Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri.

The clock on the wall is nice.

Breakdown of Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri.

• ni: to be
• nzuri: nice
• ya: of
• ukutani: on the wall
• saa: the clock

Questions & Answers about Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri.

Does saa here mean time, hour, clock, or watch?

In Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri, saa means a clock (specifically a wall clock).

The word saa is very flexible in Swahili:

• Talking about time / o’clock:
  
  • Ni saa tatu. – It’s nine o’clock (in English-style time).
• Talking about an object (a device that shows time):
  • Nina saa mpya. – I have a new watch / clock.
• Talking about hours of duration:
  • Nimesafiri saa mbili. – I have traveled for two hours.

Here, because it’s followed by ya ukutani (of/on the wall), the meaning is clearly a clock that hangs on a wall, i.e. a wall clock.

What exactly does ya ukutani mean, and why ukutani and not ukuta?

• ukuta = wall
• -ni is a locative ending that often means in / at / on.

So:

• ukuta → wall
• ukutani → on the wall / at the wall (as a location)

Then:

• ya = of (the connector of that links two nouns)

So:

• saa ya ukutani = clock of (the) wall-location → naturally understood as the clock on the wall or simply the wall clock.

Using saa ya ukuta would sound more like the wall’s clock in a very literal sense and is less natural; speakers usually use the locative -ni (or kwenye, see below) when they mean on the wall.

What is ya doing in this sentence, and why is it ya and not wa, cha, or la?

ya is the associative or of connector. It links two nouns in a phrase like X of Y.

You choose the form of this connector based on the noun class of the first noun, here saa.

• saa belongs to the 9/10 noun class.
• For this class, the singular associative is ya.

So:

• saa ya ukutani – clock of the wall (location)

Compare with other noun classes:

• mtoto mzuri wa mwalimu – the teacher’s good child (class 1 → wa)
• kitabu cha mwalimu – the teacher’s book (class 7 → cha)
• gari la mwalimu – the teacher’s car (class 5 → la)

Because saa is class 9, ya is the correct associative here: saa ya ukutani.

Where is the in this sentence? How do you say the wall clock versus a wall clock?

Swahili normally has no separate words for the or a/an. The noun saa can mean either:

• a clock / a wall clock, or
• the clock / the wall clock,

depending entirely on context.

To be more specific, Swahili uses demonstratives:

• saa hii – this clock
• saa ile – that clock
• saa ya ukutani hii – this wall clock

But in everyday sentences, Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri can be translated naturally as either:

• The wall clock is nice, or
• A wall clock is nice,

depending on what the situation implies.

What does ni mean here? Is it the same ni as in I am?

In Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri, ni is the copula, essentially is / are / am used to link a subject to a description:

• X ni Y → X is Y / X are Y

Here:

• Saa ya ukutani – the wall clock (subject)
• nzuri – nice / good / beautiful (description)
• ni links them: The wall clock *is nice.*

There are two uses of ni to be aware of:

1. As a standalone copula (as in this sentence):

   • Mimi ni mwalimu. – I am a teacher.
   • Hii ni saa mpya. – This is a new clock.

2. As a subject prefix ni- on verbs:

   • Ninakula. – I am eating. (here ni- means I)

In Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri, it’s the standalone copula (linking verb), not a subject prefix.

Why is it nzuri and not mzuri or zuri? How does nzuri agree with saa?

The descriptive root here is -zuri (good / nice / beautiful).
Adjectives in Swahili often change their prefix to agree with the noun class.

Some common patterns:

• mtoto mzuri – a good child (class 1 → m-
  • zuri)
• vitabu vizuri – good books (class 8 → vi-
  • zuri)
• kitabu kizuri – a good book (class 7 → ki-
  • zuri)
• saa nzuri – a good / nice clock (class 9 → n-
  • zuri → nzuri)

Because saa is class 9, the agreement prefix for many adjectives is n-, and when you add it to zuri, you get nzuri.

So:

• saa nzuri = perfectly correct
• In a full sentence: Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri.

