Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mchezaji alikosa goli katika mechi jana. - The player missed a goal in the match yesterday.

kucheza – to play
m- (class 1 human noun prefix) + -chez- (verb stem) + -aji (person-doing-the-action suffix)
→ mchezaji – “one who plays” → player

Plural:

singular: mchezaji – player
plural: wachezaji – players

How is the verb alikosa constructed, and what tense is it?

Alikosa is in the simple past tense and comes from the infinitive kukosa (to miss / to lack / to make a mistake).

Structure:

a- – subject marker: he/she (3rd person singular)
-li- – past tense marker (“did” / “-ed”)
-kosa – verb root “miss / lack / be wrong”

So: a-li-kosa = he/she missed.

Why does alikosa already mean “he/she missed” even though there is no separate word for “he” or “she”?

In Swahili, the subject is built into the verb as a prefix.

a- on alikosa already means he/she.
Because of that, Swahili often doesn’t need a separate yeye (he/she) or a subject pronoun like English.

In this sentence, mchezaji (the player) is the noun being referred to, and a- on alikosa agrees with it. So:

Mchezaji alikosa… = Literally “Player he/she-missed…”, which is how Swahili marks subject agreement.

What exactly does kukosa goli mean in a football context? Is it like “to miss a shot” or “to fail to score”?

In football/soccer language:

kukosa goli usually means to miss a goal / fail to score a goal, often when there was a clear scoring chance.

So alikosa goli suggests:

The player had a good opportunity to score,
but did not score (missed the chance / shot).

Can kukosa also mean “to lose the match” in this sentence?

No. Kukosa by itself does not mean “to lose (a match).”

kukosa goli – to miss / fail to score a goal
To say “lose the match” you’d usually use kupoteza mechi or kushindwa mechi.

So Mchezaji alikosa goli… is about missing a goal, not losing the entire match.

What is goli, and is it the normal word for “goal” in Swahili?

Goli is a loanword from English “goal” and is very common in football talk.

singular: goli – a goal
plural: often magoli (class 5/6 plural)

You’ll also hear bao used for “goal” in football:

bao – goal
mabao – goals

Both goli/magoli and bao/mabao are common; usage can vary by region and speaker.

What does katika mean here, and can I replace it with something else?

Katika is a preposition meaning roughly in / during / at (an event or period).

In this sentence it’s like saying:

“in the match” or “during the match.”

You could often replace it with:

kwenye – in/at/on (very common, slightly more informal in some contexts)

So:

Mchezaji alikosa goli katika mechi jana.
Mchezaji alikosa goli kwenye mechi jana.

Both are acceptable and natural.

Why is there no word for “the” in “the player”, “the goal”, or “the match”?

Swahili does not use articles like “the” or “a/an”.

Definiteness (the vs. a) is understood from:

Context – what has already been mentioned or is obvious
Noun class agreement and word order – which help listeners track which things you mean

So:

mchezaji can mean “a player” or “the player”,
depending on what the speaker and listener already know.
Same with goli (a/the goal) and mechi (a/the match).

What is mechi, and how does its number (singular/plural) work?

Mechi is a loanword from English “match” (as in a sports match).

Number:

Many speakers use mechi for both singular and plural:
- mechi – match
- mechi – matches
Agreement (this/that, numbers, verbs) and context show whether it’s singular or plural.

Example:

mechi moja – one match
mechi mbili – two matches

Is the word order Mchezaji alikosa goli katika mechi jana fixed, or can it change?

Swahili basic word order is SVO (Subject–Verb–Object), like English:

Mchezaji (Subject)
alikosa (Verb)
goli (Object)
katika mechi jana (adverbials: in the match yesterday)

You can move the time expression jana and the prepositional phrase katika mechi around somewhat for emphasis, for example:

Mchezaji jana alikosa goli katika mechi.
Jana mchezaji alikosa goli katika mechi.

All can be correct; the differences are mostly about emphasis and style, not grammar.

Could I say “Alikosa goli katika mechi jana” without mchezaji?

Yes, grammatically you can:

Alikosa goli katika mechi jana. – “He/She missed a goal in the match yesterday.”

Because a- in alikosa already shows “he/she”, the noun mchezaji is not strictly required.

However, you normally include mchezaji if:

you’re introducing who you are talking about, or
there might be confusion about the subject.

How would I make this sentence negative, like “The player did not miss a goal in the match yesterday”?

To make a past-tense negative in Swahili, you:

change the tense marker -li- to -ku- (for most verbs), and
add ha- (negative) before the subject marker.

For a 3rd person singular (he/she):

a-li-kosa – he/she missed
ha-ku-kosa – he/she did not miss

So the full negative sentence:

Mchezaji hakukosa goli katika mechi jana.
→ “The player did not miss a goal in the match yesterday.”

Is jana always “yesterday”, and where can it go in the sentence?

Yes, jana means yesterday.

Position is flexible:

Mchezaji alikosa goli katika mechi jana.
Mchezaji alikosa goli jana katika mechi.
Jana mchezaji alikosa goli katika mechi.

All are acceptable. Typically:

Time words like jana, leo (today), kesho (tomorrow) often appear at the beginning or end of the sentence.

What would change if I used amekosa instead of alikosa, as in Mchezaji amekosa goli katika mechi?

Alikosa and amekosa are both past, but they differ in aspect/feel:

a-li-kosa – simple past, finished in the past, neutral distance
- Often translated as “missed”.
a-me-kosa – present perfect, connected to the present, often recent or with present relevance
- Often translated as “has missed / has failed”.

So:

Mchezaji alikosa goli katika mechi jana.
– He missed a goal in the match yesterday. (simple past fact)
Mchezaji amekosa goli katika mechi leo.
– He has (just) missed a goal in the match today. (feels more immediate/current)