Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mjukuu akimtembelea, bibi huimba nyimbo za utotoni na kucheka naye. - When the grandchild visits her, grandmother sings childhood songs and laughs with her.

Akimtembelea is one Swahili word that corresponds to something like “when/whenever (he/she) visits him/her” in English. It is built from several pieces:

a- = subject marker for he/she (3rd person singular)
-ki- = a tense/aspect marker often used for “when/whenever/if” in subordinate clauses
-m- = object marker for him/her (class for a person)
-tembelea = the verb stem “to visit”

So:

akimtembelea = a-ki-m-tembelea = when/whenever he/she visits him/her

In the sentence, mjukuu (grandchild) is the subject, and bibi (grandmother) is the one being visited. So the idea is: “When the grandchild visits her…”

Is akimtembelea more like “when(ever) the grandchild visits” or “if the grandchild visits”?

It can express both ideas — “when/whenever” and “if” — depending on context.

With -ki- in this kind of clause:

It often means whenever / each time that:
- Mjukuu akimtembelea, bibi huimba…
  = Whenever the grandchild visits, the grandmother sings…
It can also be felt as a mild if:
- If the grandchild visits, the grandmother (typically) sings…

In this sentence, with huimba (habitual) in the second clause, the natural reading is habitual “whenever”, not a doubtful “if”.

What does the prefix hu- in huimba mean, and how is it different from anaimba?

Hu- marks habitual or general actions, without specifying a particular time:

huimba = (he/she) usually sings / tends to sing / sings (as a habit)
anaimba = (he/she) is singing / sings (right now / these days)

So:

Bibi huimba nyimbo za utotoni…
= The grandmother habitually sings childhood songs (whenever that situation happens).

If you said:

Bibi anaimba nyimbo za utotoni
you’d be talking more about what she is doing this time / at this particular moment, not about a general, repeated pattern.

In this sentence, the combination:

Mjukuu akimtembelea, bibi huimba…

naturally means “Whenever the grandchild visits, the grandmother (as a rule) sings…”.

Why does akimtembelea use -ki- instead of something like anapomtembelea?

Both patterns exist, but they have different flavors:

akimtembelea (with -ki-)
- Common with meanings like “when(ever) / if (s)he visits” in conditional or habitual sentences.
- Feels slightly more conditional / event-focused.
anapomtembelea (with -na- … -po-)
- Literally more like “at the time when he/she visits her”.
- Feels more time-focused / “at the moment that…”.

In your sentence, akimtembelea nicely matches the habitual idea expressed by huimba:

Mjukuu akimtembelea, bibi huimba…
= Whenever the grandchild visits, the grandmother sings…

You could say Mjukuu anapomtembelea, bibi huimba…, and it would still be understood, but -ki- is very natural in this type of habitual pattern.

Why is there a comma after Mjukuu akimtembelea?

The comma separates:

The subordinate clause (condition/time):
Mjukuu akimtembelea = When/whenever the grandchild visits…
The main clause (what happens then):
bibi huimba nyimbo za utotoni na kucheka naye = the grandmother sings… and laughs with him/her.

Swahili allows either order:

Mjukuu akimtembelea, bibi huimba… (subordinate clause first)
Bibi huimba… mjukuu akimtembelea. (main clause first; often no comma)

Putting the “when/whenever” clause first and separating it with a comma is a very natural, clear way to show the cause → result or condition → consequence relationship.

Could I reverse the order and say Bibi huimba nyimbo za utotoni na kucheka naye mjukuu akimtembelea?

Yes, that is grammatically possible:

Bibi huimba nyimbo za utotoni na kucheka naye mjukuu akimtembelea.

It would still mean essentially the same thing:
“The grandmother sings childhood songs and laughs with him/her when(ever) the grandchild visits.”

Differences in feel:

Original order (subordinate first):
Mjukuu akimtembelea, bibi huimba…
→ Emphasizes the condition/time (“Whenever the grandchild visits…”).
Reversed order (main first):
Bibi huimba… mjukuu akimtembelea.
→ Starts by telling you the grandmother’s typical action, then later adds when this happens.

Both are correct; the original just foregrounds the “when(ever)” part more clearly.

What does nyimbo za utotoni literally mean, especially the part za utotoni?

Breakdown:

nyimbo = songs (plural)
za = of (agreement form for nyimbo, class 10 → za)
utoto = childhood
utotoni = in (someone’s) childhood
(-ni is a locative suffix, often “in/at/on”)

So nyimbo za utotoni is literally:

songs of (the) childhood / songs from (her) childhood

Compare:

utoto = childhood (as an abstract noun)
utotoni = in childhood / during childhood (locative, time-like sense)

That’s why we translate it more naturally as something like “childhood songs” or “songs from her childhood.”

Is nyimbo singular or plural? What is the singular form?

Nyimbo is plural (class 10). The singular is:

wimbo = a song (class 11)
nyimbo = songs (class 10, plural of wimbo)

So in the sentence:

nyimbo za utotoni = childhood songs (more than one song).

Even though nyimbo starts with ny-, which often marks class 9/10, its singular wimbo shows that it’s an irregular pair (class 11 → 10).

Why is kucheka in the infinitive form after na, instead of something like bibi huimba… na anacheka naye?

In Swahili, once you have a fully conjugated verb, you can often join another action using na + an infinitive (the ku- form) to show a second action by the same subject at the same time.

So:

bibi huimba nyimbo za utotoni na kucheka naye
literally: “the grandmother habitually sings childhood songs and to-laugh with him/her”,
but understood as: “… and (she) laughs with him/her.”

You could say:

Bibi huimba nyimbo za utotoni na anacheka naye.

This is also correct, but:

na kucheka naye is shorter and very natural when listing multiple actions by the same subject.
It reads as a kind of “and (also) laughing with him/her”, tied tightly to the first verb.

So:

huimba … na kucheka = sings … and laughs
huimba … na anacheka = sings … and she laughs (a bit more explicit).

What does naye mean, and how is it different from na yeye?

Naye is basically a contracted form of na yeye:

na = with / and
yeye = he, she, him, her
na yeye → naye

So kucheka naye means:

“to laugh with him/her”

Differences in usage:

naye is more compact and very common in fluent speech and writing.
na yeye is a bit more emphatic or careful/explicit:
- Bibi huimba… na yeye anacheka.
  could mean “and he/she laughs too.”

In this sentence, naye clearly refers back to mjukuu (the grandchild):
“…and (she) laughs with him/her (the grandchild).”

How do we know whether mjukuu means grandson or granddaughter here?

On its own, mjukuu is gender-neutral:

mjukuu = grandchild (could be male or female)

If you need to specify, you add extra words:

mjukuu wa kiume = grandson (male grandchild)
mjukuu wa kike = granddaughter (female grandchild)

In your sentence, without extra information, mjukuu just means “the grandchild”, and context (if any) would tell you if that’s a boy or a girl.

Does bibi always mean “grandmother”, or can it have other meanings?

Bibi most commonly means:

grandmother

But it can also be used in other ways, depending on context and region:

As a polite or slightly old-fashioned “lady / madam”:
- Bibi yule = that lady
In some formal address, similar to “Mrs.” or “Ms.”, often with a name:
- Bibi Fatma = Mrs./Ms. Fatma

In your sentence, because mjukuu (grandchild) is mentioned, bibi is clearly “grandmother.”