Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mimi sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema.

The verb sipendi already contains the subject: si- = “I (1st person singular) + negative present”.
So you can perfectly well say: Sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema.

Adding Mimi puts extra emphasis on the subject, a bit like:

Mimi sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema.
→ “Me, I don’t like leaving my job early.”

You use Mimi:

for emphasis or contrast (e.g. “I don’t like it, but others do”)
when you really want to highlight the “I”.

In normal, neutral speech, Sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema is enough and very natural.

How is sipendi formed from the verb kupenda? What is happening with the negation?

Start with the infinitive kupenda (“to like / to love”).

Present affirmative (long form):

ninapenda = I like / I love

Colloquial shorter form:

napenda

Present negative (what we have in the sentence):

Subject prefix ni- (“I”) changes to negative si-
The -na- present marker disappears
The final -a of the stem changes to -i

So:

ni
- -na-
  - penda → ninapenda (“I like”)
si
- (no -na-) + pendi → sipendi (“I don’t like”)

This pattern (negative prefix + final -i) is standard for many present-tense negatives in Swahili.

Why is it kuacha and not just acha? Where is the English “to” in “to leave”?

In Swahili, the “to” of an English infinitive (to leave, to eat, to go) is normally expressed by ku- in front of the verb stem:

kuacha – to leave / to stop
kula – to eat
kuenda / kwenda – to go

When one verb is the object of another (like “like to leave”, “want to go”, “start to work”), Swahili usually uses this ku- infinitive:

sipendi kuacha… – “I don’t like to leave…”
nataka kuenda – “I want to go”
alianza kufanya kazi – “he/she started to work”

So kuacha is simply the infinitive “to leave/to stop”. There is no separate word for “to” here; ku- does that job.

What exactly does kuacha mean here? Is it “to leave”, “to stop”, or “to quit (my job)”?

Kuacha is a flexible verb. Common meanings include:

to leave (something/someone behind)
to stop doing something
to abandon / to give up
to quit

In Mimi sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema, there are two main possible readings:

“I don’t like leaving work early (in the day).”
- kuacha kazi yangu mapema ≈ “to stop my work / leave my job early (that day).”
“I don’t like quitting my job early (e.g. too soon in life or too soon after starting).”
- kuacha kazi is also a common way to say “to quit one’s job (permanently).”

However, with mapema (“early” in the sense of earlier than the normal finishing time), most listeners will naturally think of leaving work earlier than usual that day, not necessarily quitting permanently.

If you specifically mean “to depart from the workplace early (today)”, many speakers might also say:

sipendi kuondoka kazini mapema – “I don’t like leaving work (the workplace) early.”

Why is it kazi yangu and not yangu kazi? How does possession work here?

In Swahili, possessive adjectives (my, your, his, etc.) normally come after the noun they modify.

kazi yangu – my work / job
kitabu changu – my book
rafiki yangu – my friend

So the pattern is:

[Noun] + [Possessive]

You almost never say yangu kazi in normal prose—it would sound wrong or at best poetic/marked.

So kazi yangu is the standard and correct order for “my job / my work”.

Why is the possessive yangu and not something like wangu or changu?

The form of “my” depends on the noun class of the noun:

mtoto wangu (class 1) – my child
kitabu changu (class 7) – my book
kazi yangu (class 9) – my work/job

Kazi belongs to noun class 9 (which often has no visible prefix). For class 9 nouns, the possessive “my” is yangu.

So:

kazi yangu = “my work / my job”
nyumba yangu = “my house”
safari yangu = “my journey”

The initial y- of yangu agrees with the class of kazi.

Do we have to say yangu? Could we just say Sipendi kuacha kazi mapema?

You can drop yangu:

Sipendi kuacha kazi mapema.

This would usually still be understood as “I don’t like leaving work early”, especially in a context where you’re clearly talking about your own work.

Differences in feel:

kazi yangu – clearly “my” job; a bit more explicit and personal.
kazi – “work / a job / the job”; context may imply it’s yours, but it’s less specific.

Both are grammatically fine; including yangu just makes the ownership explicit.

What is mapema exactly? Is it an adjective or an adverb, and why is there no preposition like “at” or “in” before it?

Mapema is used as an adverb meaning “early” (earlier than expected, earlier in the day, etc.):

Nimefika mapema. – I arrived early.
Leo nitamaliza kazi mapema. – Today I’ll finish work early.

You don’t use a preposition like “at” or “in” before mapema. It simply follows the verb (or verb + object):

kuacha kazi yangu mapema – “to leave my job early”
kuondoka nyumbani mapema – “to leave home early”

It’s about time, not “early” in the sense of “early version/early stage”; for those, you’d use other expressions (e.g. awali, mwanzo, etc., depending on context).

Can I move mapema earlier in the sentence, like Sipendi kuacha mapema kazi yangu?

The usual, most natural order is:

Verb + (object) + adverb
kuacha kazi yangu mapema

where:

kuacha = verb
kazi yangu = object
mapema = adverb of time

✅ Natural:

Sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema.

You can also front the time element for emphasis:

✅ Also acceptable, with emphasis on “early”:

Mapema sipendi kuacha kazi yangu. – “As for early, I don’t like leaving my job (then).”

But this is not natural:

❌ Sipendi kuacha mapema kazi yangu.

Here the adverb mapema is splitting the verb from its direct object (kazi yangu), which sounds wrong in Swahili. The object normally stays right next to its verb unless you’re doing something special with word order (topicalisation, focus, etc.), and even then there are specific patterns.

Does sipendi mean a general habit (“I don’t like doing that in general”) or just “I don’t like it this time”?

Sipendi most naturally expresses a general attitude or habit:

Sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema.
→ “I don’t (generally) like leaving my job early.”

It can also be used in a specific situation, but the default reading is more general.

Some related forms:

Ninapenda kuacha kazi yangu mapema. – I like leaving my job early.
Sikupenda kuacha kazi yangu mapema. – I didn’t like leaving my job early (that time / in the past).
Sitapenda kuacha kazi yangu mapema. – I will not like / I won’t enjoy leaving my job early (in the future).

So sipendi is present tense negative and usually implies a standing preference, not just a single event.

What’s the difference between sipendi and sitaki here? How would I say “I don’t want to leave my job early”?

sipendi = “I don’t like / I don’t enjoy / I’m not fond of”
sitaki = “I don’t want”

So:

Sipendi kuacha kazi yangu mapema.
→ “I don’t like leaving my job early.” (personal preference, feeling)
Sitaki kuacha kazi yangu mapema.
→ “I don’t want to leave my job early.” (a stronger refusal or decision)

You can choose based on what you mean:

Preference/dislike → sipendi
Will/decision → sitaki

Both take the ku- infinitive after them:

sipendi kuacha… – I don’t like to leave…
sitaki kuacha… – I don’t want to leave…