Learn Hardcore Swahili: Daraja refu lipo katikati ya mji. - A long bridge is in the middle of the town.

daraja refu liko katikati ya mji – more neutral “is (located) in the middle of the city”
daraja refu lipo katikati ya mji – slightly more specific/definite: “is right there in the middle of the city”

Why is it daraja refu and not something like daraja ndefu?

Because the adjective -refu (“long/tall”) changes form depending on the noun class.

For daraja (class 5), the pattern is:

singular (class 5): daraja refu
plural (class 6): madaraja marefu

Some common patterns for -refu:

m-/wa- (person/animal):
mtu mrefu, watu warefu
m-/mi- (tree, long things):
mti mrefu, miti mirefu
ji-/ma- (things like daraja):
daraja refu, madaraja marefu
N-class (generally nouns without prefix like nyumba, barabara):
nyumba ndefu, barabara ndefu

So daraja ndefu is ungrammatical; with daraja you must use refu.

What’s the difference between lipo, liko, and limekuwepo / limo, etc.? When would I use lipo instead of liko?

The key part is the locative ending:

-po → specific, known, or near location (“right there”)
-ko → more general / neutral location (“somewhere”)
-mo → inside / within something

With class 5 (li-):

lipo – it is (right) there, in that specific place
liko – it is (located), more neutral, “is found”
limo – it is inside something

In practice:

Daraja refu lipo katikati ya mji.
Emphasises that the bridge is right there, in that specific central position.
Daraja refu liko katikati ya mji.
Just states where it is, more neutral.

All are forms of “to be located”, but -po gives a bit more specificity or definiteness about the place.

Is katikati a preposition, a noun, or something else?

Katikati is originally a noun/adverbial form meaning “the middle / the center”.

On its own:
katikati = “(in) the middle”
e.g. Alisimama katikati. – “He/she stood in the middle.”
With ya + noun it works like “the middle of …”:
katikati ya mji = “the middle of the city”

So it behaves like a locative noun that often forms a phrase with ya instead of a preposition in the English sense.

Why is it katikati ya mji, not katikati wa mji?

The connector (ya/wa/cha/la, etc.) must agree with the class of the first noun, which is katikati, not mji.

katikati belongs to the N-class (like nyumba, barabara), which normally takes ya in possessive/“of” constructions.
So the structure is:
katikati (N-class) + ya + mji → “the middle of the city”

If the head noun were in a different class, the connector would change:

mji wa Tanga – “the town of Tanga” (mji, class 3 → wa)
jiji la Dar es Salaam – “the city of Dar es Salaam” (jiji, class 5 → la)

Here, katikati is the controlling noun, so ya is correct.

What does mji mean exactly, and how is it different from jiji?

mji (pl. miji): a town or small city, also “community, settlement”.
jiji (pl. majiji): a large city, a big urban center.

So:

katikati ya mji – in the middle of the town/the city (neutral or smaller)
katikati ya jiji – in the middle of the (big) city

In everyday speech, mji is very common, and context tells you whether to think “town” or “city” in English.

Why doesn’t the Swahili sentence use a word for “the”, like “the long bridge”?

Swahili normally does not use separate words for “a” or “the”. Nouns are usually bare, and definiteness (“a bridge” vs. “the bridge”) is understood from:

context
whether the thing is already known or mentioned
sometimes word order or emphasis

So:

Daraja refu lipo katikati ya mji.
Can mean either:
- “A long bridge is in the middle of the city.” or
- “The long bridge is in the middle of the city.”

English must choose a/the, but Swahili doesn’t mark this directly.

Can refu mean both “long” and “tall”? How do I know which one?

Yes, -refu can mean “long” or “tall”, depending on the noun:

With horizontal things:
barabara ndefu – a long road
meza ndefu – a long table
daraja refu – a long bridge
With vertical things (especially people or buildings):
mtu mrefu – a tall person
jengo refu – a tall building

Context and the nature of the noun tell you whether English should use “long” or “tall.”

Could the word order be changed, like Lipo daraja refu katikati ya mji? Would that still be correct?

Yes, word order in Swahili is somewhat flexible, and you can move parts around for emphasis.

Daraja refu lipo katikati ya mji.
Neutral: “The long bridge is in the middle of the city.”
Lipo daraja refu katikati ya mji.
Emphasis on lipo – something like:
“There is a long bridge in the middle of the city.”
(almost like answering “Is there a long bridge in the middle of the city?”)

The original sentence is the most neutral and natural for stating the fact.

How would the sentence change if we were talking about several long bridges instead of one?

You would make the noun and verb plural, and the adjective would also change:

Singular:
Daraja refu lipo katikati ya mji.
“The long bridge is in the middle of the city.”
Plural:
Madaraja marefu yapo katikati ya mji.
“The long bridges are in the middle of the city.”

Changes:

daraja → madaraja (class 5 → class 6)
refu → marefu (agreement with class 6)
lipo → yapo (subject prefix ya- for class 6 + -po)

Why is the verb lipo and not something like liko if there is no strong emphasis on “right there”?

You could use liko here; both are grammatically correct:

Daraja refu lipo katikati ya mji.
Daraja refu liko katikati ya mji.

The difference is subtle:

lipo: leans a bit more toward “is right there in that (specific) middle part of the city.”
liko: more neutral “is located in the middle of the city.”

In many everyday contexts, speakers might use them almost interchangeably. The choice often reflects personal style and how precise/emphatic they want to be about the location.

Is katikati ya mji the only way to say “in the middle of the city,” or are there alternatives?

The most common and neutral is:

katikati ya mji – in the middle of the town/city

You may also see:

katikati mwa mji – a slightly more literary/formal variant; mwa is an alternative linking form.
kati ya mji – literally “between/in the middle of the town,” often used but can sound a bit less fixed than katikati.

In everyday speech, katikati ya mji is the standard and safest choice.