Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja.

Every Thursday evening, we usually go through the vocabulary of the whole week together.

Breakdown of Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja.

• sisi: we
• jioni: the evening
• kila: every
• wa: of
• pamoja: together
• wiki: the week
• msamiati: the vocabulary
• kupitia: to go through
• huwa: usually
• Alhamisi: Thursday
• nzima: whole

Questions & Answers about Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja.

What is the role of kila in kila Alhamisi jioni, and why is Alhamisi in the singular?

Kila means every or each.

In kila Alhamisi jioni:

• kila = every
• Alhamisi = Thursday
• jioni = in the evening / evening

So the phrase means every Thursday evening.

In Swahili, kila is followed by a singular noun, even though the meaning is repetitive or plural-like in English. So you say:

• kila siku = every day
• kila Alhamisi = every Thursday
• kila mwanafunzi = every student

You do not make the noun plural after kila.

Why is there a comma after jioni, and does it affect the meaning?

The comma in Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia… mainly shows a pause where a speaker would naturally pause:

• Kila Alhamisi jioni, / sisi huwa tunapitia…

It does not change the grammatical meaning. You could write it without a comma:

• Kila Alhamisi jioni sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati…

Both are correct; the comma is a matter of style and rhythm, not grammar.

Why is sisi (we) used here if the verb already shows the subject?

In Swahili, the subject is usually shown in the verb prefix. In tunapitia:

• tu- = we
• -na- = present/continuous marker
• -pitia = go through

So tunapitia already means we go through.

Adding sisi is therefore optional and is used for:

1. Emphasis:
   
   • sisi tunapitia = we (as opposed to others) go through…
2. Clarity or contrast in context, like:
   • Wao hufanya kazi, sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati.
     They work, but we go through vocabulary.

You could say either:

• Kila Alhamisi jioni, tunapitia msamiati… (normal, neutral)
• Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati… (more emphatic we)

What does huwa do in sisi huwa tunapitia? Is it necessary?

Huwa is often used to express habitual actions: things that usually / generally / always happen.

In sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati…, it suggests:

• We usually / generally / always go through the vocabulary…

About necessity:

• You can say sisi tunapitia msamiati… without huwa.
• Without huwa, it can still be habitual (because of context like kila Alhamisi), but it's more neutral.
• With huwa, the habitual / regular nature is strongly emphasized.

So:

• Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi tunapitia msamiati…
  = Every Thursday evening, we go through the vocabulary.
• Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati…
  = Every Thursday evening, we usually/always go through the vocabulary. (sounds more clearly like a routine)

Why do we have both huwa and tunapitia? Could we say only one of them?

Yes, there are several correct options, each with a slightly different feel.

In the sentence:

• huwa = marks habitual aspect (usually, generally)
• tunapitia = present tense with -na-, usually present/ongoing, often also used for general truths or habits

Common variants:

1. Sisi tunapitia msamiati…
   – simple present; can be understood as habitual from context.

2. Sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati…
   – double marking of habit (both huwa and -na-), very natural in speech; strongly habitual.

3. Sisi hupitia msamiati…
   – here hu- is attached directly to the verb as a habitual tense:
   hu- (habitual) + -pitia = hupitia.
   This is also a standard way to say we usually go through.

So you might hear:

• Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi hupitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja.
  (completely correct and quite compact)

What exactly does tunapitia mean here? Is it physical (go through) or mental (review)?

The verb kupitia literally means to go through / pass through / go via (a place or a thing).

In an abstract or academic context, kupitia (kitu) also means:

• to go through something carefully,
• to review,
• to check,
• to go over.

In tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima, the meaning is:

• we go through / review / go over the vocabulary of the whole week

So it is a mental/review sense, not a physical passing-through.

How does msamiati wa wiki nzima work grammatically?

Breakdown:

• msamiati = vocabulary
• wa = of (agreement with a class 3/4 or 11/10 noun; here it’s just the standard possessive connector)
• wiki = week
• nzima = whole / entire

So msamiati wa wiki nzima = the vocabulary of the whole week.

Structure:

1. Noun 1

   • wa
     • Noun 2
       • Adjective
   • msamiati wa wiki nzima
   • literally: vocabulary of week whole

2. nzima describes wiki, not msamiati:

   • It’s the week that is whole, not the vocabulary.

Why is the adjective nzima used instead of mzima, and how does agreement work here?

The base form in dictionaries is usually -zima, meaning whole / entire / complete.

Swahili adjectives change their prefix depending on the noun class they describe.

• wiki belongs to noun class 9/10 (the N class).
• In class 9/10, many adjectives take the prefix n- (or keep just the bare stem if it begins with a nasal+consonant).

So:

• wiki nzima = whole week
• You don’t say wiki mzima; the correct agreement is nzima with a preceding nasal.

Other examples:

• siku nzima = the whole day
• nguo nzito = heavy clothes (from -zito, heavy)

Can I say msamiati wa wiki yote instead of wa wiki nzima? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say msamiati wa wiki yote, and it is correct.

• yote = all, the whole
• nzima = whole, entire

They are very close in meaning here. Subtle differences:

• wiki nzima often feels a bit like the entire week, from start to finish.
• wiki yote means all the week or the whole week, very similar.

In real usage, both are fine, and most listeners will not feel a strong difference:

• msamiati wa wiki nzima
• msamiati wa wiki yote

Both = the vocabulary of the whole week.

What does pamoja add at the end, and is its position fixed?

Pamoja means together.

In msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja, it tells you how the action is done:
they go through the vocabulary together, not individually.

Position:

• Placing pamoja at the end is very common and natural:
  • … tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja.

You could also say:

• Sisi sote tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja.
  (sote = all of us)
• Tunapitia pamoja msamiati wa wiki nzima.
  (less typical, but understandable; emphasis on together earlier)

Most natural and neutral in this sentence is exactly as given: … msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja.

Is the word order Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia… flexible? Could sisi or the time phrase move?

Yes, Swahili word order is relatively flexible, especially with time expressions and pronouns. All of these are possible:

1. Kila Alhamisi jioni, sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati…
2. Sisi huwa tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja kila Alhamisi jioni.
3. Kila Alhamisi jioni tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja. (without sisi huwa)
4. Tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja kila Alhamisi jioni.

The core is in the verb:

• (sisi) (huwa) tunapitia msamiati wa wiki nzima pamoja

Time expressions (kila Alhamisi jioni) can go:

• at the beginning (very common)
• or at the end (also common)

Adding or removing sisi and huwa mainly changes emphasis, not basic grammar.

Why is Alhamisi capitalized? Is it always capitalized like in English?

Yes, in modern standard Swahili orthography, names of days and months are usually capitalized, similar to English:

• Jumatatu, Jumanne, Jumatano, Alhamisi, Ijumaa, Jumamosi, Jumapili

So Alhamisi is capitalized because it is a proper name of a day of the week.