Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mwanafunzi wa kike anapenda kusoma kitabu darasani. - The female student likes to read a book in the classroom.

mwanafunzi = student/learner (no gender implied)
wa = of (a linking word showing possession or description, agreeing with mwanafunzi)
kike = female (as a gender, not “woman”)

So mwanafunzi wa kike is like saying a student who is female.
If gender doesn’t matter or is obvious from context, you can just say mwanafunzi.

Why is it wa kike and not ya kike or something else?

The connector word (often called the associative or of word) must agree with the noun class of the first noun.

mwanafunzi belongs to the M-/WA- (class 1/2) noun class (people).
For this class, the associative form is wa.

So you get:

mwanafunzi wa kike = a female student
If the head noun were in a different class, the connector would change, e.g.:
kitabu cha Kiswahili = Swahili book (class 7 uses cha)
gari la shule = school car (class 5 uses la)

What is the breakdown of anapenda? How does it mean likes?

anapenda comes from the verb kupenda = to like / to love.

The structure is:

a- = subject prefix for he/she (3rd person singular)
-na- = present tense marker (roughly “is/does/does usually”)
-pend- = root meaning like/love
-a = final vowel that most Swahili verbs end with

So:

anapenda = he/she likes / loves
If the subject were different, the prefix would change:
ninapenda = I like
unapenda = you (singular) like
wanapenda = they like

What does kusoma mean exactly: to read or to study?

kusoma means both to read and to study, depending on context.

Anapenda kusoma vitabu. = She likes to read books.
Anapenda kusoma darasani. = She likes to study in class.

Swahili doesn’t always separate read and study as strictly as English; kusoma covers both ideas.

Why is it anapenda kusoma and not something like anapenda soma?

When one verb follows another verb like “like to read”, the second verb usually appears in its infinitive form with ku-:

anapenda kusoma = she likes to read / to study

You cannot say anapenda soma; the second verb needs the ku-.

Compare:

anataka kula = he/she wants to eat
alijaribu kuandika = he/she tried to write

Why does kitabu appear without a or the? Where is the article?

Swahili has no articles like a, an, the. The noun kitabu just means book. The exact English translation depends on context:

anapenda kusoma kitabu can be translated as:
- she likes to read a book
- she likes to read the book
- she likes reading books (in a generic sense)

Context usually tells you whether it’s specific or general. If you need to be very explicit, you use other words (like kile kitabu = that book, kitabu hicho = that (aforementioned) book).

How would I make mwanafunzi, kitabu, and darasa/darasani plural?

Here are the singular–plural pairs:

mwanafunzi (student) → wanafunzi (students)
- M-/WA- class: m → wa
kitabu (book) → vitabu (books)
- KI-/VI- class: ki → vi
darasa (class, classroom) → madarasa (classes, classrooms)
- LI-/YA- class (often seen as class 5/6): no prefix → ma-

With the locative:

darasani = in class/in the classroom
madarasani = in (the) classes / in the classrooms

What is the difference between darasa and darasani?

darasa = class or classroom (basic noun)
darasani = in class / in the classroom

-ni is a locative suffix that often means in / at / on, depending on the noun:

shule (school) → shuleni (at school)
nyumba (house) → nyumbani (at home)

So darasani packs the idea of in class into one word. You could also say katika darasa, but darasani is shorter and very common.

Where is the word in in the sentence Mwanafunzi wa kike anapenda kusoma kitabu darasani?

The idea of in is inside the word darasani:

darasa = class, classroom
darasa + -ni → darasani = in class / in the classroom

Swahili often uses the -ni ending instead of a separate preposition like in.

Is the word order similar to English in this sentence?

Broadly, yes. The order is:

Mwanafunzi wa kike = the female student (subject)
anapenda = likes (verb)
kusoma kitabu = to read a book (object phrase)
darasani = in class (location)

So you get:
[Subject] [Verb] [Object] [Place]
which matches English: The female student likes to read a book in class.

The main difference comes inside noun phrases:

mwanafunzi wa kike literally = student of female, where English says female student.

If mwanafunzi doesn’t show gender, is mwanafunzi wa kike always necessary to say female student?

Not always.

mwanafunzi by itself is gender-neutral: student.
You add wa kike only if the femaleness is relevant or you want to emphasize it.

In a context where everyone already knows the student is female, speakers often just say mwanafunzi.

Could I say Mwanafunzi wa kike anasoma kitabu darasani instead? How would the meaning change?

Yes, you can say that, but the meaning changes:

anapenda kusoma kitabu darasani
= she likes reading a book in class (habit or preference)
anasoma kitabu darasani
= she is reading a book in class (an action happening now, or a general fact like “she studies a book in class”)

So:

anapenda kusoma = likes to read
anasoma = is reading / reads (no “likes” implied).