Learn Hardcore Swahili: Tulipomsikia mwalimu akitoa onyo, tulikaa kimya kimya darasani. - When we heard the teacher giving a warning, we sat quietly in class.

tu- = we (subject prefix, 1st person plural)
-li- = past tense marker (did / -ed)
-po- = relative marker for when / where (turns it into a “when we …” clause)
-m- = him/her (object marker, 3rd person singular, for an animate person)
-sikia = verb root hear
final -a = normal verb ending

So tulipomsikia literally means “when we heard him/her”, referring forward to mwalimu (the teacher).

Why is there a -m- (object marker) in tulipomsikia when mwalimu is already mentioned?

The -m- is the object marker meaning him / her. In Swahili you can:

use just a noun: tulisikia mwalimu – we heard the teacher
use just the object marker: tulimsikia – we heard him/her
or use both: tulimsikia mwalimu – literally we heard him, the teacher

Using both is very common and sounds natural. It can add clarity and a slight feeling of emphasis or definiteness (“we heard the teacher (him)”). In this sentence, -m- simply links the hearing action clearly to mwalimu.

What exactly does the -po- in tulipomsikia do?

The -po- is a relative marker that often means “when” (or sometimes “where”).

Compare:

tulimsikia mwalimu – we heard the teacher (simple past statement)
tulipomsikia mwalimu – when we heard the teacher (a “when”-clause)

So -po- turns tulimsikia (we heard him/her) into tulipomsikia (when we heard him/her), which must be followed by another clause, like tulikaa kimya kimya darasani (we stayed very quiet in class).

What is the role of aki- in akitoa?

In akitoa, we have:

a- = he/she (subject)
-ki- = “while / as / when doing …” (a kind of subordinate, continuous marker)
toa = give / issue / take out / remove

So akitoa onyo means “as he was giving a warning / while he was giving a warning”.
It links his ongoing action to the other clause: When we heard the teacher *giving a warning, we stayed quiet…*

If you said alitoa onyo, that would be a simple past: he gave a warning, not emphasizing the ongoing action at that moment.

Why do we use akitoa onyo instead of just alitoa onyo here?

Alitoa onyo = he gave a warning (completed action, plain past).
Akitoa onyo = as/while he was giving a warning (action in progress at that moment).

In the sentence, the idea is: we became/stayed quiet at the time he was issuing the warning. Using -ki- (akitoa) focuses on the simultaneity of the two actions, not just the fact that he gave a warning sometime in the past.

Could we say Tulimsikia mwalimu akitoa onyo… instead of Tulipomsikia…? What would be the difference?

Yes, you could say:

Tulimsikia mwalimu akitoa onyo, tulikaa kimya kimya darasani.

This would mean: We heard the teacher giving a warning, (so) we stayed very quiet in class.

The difference:

Tulimsikia = we heard him (simple past).
Tulipomsikia = when we heard him (with -po-, it explicitly forms a “when” clause).

With tulimsikia, you might add a linking word like wakati (when) or halafu (then) if you want the relationship to be very explicit. With tulipomsikia, the “when” meaning is built into the verb.

What exactly does mwalimu mean here? Just “teacher”, or something more specific?

Mwalimu basically means “teacher”. It can refer to:

a class teacher
any teacher at school
an instructor or trainer in a broader sense

In everyday school contexts, mwalimu usually means the teacher in charge of the class or the one speaking at the moment. The sentence doesn’t force any special nuance beyond “the teacher”.

Does tulikaa mean “we sat” or “we stayed”? How should I understand kukaa?

The verb kukaa can mean several things depending on context:

to sit
to stay / remain
to live / reside (somewhere)

In this sentence:

tulikaa kimya kimya darasani = we stayed very quiet in the classroom

The focus is on remaining in a quiet state, not just the physical act of sitting down. So here “we stayed (very) quiet in class” is a better translation than “we sat quiet”.

Why is kimya repeated: kimya kimya? What does that add?

Repeating a word like this is a common way to add emphasis or intensity in Swahili.

kimya = quiet, silent
kimya kimya = very quietly, completely silent, in utter silence

So tulikaa kimya kimya darasani means “we stayed very quiet / totally silent in the classroom”.
It’s similar to saying “quiet as a mouse” or “dead silent” in English.

Could we say just tulikaa kimya darasani? Would it change the meaning?

Yes, you can say:

Tulikaa kimya darasani. – We stayed quiet in the classroom.

The meaning is correct, but kimya kimya is stronger and more vivid. It suggests really keeping silent, perhaps because of fear, respect, or seriousness. Using a single kimya is a bit more neutral.

What does darasani literally mean, and what does the -ni ending do?

Darasani comes from:

darasa = classroom, class (as a place or a teaching session)
-ni = locative ending, often meaning in / at / on

So darasani literally means “in/at the classroom” or simply “in class”.
The -ni ending is a common way in Swahili to say that something happens in/at a particular place (e.g. nyumbani = at home, shuleni = at school).

Can we move the clauses around and say Tulikaa kimya kimya darasani tulipomsikia mwalimu akitoa onyo?

Yes, that word order is possible:

Tulikaa kimya kimya darasani tulipomsikia mwalimu akitoa onyo.

The basic meaning is still: We stayed very quiet in the classroom when we heard the teacher giving a warning.

The difference is emphasis:

Original order (subordinate first): Tulipomsikia …, tulikaa … puts more focus on the condition/situation (hearing the teacher) as the background.
Swapped order: Tulikaa … tulipomsikia … puts a bit more focus on what we did (stayed quiet) first, and then explains when it happened.

Both are grammatical; the original order with the “when”-clause first is very common in narratives.

Could we use wakati instead of the -po- in tulipomsikia?

Yes. For example:

Wakati tulimsikia mwalimu akitoa onyo, tulikaa kimya kimya darasani.
= When we heard the teacher giving a warning, we stayed very quiet in class.

Here:

wakati = when / the time (that)
tulimsikia = we heard him/her (no -po- needed, because wakati already gives the “when” meaning)

Using -po- inside the verb (tulipomsikia) builds the “when” directly into the verb; using wakati keeps the verb in a plain past form.

Why don’t we see a separate word for “we” or “he” in the sentence?

In Swahili, subject pronouns are normally built into the verb as prefixes, so separate pronouns are usually not needed.

In this sentence:

tuli- in tulipomsikia and tulikaa = we (past)
a- in akitoa = he/she (the teacher)

You could add sisi (we) or yeye (he/she) for emphasis or contrast, but the sentence is perfectly complete and natural without them because the subject is already marked on the verb.