Learn Hardcore Swahili: Ukitazama bahari jioni, utaona machweo mazuri. - If you look at the ocean in the evening, you will see beautiful sunsets.

So ukitazama literally means "when/if you look" or "as you look".
It does not need a separate word for if or when; the idea is built into -ki-.

Why is there no separate word for “if/when” like kama or ikiwa?

Swahili often uses the -ki- form instead of a separate “if/when” word:

Ukitazama bahari jioni, utaona…
= If/When you look at the sea in the evening, you will see…

You can say:

Kama ukitazama bahari jioni, utaona…

but here kama is extra and often unnecessary.
General idea:

-ki- alone is common for real, likely situations (when/if you do X, Y happens).
kama is more explicitly if, and is also used for doubtful conditions or comparisons.
You don’t say *ikiwa ukitazama…; that would sound clumsy.

Why is it bahari and not something like “the sea” or “at the sea”?

Swahili usually does not use articles like a / the.
So:

bahari = sea / the sea / the ocean depending on context.

Also, Swahili often does not need a preposition like “at” or “to” where English does.
Here, ukitazama bahari is literally if you look sea, but understood as “if you look at the sea”. The verb kutazama (to look at) already implies the direction, so no extra word like at is needed.

What exactly does jioni mean, and why is there no “in” before it?

Jioni is a time-of-day word meaning roughly “evening / late afternoon / dusk time”.

In Swahili, time expressions like:

asubuhi – in the morning
mchana – in the daytime / afternoon
jioni – in the evening
usiku – at night

often stand by themselves, without a preposition. So:

bahari jioni ≈ the sea in the evening

You don’t normally say *katika jioni or *kwa jioni in this kind of simple time expression.

How is utaona built, and what tense is it?

Utaona is:

u- = you (2nd person singular subject)
-ta- = future tense marker (will)
ona = see

So utaona means “you will see”.
The structure generalizes to:

nitaona – I will see
utaona – you (sg) will see
ataona – he/she will see
tutaona – we will see
mtaona – you (pl) will see
wataona – they will see

What does machweo mean, and is it singular or plural?

Machweo means “sunsets” or the setting of the sun.

Grammatically:

It belongs to the ma- (class 6) noun class.
In practice, machweo is usually treated as a plural or mass noun (similar to “sunset scenes” or “sunsets in general”).
The theoretical singular (chweo) exists in grammar tables but is rarely used in everyday speech.

So utaona machweo = you will see sunsets / the sunset (as a phenomenon).

Why is the adjective mazuri and not something like nzuri?

Swahili adjectives change their prefix to agree with the noun class.

The basic adjective is -zuri (good / beautiful / nice).
Agreement with noun classes:

kitabu kizuri – a good book (ki-/vi- class)
vitabu vizuri – good books
mtu mzuri – a good person (m-/wa- class)
watu wazuri – good people
nyumba nzuri – a nice house/houses (n- class, no visible change)
jicho zuri – a beautiful eye (ji-/ma- class singular)
macho mazuri – beautiful eyes (ma- class plural)

Machweo is in the ma- class, so the matching form is:

machweo mazuri – beautiful sunsets

“machweo nzuri” is sometimes heard, but “machweo mazuri” shows strict class agreement and is preferred in careful language.

What is the role of ma- in machweo and mazuri?

Ma- here does two different but related jobs:

In machweo
- ma- is part of the noun class prefix (class 6).
- It often marks plural or mass/collective nouns:
  - tunda → matunda (fruit → fruits)
  - jicho → macho (eye → eyes)
  - chweo → machweo (sunset → sunsets/setting)
In mazuri
- ma- is the agreement prefix on the adjective -zuri.
- It shows that the adjective is describing a ma-class noun:
  - machweo mazuri – beautiful sunsets
  - matunda mazuri – good/beautiful fruits

So the ma- on the noun and the ma- on the adjective must match.

Can I also say “utaona machweo mazuri ukitazama bahari jioni”?

Yes, that is also correct and natural.

Swahili allows both orders:

Ukitazama bahari jioni, utaona machweo mazuri.
Utaona machweo mazuri ukitazama bahari jioni.

The meaning is the same.
The choice is mostly about emphasis:

Starting with ukitazama… puts more focus on the condition/time: when/if you look…
Starting with utaona… puts more focus on the result: you will see…

Is there any difference between kutazama and kuangalia here?

Both can mean to look (at), to watch, and in this sentence either verb would be understood.

kutazama – often a bit more like to look at / to gaze at / to watch carefully.
kuangalia – more general: to look at, to watch, to check, to inspect.

So:

Ukitazama bahari jioni… – If/when you look at the sea in the evening…
Ukiangalia bahari jioni… – basically the same idea; slightly more general.

In everyday conversation, both are common; kutazama here feels slightly more “poetic” or focused on the act of looking.

Why is there a comma in the middle, and do Swahili conditionals always use a comma?

The comma is just normal punctuation for separating two clauses:

[Ukitazama bahari jioni], [utaona machweo mazuri].

In continuous text, you’d usually put a comma when one clause comes after the other, especially with a conditional or “when”-clause first. But this is a writing convention, not a grammatical marker.

Spoken Swahili uses intonation (a slight pause) in the same place; the comma simply reflects that pause in writing.

Is this sentence natural, and in what context would someone say it?

Yes, it is natural and quite typical, especially in a descriptive or slightly poetic context.

You might hear or use it:

When describing a beautiful place:
“Ukitazama bahari jioni, utaona machweo mazuri.”
(If you look at the sea in the evening, you’ll see beautiful sunsets.)
When recommending a time to go to the beach or a viewpoint.

It sounds neutral–natural: not slangy, not very formal; good for normal conversation or simple written description.