Mimi ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.

I breathe deeply before the exam.

Breakdown of Mimi ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.

• mimi: I
• kabla ya: before
• mtihani: the exam
• kupumua: to breathe
• kwa kina: deeply

Questions & Answers about Mimi ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.

Why do we say Mimi ninapumua when Napumua by itself already means “I breathe”?

In Swahili, the subject “I” is already built into the verb ninapumua:

• ni- = I (1st person singular subject marker)
• -na- = present tense marker
• pumua = breathe

So ninapumua literally means “I am/ do breathe.”

The independent pronoun mimi is optional. You add mimi mainly for:

• Emphasis or contrast:
  
  • Mimi ninapumua kwa kina… = Me, I breathe deeply… (as opposed to other people)
• Clarity in a longer conversation, especially if there could be confusion about who is doing the action.

If you just want to say “I breathe deeply before the exam” neutrally, you can say:

• Napumua / Ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.

All of these are grammatically correct:

• Napumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
• Ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
• Mimi napumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
• Mimi ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.

What does the -na- in ninapumua mean? Is it present simple or present continuous?

The -na- in ninapumua is the present tense marker. Together:

• ni- = I
• -na- = present
• pumua = breathe

So ninapumua is a general present tense, and it can cover both:

• Present continuous: I am breathing (right now).
• Present habitual/general: I breathe (usually / generally).

Which one is meant depends on context, not on a different verb form.

In your sentence:

• Mimi ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
  → “I breathe deeply before the exam.”

This is a habitual action (a routine you do whenever you have an exam), but Swahili still uses the same -na- form. English chooses simple present (I breathe) or sometimes “I take deep breaths” depending on style, but Swahili just uses ninapumua.

What exactly does kwa kina mean? Is it literally “deeply”?

Kwa kina literally is:

• kwa = by / with / in (a general preposition used to form adverbs)
• kina = depth

So kwa kina means “with depth”, and idiomatically it becomes:

• “deeply” (for breathing, thinking, analyzing, etc.)
• sometimes “thoroughly / in depth” depending on the verb

In common expressions:

• kupumua kwa kina = to breathe deeply
• kufikiria kwa kina = to think deeply / think in depth
• kuchunguza kwa kina = to investigate thoroughly

So in your sentence, kwa kina functions as an adverbial phrase describing how you breathe: deeply.

Why can’t we just say Mimi ninapumua kina without kwa?

You need the kwa here.

• Kina by itself is a noun meaning “depth”.
• To turn it into an adverbial phrase (“deeply”), Swahili often uses kwa + noun.

So:

• kwa kina = with depth → deeply
• kina alone would sound like you are talking about “a depth” as a thing (an object), not an adverbial description.

Therefore:

• ✅ Mimi ninapumua kwa kina. = I breathe deeply.
• ❌ Mimi ninapumua kina. = ungrammatical / sounds wrong in Swahili.

Why is it kabla ya mtihani and not kabla mtihani or kabla wa mtihani?

Kabla ya is a fixed structure meaning “before (something)”.

Grammatically:

• kabla is originally a noun (class 9/10) meaning the earlier part / front / before.
• To link it to what comes after, you use the associative “of” marker that agrees with kabla itself.
  For class 9/10 nouns, that marker is ya.

So structurally, it’s like saying:

• kabla ya mtihani = the before of the exam → before the exam

That’s why:

• ✅ kabla ya mtihani (correct)
• ❌ kabla mtihani (missing the link “ya”)
• ❌ kabla wa mtihani (wrong agreement; “wa” goes with different noun classes)

Other examples:

• kabla ya chakula = before the meal
• kabla ya safari = before the trip

Can kabla ya mtihani go at the beginning of the sentence, like in English?

Yes. Time expressions are flexible in Swahili word order.

You can say:

• Mimi ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
• Kabla ya mtihani, mimi ninapumua kwa kina.

Both mean essentially the same:

• “I breathe deeply before the exam.”

Putting kabla ya mtihani first can:

• make the time more prominent (“As for before the exam…”)
• sound a bit more like how you might structure a sentence for storytelling or instructions.

But grammatically, both orders are fine.

What does mtihani mean exactly, and what is its plural?

Mtihani is a noun meaning:

• exam, test, assessment (especially academic)
• sometimes trial / ordeal in a more figurative sense

It belongs to the m-/mi- noun class (Class 3/4):

• singular: mtihani = exam
• plural: mitihani = exams

Examples:

• Nina mtihani kesho. = I have an exam tomorrow.
• Mitihani ya mwisho wa mwaka ni migumu. = End-of-year exams are difficult.

What is the dictionary form of ninapumua? How would I look this up?

The form you look up in a dictionary is the infinitive, which in Swahili usually begins with ku-.

For ninapumua, the base verb is:

• kupumua = to breathe

Breakdown of ninapumua:

• ni- = I
• -na- = present
• pumua = breathe (verb root)

So if you want to look up this verb, search for kupumua in a Swahili dictionary.

How would I say “I breathed deeply before the exam” and “I will breathe deeply before the exam”?

Using the verb kupumua (to breathe):

1. Past tense (“I breathed deeply before the exam”)

Use the past marker -li-:

• Nilipumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
  
  • ni- = I
  • -li- = past
  • pumua = breathe

If you want to emphasize that you had taken deep breaths in preparation (like “I had taken a deep breath”), you might also hear:

• Nimepumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
  (-me- = present perfect / completed now)

2. Future tense (“I will breathe deeply before the exam”)

Use the future marker -ta-:

• Nitapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
  
  • ni- = I
  • -ta- = future
  • pumua = breathe

So, key patterns:

• ninapumua = I (present) breathe
• nilipumua = I (past) breathed
• nitapumua = I (future) will breathe

What is the difference between kupumua, kupumzika, and kuhema?

They are related but not the same:

• kupumua = to breathe

  • neutral, normal breathing
  • kupumua kwa kina = to breathe deeply

• kupumzika = to rest / take a break

  • not just breathing; general resting, stopping work, relaxing
  • Ninapumzika baada ya kazi. = I rest after work.

• kuhema = to pant / gasp / breathe heavily

  • suggests you are out of breath, breathing hard
  • Alikimbia sana, sasa anahema. = He ran a lot, now he is panting.

In your sentence, ninapumua kwa kina is specifically about deep, controlled breathing, not just resting or gasping.

Is it okay to drop mimi and just say Napumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani in normal conversation?

Yes, and that is very natural.

Because the subject “I” is already included in na- / ni-, you can safely leave mimi out unless you want emphasis.

So in everyday speech, you will commonly hear:

• Napumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.
  or
• Ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani.

Use Mimi ninapumua… when you want to stress “me, specifically” (for example: “Other people panic, but I breathe deeply before exams.”).

How do you pronounce Mimi ninapumua kwa kina kabla ya mtihani?

Approximate pronunciation (hyphens for syllables, stressed syllables in CAPS):

• Mimi → MI-mi (both i like ee in see)
• ninapumua → ni-na-pu-MU-a
• kwa → kwah (like kwa in kwaZulu)
• kina → KEE-na (both vowels as in see and father)
• kabla → KAH-bla
• ya → yah
• mtihani → m-ti-HA-ni
  
  • the m at the start is lightly pronounced, almost like “m-tihani”

Said together, it flows as:

MI-mi ni-na-pu-MU-a kwa KEE-na KAH-bla ya m-ti-HA-ni.