Leo jioni, marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.

This evening, my friends will come to my place.

Breakdown of Leo jioni, marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.

• rafiki: the friend
• wao: they
• kuja: to come
• wangu: my
• leo jioni: this evening
• kwangu: at my place

Questions & Answers about Leo jioni, marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.

What do Leo and jioni each mean, and why are they put together as Leo jioni?

Leo means today.
jioni means in the evening / evening time.

When you put them together as Leo jioni, it means this evening (today in the evening).

Swahili often uses this pattern:

• leo asubuhi – this morning
• leo mchana – this afternoon
• leo usiku – tonight / this night

You could also say jioni leo, but Leo jioni is more common, natural, and sounds like “this evening” rather than just “evening today.”

Why is there a comma after Leo jioni?

The comma is mostly a writing choice. It shows that Leo jioni is a time expression that comes at the beginning of the sentence:

• Leo jioni, marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.
  This evening, my friends will come to my place.

You can also write it without a comma:

• Leo jioni marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.

In speech, you’d usually make a tiny pause after Leo jioni, and the comma reflects that, but it’s not grammatically required.

What does marafiki wangu mean exactly, and how is it formed?

marafiki wangu means my friends.

• rafiki – friend
• marafiki – friends (plural of rafiki)
• wangu – my (for plural people in noun class 2)

So:

• rafiki wangu – my friend
• marafiki wangu – my friends

The wa- at the start of wangu matches the plural people noun class (marafiki). That’s why it isn’t yangu or zangu here; it’s wangu to agree with marafiki.

Why is it marafiki wangu and not marafiki zangu or marafiki yangu?

Swahili possessive adjectives (-angu, -ako, -ake, etc.) change their first letter to match the noun class.

marafiki is in noun class 2 (plural for people), which uses the wa- pattern.

• class 1 (singular person): rafiki wangu – my friend
• class 2 (plural people): marafiki wangu – my friends

So:

• wangu is correct for marafiki (class 2).
• yangu and zangu belong to different noun classes, so they would be wrong with marafiki.

How is watakuja built, and what does each part mean?

watakuja = wa- + ta- + -kuja

• wa- – subject prefix for they (plural people, noun class 2)
• ta- – future tense marker (will / shall)
• -kuja – verb root come

So watakuja literally means they will come.

In Swahili, tense and subject are attached to the verb as prefixes, not written as separate words. That’s why it’s not written as wata kuja; it’s one word: watakuja.

Can watakuja also mean “they are coming” (like an arranged future), or is it only “they will come”?

The primary meaning of watakuja is they will come (future).

However, in context, especially for a planned or expected future, it can overlap with English they are coming:

• Leo jioni marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.
  Depending on context, this can be translated as:
  • My friends will come to my place this evening.
    or
  • My friends are coming to my place this evening.

Swahili doesn’t distinguish “will” vs “are going to” vs “are coming (future arrangement)” as finely as English. -ta- is the general future.

What does kwangu mean literally? Is it just “to me”?

kwangu comes from:

• kwa – at, to, with (often “at someone’s place / to someone’s place”)
• -angu – my

So kwangu literally means at my (place) or to my (place).

In this sentence:

• watakuja kwangu – they will come to my place / to my home.

It’s not used to mean “to me” in the sense of “towards me as a person” (that would usually be kwangu in some contexts, but more often you’d say kwangu meaning “to my place”, or you’d rephrase the sentence).

What is the difference between kwangu and nyumbani kwangu?

Both can refer to my home / my place, but nyumbani kwangu is more explicit.

• kwangu – to/at my place (implied home or where I stay)
• nyumbani kwangu – at my home (literally “at-the-home mine”)

Examples:

• Leo jioni marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.
  This evening my friends will come to my place.

• Leo jioni marafiki wangu watakuja nyumbani kwangu.
  This evening my friends will come to my home.

In many everyday contexts, kwangu alone is perfectly natural and understood as “to my place / to my home.”

Why is the subject prefix in watakuja “wa-”? How does it relate to marafiki wangu?

The wa- in watakuja agrees with the subject marafiki wangu (my friends).

• marafiki is plural for people → noun class 2.
• Noun class 2 uses wa- as its subject prefix.

So we get:

• marafiki wangu watakuja – my friends will come.

Compare:

• rafiki wangu atakuja – my friend will come.
  
  • Here rafiki is singular (class 1), so the subject prefix is a- (he/she).

Subject prefixes must match the noun class and number of the subject.

Can I change the word order and still be correct, for example: Marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu leo jioni?

Yes, that word order is perfectly correct and very natural:

• Marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu leo jioni.

Swahili is quite flexible with placing time expressions like leo jioni:

• Leo jioni, marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu.
• Marafiki wangu leo jioni watakuja kwangu.
• Marafiki wangu watakuja kwangu leo jioni.

They are all grammatical; the differences are mostly about emphasis and style. Putting Leo jioni first emphasizes the time: “This evening, my friends…”

How would the sentence change if it were just one friend instead of many friends?

You would make marafiki singular (rafiki) and adjust the verb and possessive accordingly:

• Leo jioni, rafiki yangu atakuja kwangu.
  
  • rafiki yangu – my friend
  • atakuja – he/she will come (subject prefix a- for singular person)

Changes:

• marafiki wangu → rafiki yangu
  
  • plural → singular
  • possessive wangu (for class 2) → yangu (for class 1)
• watakuja → atakuja
  
  • wa- (they) → a- (he/she)