Learn Hardcore Swahili: Msichelewe, vaeni viatu vya michezo sasa na mkutane uwanjani. - Don’t be late, put on your sports shoes now and meet on the field.

Msichelewe = msi- (you plural + negative) + -chelewe (be late, subjunctive)
vaeni = vaa (wear) + -eni (imperative ending for you plural)
mkutane = m- (you plural subject) + -kutane (meet, subjunctive)

So the whole sentence is addressing you (plural) throughout, even though there’s no standalone word like “you” or “y’all”.

What exactly does “Msichelewe” mean and how is it formed?

Msichelewe is a negative command (imperative) addressed to more than one person.

Breakdown:

msi- = negative marker for you plural (“you (pl) not …”)
chelewe = subjunctive form of chelewa (“to be late”)

So:

chelewa = to be late
chelewe = (that you) be late (subjunctive)
msichelewe = (that you plural) not be late → “Don’t be late (you all).”

If speaking to one person, you would say:

Usichelewe = Don’t be late (singular “you”).

Why is it “chelewe” here and not “chelewa”?

The final -a of many Swahili verbs changes to -e in the subjunctive (which is also used for soft commands and negative commands).

Infinitive: kuchelewa – to be late
Base verb: chelewa – (you) are late
Subjunctive (command/“should” form): chelewe

So:

Msichelewe literally has the subjunctive: “(that you) not be late,” which functions as the command “Don’t be late.”

Why does “vaeni” end in -eni? What’s the difference between “vaa” and “vaeni”?

The ending -eni marks an affirmative imperative for you plural (“you all”).

Verb: vaa – to wear / put on

vaa! – Wear! / Put it on! (to one person)
vaeni! – Wear! / Put them on! (to several people)

So, in the sentence:

vaeni viatu vya michezo = “put on sports shoes (you all).”

Notice that vaa + -eni → vaeni (one of the a’s drops), which is normal in pronunciation and spelling.

If I wanted to say this to just one person, how would the sentence change?

You’d change all the plural “you” forms to singular “you”:

Msichelewe → Usichelewe (don’t be late, sg.)
vaeni → vaa (put on, sg.)
mkutane → kutane (meet, sg.; subjunctive/command without m-)

So a singular version could be:

Usichelewe, vaa viatu vya michezo sasa na kutane uwanjani.

In natural speech, some speakers might prefer:

Usichelewe, vaa viatu vya michezo sasa halafu uende uwanjani.
(“Don’t be late, put on sports shoes now, then go to the field.”)

What does “viatu vya michezo” literally mean, and why is it “vya” and not “ya” or “za”?

Viatu vya michezo literally means “shoes of sports” → “sports shoes.”

viatu = shoes (plural of kiatu – shoe)
michezo = games / sports (plural of mchezo – game/sport)
vya = “of” for nouns in the ki-/vi- class (things like kiti/viti, kitabu/vitabu, kiatu/viatu)

The form of “of” must agree with the noun class of the first noun:

ki-/vi- class (viatu) → vya
- viatu vya michezo – shoes of sport(s)
m-/mi- class (mti/miti) → ya
- miti ya matunda – fruit trees
N class (ndizi/ndizi) → za
- ndizi za kupika – cooking bananas

So “vya” is chosen because viatu is in the ki-/vi- noun class.

Why is “michezo” plural? Could it be “mchezo” instead?

Michezo is the plural of mchezo:

mchezo = a game / a sport
michezo = games / sports

In viatu vya michezo, the idea is “sports shoes” – shoes for sports in general, not for one single game, so michezo (plural) feels natural.

You can say viatu vya mchezo in some specific contexts (“shoes for this particular game”), but the common phrase for sports shoes in general is viatu vya michezo.

Can “sasa” (now) move to a different position in the sentence?

Yes. Sasa is quite flexible in word order. All of these are possible, with slight differences in emphasis:

Msichelewe, vaeni viatu vya michezo sasa na mkutane uwanjani.
→ neutral; “now” attaches most to “put on shoes”.
Msichelewe, sasa vaeni viatu vya michezo na mkutane uwanjani.
→ emphasizes “now!” as a transition: “Right now, put on…”.
Msichelewe, vaeni sasa viatu vya michezo na mkutane uwanjani.
→ less common, sounds a bit marked; “now put on the sports shoes…”.
Msichelewe, vaeni viatu vya michezo na mkutane uwanjani sasa.
→ makes meeting at the field now sound more prominent.

The original is very natural and clear.

Does “na” here mean “and” or “with”? How is it working in “… sasa na mkutane uwanjani”?

In this sentence, na is a conjunction meaning “and”. It’s linking two commands:

vaeni viatu vya michezo sasa = put on sports shoes now
mkutane uwanjani = meet at the field

So:

… sasa na mkutane uwanjani = “… now and meet at the field.”

The same word na can also mean “with”, as in:

Ninakunywa chai na sukari. – I drink tea with sugar.

Here, context and structure make it clear it’s functioning as “and”.

What is the difference between “vaeni … na mkutane …” and using bare imperatives like “vaa …, kutana …”?

The sentence uses two different ways of expressing commands:

Bare imperative (plural) with -eni:
- vaeni – put on (you all)
Subjunctive with subject prefix (also works as a command):
- mkutane – you all should meet / meet (you all)

You could also say:

Msichelewe, vaeni viatu vya michezo sasa na kutaneni uwanjani.

Here:

kutaneni = plain plural imperative (kutana + -eni).

Both mkutane and kutaneni can function as “meet (you all)”.
Using mkutane keeps the same subjunctive style as msichelewe and sounds very natural in connected instructions.

What exactly does “mkutane” mean, and how is it built?

Mkutane is a subjunctive/command form of kutana (“to meet each other”) for you plural.

Breakdown:

m- = subject prefix for you plural (nyinyi)
kutane = subjunctive of kutana (meet)

So:

mnakutana = you (pl) are meeting
mkutane = (that) you (pl) meet → used here as “meet (you all).”

Because -ana is a reciprocal suffix (“each other”), mkutane normally means “meet each other,” not just “meet (something).” Context fills in “each other” in English.

How does “-ana” in “kutana” affect the meaning?

The ending -ana often marks reciprocal actions in Swahili: “each other”.

Examples:

kuonana – to see each other
kuandikiana – to write to each other
kupigana – to hit/fight each other
kutana – to meet each other

So mkutane implies “(you all) meet one another”, which fits perfectly when addressing a group and telling them to gather at the field.

What does “uwanjani” literally mean, and why does it end in -ni?

Uwanjani is “at/in the field”.

uwanja = field, pitch, (sports) ground
-ni = locative suffix, meaning “in/at/on” that noun

So:

uwanja – a field
uwanjani – in/at the field

You can often choose between:

uwanjani – single word with -ni
kwenye uwanja – at the field
katika uwanja – in the field

All of these can be correct; uwanjani is compact and very idiomatic.

Could you rephrase “mkutane uwanjani” using a different structure, but with the same meaning?

Yes, some common alternatives with similar meaning are:

Kutaneni uwanjani. – Meet (you all) at the field.
Mkusanyike uwanjani. – Gather at the field.
Kaeni uwanjani. – Be/stay at the field. (depending on context)
Nendeni uwanjani mkutane. – Go to the field and meet there.

The original “mkutane uwanjani” is concise and clearly tells the group to meet each other at the field.