flexible, especially for adverbial phrases like kwa uwazi and darasani.
You might see:
- Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi kwa uwazi darasani.
- Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi darasani kwa uwazi.
Both mean roughly “The teacher teaches the students clearly in the classroom.”
The difference in nuance is minor; the default position for such phrases is usually after the verb + object, and speakers may move them for emphasis or style.
You make both the subject and the verb plural:
- Walimu wanafundisha wanafunzi kwa uwazi darasani.
Changes:
- Mwalimu → Walimu (singular → plural for “teacher(s)”)
- anafundisha → wanafundisha
Verb agreement:
- wa- (in walimu) is the class 2 (plural people) prefix.
- The verb then takes the wa- subject marker in the present:
- wa- + -na- + -fundish- + -a → wanafundisha (“they teach / they are teaching”)
Yes, you can say:
- Mwalimu anawafundisha wanafunzi kwa uwazi darasani.
Here -wa- inside the verb is an object marker referring to wanafunzi (“them” – people):
- a- = he/she (subject)
- -na- = present
- -wa- = them (object marker for people, plural)
- -fundish- = teach
- -a = final vowel
So anawafundisha literally means “he/she is teaching them”.
Difference:
- Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi… – completely normal, the object only appears as the full noun.
- Mwalimu anawafundisha wanafunzi… – the object is doubled (pronoun inside the verb + full noun). This is also grammatical and quite common in natural speech, especially when:
- the object is already known in the context, and
- you want to keep the object clear or emphasize it.
In many cases, either form is acceptable; textbooks often start with the simpler version (no object marker).
Swahili does not use articles like “a/an” and “the”. Nouns are usually bare, and definiteness or indefiniteness is understood from context, or from other markers (like demonstratives).
So:
- Mwalimu anafundisha wanafunzi kwa uwazi darasani.
can be translated depending on context as:
- The teacher teaches the students clearly in the classroom.
- A teacher teaches students clearly in the classroom.
- The teacher is teaching (some) students clearly in the classroom.
English has to choose a / the / some, but Swahili leaves that implicit unless you add words like:
- huyu mwalimu – this teacher
- wale wanafunzi – those students