Learn Hardcore Swahili: Je, unataka kununua kitabu kipi sokoni? - Which book do you want to buy at the market?

It’s especially common in yes/no questions:
- Je, unataka chai? – Do you want tea?
In your sentence, it just highlights that the sentence is a question.

You can leave it out and still be correct:

Unataka kununua kitabu kipi sokoni?
This is perfectly natural. Je just makes the question a bit clearer or more formal, especially in writing.

Why is there no separate word for “you” in the sentence?

Swahili usually doesn’t use separate subject pronouns like English does, because the subject is built into the verb.

unataka breaks down as:
- u- = you (singular)
- -na- = present tense marker (am/are/is …ing or do/does)
- -taka = want

So unataka already means “you want”.
Adding wewe (you) in front is possible but usually only for emphasis:

Wewe unataka kununua kitabu kipi sokoni? – You, which book do you want to buy at the market?

What exactly does unataka mean, and why does it look like one word?

Unataka is a conjugated verb meaning “you want” (singular).

Morphologically:

u- = subject prefix “you” (singular)
-na- = present tense marker
-taka = verb root “want”

So:

unataka = you (are) want(ing) → you want

In Swahili, all these pieces are written together as one word, but they correspond to several parts in English.

Why is it kununua and not just nunua?

Nunua is the basic verb root meaning “buy”.
Kununua is the infinitive form meaning “to buy”.

ku-
- nunua → kununua = to buy

After taka (to want), you usually use the infinitive:

unataka kununua = you want to buy

If you just say nunua!, that’s an imperative:

Nunua kitabu! – Buy a book! (a command)

Why are there two verbs together: unataka kununua?

This structure is very similar to English “want to buy”.

Main verb: taka – to want
Complement verb (infinitive): kununua – to buy

So:

unataka kununua = you want to buy

Swahili commonly uses a conjugated verb followed by an infinitive:

Ninapenda kusoma. – I like to read.
Anajaribu kuandika. – He/She is trying to write.

What does kitabu mean, and how do I say it in the plural?

Kitabu means “book”.

It belongs to the ki-/vi- noun class:

Singular: ki-tabu → kitabu – book
Plural: vi-tabu → vitabu – books

So you can say:

Ninataka kununua kitabu. – I want to buy a book.
Ninataka kununua vitabu. – I want to buy books.

What does kipi mean, and how is it different from gani?

Both kipi and gani can be translated as “which” or sometimes “what kind of”, but they behave slightly differently.

kipi
- It agrees with the noun class of the noun it modifies.
- For kitabu (class ki-/vi-), you use kipi.
- kitabu kipi = which book (out of specific options)
gani
- It does not change form with different noun classes.
- It can be used more generally for “which/what kind of”:
  - kitabu gani – which book / what kind of book
  - vitabu gani – which books / what kind of books

In this sentence, you could also say:

Unataka kununua kitabu gani sokoni?
This is very common and natural. Kitabu kipi might feel a bit more like “which one (of these)?”

Why does kipi come after kitabu instead of before it, like in English “which book”?

In Swahili, descriptive words usually follow the noun they describe, not precede it.

Pattern:
[noun] + [describing word]

Examples:

mtu mzuri – good person (literally: person good)
gari jipya – new car (literally: car new)
kitabu kipi – which book (literally: book which)

So kitabu kipi is the normal order:

noun (kitabu) first
question word agreeing with it (kipi) after

What does sokoni mean, and what is the -ni ending?

Soko means “market”.

When you add -ni to certain nouns, it often gives a locative meaning: in/at/on/to that place.

soko → sokoni = at the market / in the market / to the market

So in your sentence:

kitabu kipi sokoni ≈ which book (at) the market

Similar patterns:

nyumba (house) → nyumbani (at home / to home)
shule (school) → shuleni (at school / to school)

You can also say:

kwenye soko – at the market
But sokoni is shorter and very common.

Does sokoni always go at the end, or can its position change?

Sokoni does not have to be at the very end, but putting location at the end is very common and sounds natural.

Your sentence:

Je, unataka kununua kitabu kipi sokoni?
(…which book at the market?)

Other possible word orders:

Je, sokoni unataka kununua kitabu kipi?
Je, unataka kununua sokoni kitabu kipi? (less common / a bit awkward)

Most natural:

Place words like sokoni usually come near the end, after the object:
- Unataka kununua kitabu kipi sokoni?

How would I make this question more polite or softer in Swahili?

Using taka (to want) can sound quite direct, especially in some contexts. To sound more polite or softer, speakers often use penda (to like) or conditional forms.

For example:

Ungependa kununua kitabu gani sokoni?
Which book would you like to buy at the market? (softer, more polite)
Ungependa kununua kitabu kipi sokoni?
Same structure, just using kipi instead of gani.

In ordinary friendly conversation, your original:

Unataka kununua kitabu kipi sokoni?
is still fine and not rude; context and tone matter a lot.

How might someone answer this question in a natural way?

Since the question is asking “Which book do you want to buy at the market?”, a natural answer will typically:

Confirm the desire (optional).
Name the specific book or type of book.

Examples:

Ninataka kununua kitabu cha historia.
I want to buy a history book.
Ninataka kununua kitabu cha Kiswahili.
I want to buy a Swahili book.
Ninataka kununua “kitabu hiki.” (while pointing)
I want to buy this book.

If you don’t want any book:

Sitaki kununua kitabu chochote sokoni.
I don’t want to buy any book at the market.