Questions & Answers about Mimi nina simu mkononi.
What does each word in Mimi nina simu mkononi literally mean?
Word by word:
- Mimi – I / me (independent pronoun)
- nina – I have / I am with (verb form meaning “have” in the present)
- simu – phone / telephone (also “telephone line” or “call” in other contexts)
- mkononi – in (my) hand
- mkono – hand / arm
- -ni – locative ending meaning “in / on / at”
So mkono + ni → mkononi = “in the hand”.
The natural English translation is: “I have a phone in my hand” or “I’m holding a phone.”
Why do we say Mimi nina when both mimi and nina already refer to “I”? Isn’t that redundant?