Learn Hardcore Swahili: Wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya darasani wakati wa mtihani. - Students should keep quiet in the classroom during the exam.

wa- = subject prefix for they (class 2 plural humans, from wanafunzi)
-na- = present tense marker (are / do in the present)
-paswa = verb stem meaning to be required / to be supposed (to do something)

So wanafunzi wanapaswa… = “students are required / supposed to…”

Other people with -paswa in the same tense:

mimi ninapaswa – I should / I’m supposed to
wewe unapaswa – you should / you’re supposed to
yeye anapaswa – he/she should
sisi tunapaswa – we should
ninyi mnapaswa – you (plural) should
wao wanapaswa – they should

Is wanapaswa closer to English “should” or “must”?

In most everyday contexts, wanapaswa is closest to “should” or “are supposed to.”

It expresses an obligation, rule or expectation, but not always as strong or harsh as an absolute “must.”
In the sentence Wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya…, it’s like a school rule or standard: “Students should / are supposed to be quiet…”

If you want something clearly stronger, like “must / have to,” you might also hear:

Wanafunzi lazima wakae kimya… – Students must be quiet…
Wanafunzi hawaruhusiwi kuongea… – Students are not allowed to talk…

Why do we say kukaa kimya to mean “to be quiet”? Doesn’t kukaa mean “to sit” or “to stay”?

Yes, kukaa normally means to sit / to stay / to remain / to live (reside).
In the expression kukaa kimya, it has the sense of “to remain / stay”.

kukaa = to stay, remain
kimya = silence, quiet / quietness

So kukaa kimya literally feels like “to stay in silence”, which is naturally understood as “to keep quiet / to remain quiet.”

This is a very common idiomatic phrase, and it’s better to remember it as a unit:

kukaa kimya – to keep / remain quiet

What is the difference between kukaa kimya, kunyamaza, and kuwa kimya?

All three relate to being quiet, but there are small differences in feel and use:

kukaa kimya
- Literally: to stay in silence
- Common translation: to remain / keep quiet
- Often about continuing to be quiet, especially over some time.
- Fits very well with rules, instructions, classroom contexts.
kunyamaza
- Basic meaning: to be silent, to shut up, to fall silent
- Often used when someone stops talking or becomes quiet.
- Slightly sharper in tone sometimes, especially in commands:
  - Nyamaza! – Be quiet! / Shut up!
kuwa kimya
- Literally: to be quiet
- More like a simple state, without strong focus on “staying” that way.
- Grammatically: kuwa
  - kimya works just like English “to be quiet.”

In your sentence, kukaa kimya sounds very natural and standard for a rule during an exam.

What is kimya exactly — a noun, an adjective, or an adverb? Why doesn’t it change its form?

Kimya is originally a noun meaning silence / quietness, but it is very often used adjectivally or adverbially:

kuwa kimya – to be quiet (adjectival use)
kukaa kimya – to remain quiet (adverbial flavor: to remain in silence)

In these fixed expressions, kimya:

Does not take agreement prefixes like normal adjectives (e.g. you don’t say *kimyao, *kimyake, etc.).
Stays as kimya regardless of the subject.

So you get:

Mwanafunzi anapaswa kukaa kimya. – The student should be quiet.
Wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya. – The students should be quiet.

Kimya stays the same in both.

Why is it darasani and not just darasa?

Darasa means classroom / class.
Adding -ni at the end makes a locative form, meaning “in/at the classroom”.

darasa – classroom
darasani – in the classroom / in class

The suffix -ni is very common in Swahili to indicate location:

nyumba → nyumbani – at home / in the house
shule → shuleni – at school
kanisa → kanisani – at church

So darasani in your sentence means “in the classroom / in class.”

How does wakati wa mtihani work grammatically, and why is wa used?

Breakdown:

wakati – time, period, moment
wa – “of” (genitive/possessive connector for this noun class)
mtihani – exam, test

So wakati wa mtihani = “the time of the exam”, which in English is naturally “during the exam.”

