Learn Hardcore Swahili: Kabla hujapiga makofi, subiri mpaka mwalimu akamilishe hotuba yake. - Before you clap, wait until the teacher has finished her speech.

hu- = negative subject prefix for “you” (singular) in this tense
-ja- = negative perfect marker (the negative counterpart of -me- “have done”)
-piga = verb root “to hit, strike, beat (and in this idiom, to clap)”

Compare:

umepiga makofi = you have clapped
hujapiga makofi = you have not (yet) clapped

So kabla hujapiga makofi literally points to the time when you still haven’t clapped yet.

Why is the negative perfect used after kabla? In English we just say “before you clap,” not “before you have not clapped.”

In Swahili, it is very common (and idiomatic) to use the negative perfect after kabla to express “before doing something,” especially in Standard / textbook Swahili.

The idea:

kabla hujapiga makofi
= “before (the point where) you have clapped”
= “while you still haven’t clapped yet”

So the logic is: “at a time when the action is still not done yet.”

You will see this pattern a lot:

kabla hujaondoka – before you leave (lit. before you have left)
kabla hajafika – before he/she arrives (lit. before he/she has arrived)

It feels slightly different from English logically, but it’s normal Swahili.

Could I also say kabla ya kupiga makofi instead of kabla hujapiga makofi? Are they both correct?

Yes, both are correct and natural, with a small stylistic difference.

Kabla hujapiga makofi…
- Uses a finite verb (hujapiga).
- Feels a bit more “Standard” / formal / textbook-like.
Kabla ya kupiga makofi…
- Uses a verb in -ku- form: kupiga (“to clap”).
- Literally “before the act of clapping.”
- Very common in everyday speech and writing.

In practice:

You can safely use kabla ya kupiga makofi in almost any context.
You should also recognize kabla hujapiga makofi when you see it; it’s a very classic pattern.

Does hujapiga talk to one person or many? How would I say it to more than one person?

In this sentence, hujapiga is 2nd person singular: addressing one person (“you” singular).

Negative perfect forms:

sijapiga – I have not clapped
hujapiga – you (singular) have not clapped
hajapiga – he/she has not clapped
hatujapiga – we have not clapped
hamjapiga – you (plural) have not clapped
hawajapiga – they have not clapped

So for a group, you could say:

Kabla hamjapiga makofi, subirini…
= Before you (all) clap, wait…

Note also:

subiri = imperative (command) to one person
subirini = imperative to more than one person

What does the verb piga literally mean? Why is it used for clapping?

The basic meaning of piga is “to hit / strike / beat.” Swahili uses it in many idiomatic combinations:

kupiga makofi – to clap (literally “to strike hands”)
kupiga simu – to make a phone call
kupiga picha – to take a photo
kupiga kelele – to make noise, shout
kupiga pasi – to iron clothes

So kupiga makofi is the standard idiom meaning “to clap (hands)”.

Why is it makofi (plural) and not a singular form like “kofi”?

Makofi is the plural of kofi, but in the idiom kupiga makofi, the plural is normally used and it means simply “applause / clapping.”

kofi on its own often suggests one hit/slap
- kupiga kofi mtu – to slap someone

In contrast:

kupiga makofi – to clap (as an action, usually more than once, or as applause)

So, for “clap your hands / clap,” you almost always see makofi, not singular kofi.

What is the role of mpaka here, and can I replace it with hadi?

In this sentence, mpaka means “until.”

subiri mpaka… = “wait until…”

Common near-synonyms:

mpaka – very common in speech and writing
hadi – also common; often a bit more formal
mbaka – mainly dialectal / colloquial in some regions

So you can say:

Subiri mpaka mwalimu akamilishe hotuba yake.
Subiri hadi mwalimu akamilishe hotuba yake.

Both are fine and mean “wait until the teacher finishes his/her speech.”

What tense or mood is akamilishe, and why does it end in -e instead of -a?

Akamilishe is in the subjunctive mood.

Structure:

a- = subject prefix for mwalimu (3rd person singular, “he/she”)
kamilish- = verb stem from kamilisha (“to complete / to finish off”)
-e = subjunctive final vowel (instead of the normal -a)

So:

anakamilisha – he/she is completing (indicative)
akamilishe – that he/she may complete / until he/she completes (subjunctive)

After verbs like subiri (“wait”) and conjunctions like mpaka/hadi when talking about a future or not-yet-real action, Swahili often uses the subjunctive:

Subiri mpaka afike. – Wait until he/she arrives.
Subiri mpaka akamilishe hotuba yake. – Wait until he/she completes his/her speech.

Could we use a different verb like kumaliza instead of kamilisha? Would that change the meaning?

Yes, you can use kumaliza instead of kamilisha with almost no change in meaning.

kamilisha = to complete, to bring to perfection/completion
maliza = to finish, to bring to an end

Possible variants:

Subiri mpaka mwalimu amalize hotuba yake.
Subiri mpaka mwalimu akamilishe hotuba yake.

Both mean “wait until the teacher finishes his/her speech.”

Nuance (often very slight, and context-dependent):

kamilisha can feel a bit like “complete properly / fully.”
maliza is the everyday “finish, get done with.”

In everyday conversation, maliza is extremely common.

What exactly does hotuba yake mean, and why do we use yake instead of wake?

Hotuba yake means “his/her speech” (the teacher’s speech).

hotuba – “speech, address” (noun class 9/10)
yake – possessive form for class 9/10
- “his/her”

Swahili possessives must agree with the noun class of what is possessed, not with the possessor:

mwalimu wake – his/her teacher (mwalimu is class 1, so wake)
hotuba yake – his/her speech (hotuba is class 9, so yake)

Other examples:

gari lake – his/her car (gari is class 5, so lake)
nyumba yake – his/her house (nyumba is class 9, so yake)

So yake here agrees with hotuba, not with mwalimu.

Is the word order fixed? Could I put the kabla… part at the end of the sentence instead?

You can move the kabla… clause, as long as the meaning stays clear.

Original:

Kabla hujapiga makofi, subiri mpaka mwalimu akamilishe hotuba yake.

A natural rearrangement:

Subiri mpaka mwalimu akamilishe hotuba yake kabla hujapiga makofi.

Both mean essentially the same thing, though putting kabla… at the start gives it a bit more emphasis (“Before you clap, …”).

In writing, a comma after the initial kabla… clause is normal, just as in English:

Kabla hujapiga makofi, …

Is subiri a polite form? How would I make this sound more polite or address several people?

Subiri is the plain imperative to one person: “Wait.”

For different nuances:

To several people: subirini (Wait, you all)
More polite/softened:
- Tafadhali subiri. – Please wait.
- Subiri kidogo, tafadhali. – Wait a moment, please.
- Naomba usubiri mpaka… – I ask that you wait until…

So you could say more politely:

Kabla hujapiga makofi, tafadhali subiri mpaka mwalimu akamilishe hotuba yake.

Can you give one or two alternative sentences with the same meaning but slightly different wording, so I see the patterns?

Here are a couple of very natural alternatives:

Kabla ya kupiga makofi, subiri hadi mwalimu amalize hotuba yake.
- Uses kabla ya + infinitive
- Uses hadi instead of mpaka
- Uses amalize instead of akamilishe
Usipige makofi hadi mwalimu amalize hotuba yake.
- Uses negative imperative usipige (“don’t clap”)
- Still uses hadi
  - subjunctive amalize

All of these versions express the same core instruction:
Don’t clap yet; wait until the teacher finishes the speech.