You would not normally say saa mzuri; mzuri agrees with class 1/3 nouns like mtu or mti.

How would I say The wall clocks are nice (plural)?

To make the subject plural, you pluralize saa and adjust the of connector:

• Singular: Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri. – The wall clock is nice.
• Plural: Saa za ukutani ni nzuri. – The wall clocks are nice.

What changes?

1. saa
   
   • Form stays the same, but now it’s understood as plural from context.
2. ya → za
   
   • For class 10 (plural of many class 9 nouns), the associative becomes za.
   • So: saa za ukutani = clocks of (on) the wall.
3. nzuri stays the same
   
   • nzuri is used for both singular and plural with class 9/10.

So the full correct plural sentence is:

• Saa za ukutani ni nzuri.

How would I say The wall clock is not nice?

You negate ni (is/are) with si.

• Affirmative: Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri. – The wall clock is nice.
• Negative: Saa ya ukutani si nzuri. – The wall clock is not nice.

So:

• ni → affirmative is / are
• si → negative is not / are not

You can add emphasis if you like:

• Saa ya ukutani si nzuri kabisa. – The wall clock is not nice at all.

Can I change the word order, like Saa ni nzuri ya ukutani?

No, that word order is not natural.

In Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri:

• Saa ya ukutani forms one complete noun phrase: the clock (that is) on the wall.
• ni nzuri is the predicate: is nice.

Swahili prefers:

• Noun (with its modifiers) together first,
• Then the description or state.

So acceptable patterns are:

• Saa ya ukutani ni nzuri. – standard and natural.
• (Spoken/colloquial, less formal but possible) Saa ya ukutani nzuri. – The wall clock (is) nice with ni omitted.

But splitting the modifier away like this:

• Saa ni nzuri ya ukutani

is either wrong or sounds very odd, because ya ukutani must directly follow saa, the noun it is describing.

How do you pronounce saa and ukutani?

saa

• The aa is two separate vowel beats, not a long single a:
  • sa-a, two syllables.
• Try to clearly say both vowels: sa-a, a bit like saying sa-ah quickly.

ukutani

• Syllables: u-ku-ta-ni (four syllables).
• Stress is normally on the second-to-last syllable in Swahili, so here on ta: u-ku-TA-ni.
• Pronunciation tips:
  • u like oo in food (but shorter).
  • k is always a hard k as in cat.
  • t is clean and dental, like in top.
  • All vowels (u, a, i) are clear and not reduced like in English.

Spoken smoothly: sa-a ya u-ku-TA-ni ni n-ZU-ri.

Could I also say Saa ya kwenye ukuta ni nzuri? What is the difference between ukutani and kwenye ukuta?

Yes, Saa ya kwenye ukuta ni nzuri is grammatical and understandable.

Comparison:

• ukutani

  • Built from ukuta
    • -ni.
  • More compact and very natural in many fixed expressions.
  • saa ya ukutani is a common way to say wall clock.

• kwenye ukuta

  • kwenye is a general preposition meaning in / at / on.
  • kwenye ukuta = on the wall.
  • saa ya kwenye ukuta literally the clock of (that is) on the wall.

Both convey a clock that is on the wall, but saa ya ukutani feels shorter and more idiomatic as a set phrase for wall clock. In everyday speech, you will very often hear ukutani with this kind of meaning.

Does saa ya ukutani always mean a physical wall clock, or could it mean something like the time on the wall?

In normal usage, saa ya ukutani refers to a physical device – a wall clock.

• saa here is understood as an object (a device that shows time), not the abstract concept of time.
• Adding ya ukutani (of/on the wall) makes it clear we are talking about the kind of clock that hangs on a wall.

If you wanted to talk about the time shown on the wall clock, you would usually phrase it differently, for example:

• Saa inayoonyeshwa na saa ya ukutani – the time shown by the wall clock (very explicit), or more simply
• Muda unaoonekana kwenye saa ya ukutani – the time you see on the wall clock.

So in everyday contexts, saa ya ukutani = wall clock as a physical object.