About wa:

In Swahili, you often link two nouns with an associative (genitive) marker: wa, ya, la, cha, vya, etc.
The choice depends on the noun class of the first noun (here: wakati).
For wakati, the correct connector is wa.

Examples with wakati:

wakati wa chakula – mealtime / at the time of food
wakati wa mvua – during the rain / rainy time

So the structure wakati wa + [noun] is a standard way to say “during [noun]”.

Could the word order be changed, like Wanafunzi wanapaswa darasani kukaa kimya wakati wa mtihani?

Not like that. The given order is much more natural:

Wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya darasani wakati wa mtihani.

General points:

The verb and its complement (wanapaswa kukaa kimya) usually stay together.
Place (darasani) and time (wakati wa mtihani) are often placed after the main verb phrase.
You can move the time phrase a bit for emphasis, for example:
- Wakati wa mtihani, wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya darasani.

But splitting it as wanapaswa darasani kukaa kimya is not natural. Keep:

Subject: Wanafunzi
Verb phrase: wanapaswa kukaa kimya
Place/time: darasani wakati wa mtihani (possibly reordered a bit among themselves).

How would I change the sentence to talk about one student instead of students?

Change wanafunzi (students) to mwanafunzi (student), and match the verb:

Wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya darasani wakati wa mtihani.
→ Students should be quiet in class during the exam.

Becomes:

Mwanafunzi anapaswa kukaa kimya darasani wakati wa mtihani.
→ The student should be quiet in class during the exam.

Changes:

wanafunzi → mwanafunzi (plural → singular)
wanapaswa → anapaswa (they → he/she)

What are the singular and plural forms of mwanafunzi / wanafunzi, and how do they affect the verb?

This is a classic m-/wa- (class 1/2) human noun pattern:

mwanafunzi – student (singular)
wanafunzi – students (plural)

The verb must agree with the noun’s class:

Mwanafunzi anapaswa… – The student should…
- a- = he/she (class 1 singular)
Wanafunzi wanapaswa… – The students should…
- wa- = they (class 2 plural)

So when you switch between mwanafunzi and wanafunzi, you also switch a- / wa- in the verb.

Can I use different tenses with -paswa? For example, how would I say “Students were supposed to be quiet…”?

Yes, -paswa works with normal Swahili tense markers.

Examples with wanafunzi:

Present:
- Wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya…
  – Students should / are supposed to be quiet…
Past:
- Wanafunzi walipaswa kukaa kimya…
  – Students were supposed to / should have been quiet…
Future:
- Wanafunzi watapaswa kukaa kimya…
  – Students will be supposed / required to be quiet…

Pattern:

wa- (they) + -li- (past) + -paswa → walipaswa
wa-
- -ta- (future) + -paswa → watapaswa

How do I say the negative, like “Students should not be quiet” or “should not stay quiet”?

To negate -paswa (“should”), the stem changes slightly to -paswi and the negative prefix ha- is used.

For they (students):

Wanafunzi hawapaswi kukaa kimya.
– Students should not stay quiet.

Breakdown:

ha- – negative
-wa- – they
-paswi – negative form of -paswa

So:

wanapaswa – they should
hawapaswi – they should not

If you wanted instead to forbid speaking rather than being quiet, you’d typically change the verb:

Wanafunzi hawapaswi kuongea darasani wakati wa mtihani.
– Students should not talk in class during the exam.

What is the level of politeness or strength of this sentence? Is it more like a suggestion or like a rule?

Wanafunzi wanapaswa kukaa kimya darasani wakati wa mtihani sounds like a rule or formal expectation, not just a soft suggestion.

In tone, from weakest to strongest, you might think of:
- wanafunzi wangefaa / wangepaswa… – they ought to… (softer, more hypothetical)
- wanafunzi wanapaswa… – they should / are supposed to… (normal rule/expectation)
- wanafunzi lazima… – they must… (strong, strict requirement)

So your sentence is firm but neutral, very natural for a teacher, school rule, or exam instructions.