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Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi.

Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi.
My bag is light.

Breakdown of Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi.

ni
to be
wangu
my
mkoba
the bag
mwepesi
light
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Questions & Answers about Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi.

How is the word order in Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi different from English?

In English you say “My bag is light”:

  • My (possessive)
  • bag (noun)
  • is (verb “to be”)
  • light (adjective)

In Swahili the order is:

  • Mkoba – bag (subject)
  • wangu – my (possessive, follows the noun)
  • ni – is (copula “to be”)
  • mwepesi – light (adjective)

So the key differences are:

  • The possessive (wangu) comes after the noun (mkoba), not before.
  • Otherwise, it’s basically Subject – “is” – Adjective, just like English: Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi → My bag is light.
Why is the possessive wangu placed after mkoba, instead of before like in English?

In Swahili, possessive pronouns almost always come after the noun they modify:

  • mkoba wangu – my bag
  • rafiki yangu – my friend
  • nyumba yetu – our house

So the normal pattern is NOUN + POSSESSIVE, not POSSESSIVE + NOUN as in English.

Putting the possessive before the noun (wangu mkoba) is ungrammatical in standard Swahili.

Why is it wangu and not yangu or just angu?

Swahili possessives are built from a base (-angu, -ako, -ake, etc.) plus a prefix that must agree with the noun class of the noun.

The base for “my” is -angu. The class agreement is added to the front:

  • Class 1 (mtoto) → mtoto wangu – my child
  • Class 3 (mkoba) → mkoba wangu – my bag
  • Class 4 (mikoba) → mikoba yangu – my bags
  • Class 9 (rafiki) → rafiki yangu – my friend

Mkoba is in noun class 3, which uses the w- possessive prefix, so:

  • w-
    • -angu → wangu

That’s why you say mkoba wangu, not mkoba yangu.

What noun class is mkoba, and why does that matter?

Mkoba belongs to noun class 3, which usually has:

  • Singular prefix: m- (here realized as m- before k: m
    • koba → mkoba)
  • Plural prefix: mi- → mikoba (bags)

Noun class matters because:

  1. It determines the form of the possessive:

    • Class 3 singular: wangu → mkoba wangu (my bag)
    • Class 4 plural: yangu → mikoba yangu (my bags)

  2. It also influences the form of the adjective:

    • mwepesi agrees with a class 3 singular noun (mkoba).
What does ni do in this sentence? Is it the same as English “is”?

Yes. Ni is the usual present-tense “to be” verb in Swahili when linking a subject to a noun or adjective:

  • Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi. – My bag is light.
  • Yeye ni mwanafunzi. – He/She is a student.
  • Hii ni nyumba yangu. – This is my house.

So in Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi, ni is functioning just like “is” in English.

Can I leave out ni and still be correct?

In careful, standard Swahili, you should keep ni when making a full sentence like this:

  • Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi.

If you drop ni, you typically get a noun phrase, not a full sentence:

  • mkoba wangu mwepesi – “my light bag” (a description of a type of bag)

In very casual speech some speakers might omit ni in certain contexts, but for learners it’s safest (and most correct) to include ni in sentences like this.

Does mwepesi mean “light in weight” or “light” like “not dark”?

Mwepesi means “light in weight”, the opposite of mzito (heavy).

  • mkoba mwepesi – a light (not heavy) bag
  • sanduku zito – a heavy box

For “light” as in “not dark” (color or brightness), Swahili commonly uses words like:

  • mweupe – white, light-colored
  • angavu – bright, radiant

So Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi is about weight, not color.

Why does mwepesi start with mw-? Would it change with another noun?

Yes, it changes to agree with the noun class and number of the noun it describes.

The adjective root is -epesi (light in weight). With different noun classes it takes different agreement prefixes:

  • Class 1 singular (mtu) → mtu mwepesi – a light (thin/slim) person
  • Class 2 plural (watu) → watu wepesi
  • Class 3 singular (mkoba) → mkoba mwepesi
  • Class 4 plural (mikoba) → mikoba myepesi

In your sentence, mkoba is class 3 singular, so the correct agreeing form is mwepesi.

How would I say “My bags are light” instead?

You need to make the noun, possessive, and adjective all plural:

  • Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi. – My bag is light.
  • Mikoba yangu ni myepesi. – My bags are light.

Changes:

  1. mkoba → mikoba (bag → bags)
  2. wangu → yangu (class 3 singular → class 4 plural)
  3. mwepesi → myepesi (adjective agrees with the plural class 4 noun)
How do I say “Your bag is light” and “His/Her bag is light”?

You only change the possessive word; the rest stays the same:

  • Mkoba wako ni mwepesi. – Your bag is light.
  • Mkoba wake ni mwepesi. – His/Her bag is light.
  • Mkoba wetu ni mwepesi. – Our bag is light.
  • Mkoba wenu ni mwepesi. – Your (plural) bag is light.
  • Mkoba wao ni mwepesi. – Their bag is light.

All these use mkoba (class 3) and mwepesi (agrees with class 3 singular); only the possessive prefix (wako, wake, etc.) changes.

How do I say “My bag is not light”?

To negate ni, you use si (the negative form of “to be”):

  • Mkoba wangu si mwepesi. – My bag is not light.

Related useful contrasting sentence:

  • Mkoba wangu ni mzito. – My bag is heavy.
    (Here mzito is the opposite of mwepesi.)
Can I change the word order for emphasis, like putting ni mwepesi first?

Yes, Swahili allows some flexibility in word order for emphasis. For example:

  • Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi. – neutral statement.
  • Ni mwepesi mkoba wangu. – emphasizes “it is light”, roughly “Light is what my bag is.”

The meaning is basically the same, but the focus shifts. For normal, neutral sentences, stick with:

  • Subject + ni + complement → Mkoba wangu ni mwepesi.