Sherehe itamalizika jioni.

The celebration will finish in the evening.

Breakdown of Sherehe itamalizika jioni.

• sherehe: the celebration
• jioni: in the evening
• kumalizika: to be finished

Questions & Answers about Sherehe itamalizika jioni.

What does each word in Sherehe itamalizika jioni literally mean?

Word by word:

• sherehe – celebration, party, ceremony
• i- – subject marker for a class 9 noun (here: sherehe, “it”)
• -ta- – future tense marker (will)
• -malizika – to be finished, to come to an end
• jioni – in the evening / late afternoon

So Sherehe itamalizika jioni is literally: Party it-will-finish evening → “The party will end in the evening.”

Why is the verb itamalizika and not just tamalizika?

In Swahili, a finite verb almost always includes a subject marker that agrees with the subject’s noun class.

• sherehe belongs to noun class 9.
• The class 9 subject marker is i-.
• Future tense is shown by -ta-.
• The verb root is -malizika.

So: i- + -ta- + -malizika → itamalizika

If you said just tamalizika, it would sound incomplete, like saying “will finish” in English without “it.”

Why is i- the subject marker here? Why not a- or something else?

Swahili has noun classes, and each class has its own subject marker:

• Class 1 (person, singular): a- (he/she)
• Class 2 (people, plural): wa- (they)
• Class 9/10 (many animals, things, some abstract words, and words like sherehe): i- in the singular, zi- in the plural

Because sherehe is a class 9 noun, the correct subject marker in the verb is i-, giving itamalizika (“it will end”). If the noun were class 1, like mtu (person), you’d use a-, as in mtu atamaliza (“the person will finish”).

What is the difference between -maliza and -malizika?

They are related but not the same:

• -maliza – to finish something (transitive)
  • Nitamaliza kazi. – I will finish the work.
• -malizika – to be finished, to come to an end (intransitive/passive-like)
  • Sherehe itamalizika. – The party will end / come to an end.

In Sherehe itamalizika jioni, the party itself is “coming to an end,” not actively “finishing” something else, so -malizika is the natural choice.

Could I say Sherehe itaisha jioni instead? Does it mean the same thing?

Yes, you can, and it is very natural:

• kuisha – to be over, to end, to be finished
• itaisha – it will end

So:

• Sherehe itaisha jioni. – The party will end in the evening.

There is a subtle difference in nuance:

• itamalizika often suggests “will come to an end (be brought to an end),” sometimes with a sense that events lead to the ending.
• itaisha is a simpler “will be over / will be finished.”

In everyday speech, both are fine and usually interchangeable here.

Why is there no word for “the” in Sherehe itamalizika jioni?

Swahili does not use separate words for “the” or “a/an”. Nouns are generally bare:

• sherehe can mean a party, the party, or just party, depending on context.
• The definiteness (“the” vs “a”) is understood from context, not from an article.

So Sherehe itamalizika jioni could be translated as:

• The party will end in the evening, or
• A party will end in the evening, depending on what you are talking about.

Why is jioni at the end? Could I say Jioni sherehe itamalizika instead?

Swahili typically puts time expressions at the end of the sentence:

• Sherehe itamalizika jioni. – The party will end in the evening.

However, you can put the time expression first for emphasis or style:

• Jioni, sherehe itamalizika. – In the evening, the party will end.

Both are grammatically correct. The usual neutral order is with jioni at the end.

Does jioni mean “evening” exactly, or also “late afternoon”?

Jioni covers a broader time range than strict English “evening.” It generally refers to:

• Later afternoon and early evening (roughly 4 p.m. to around 7 p.m., varying by context and region)

So Sherehe itamalizika jioni could mean:

• The party will end in the late afternoon, or
• The party will end in the evening,

depending on the culture, context, and schedule being discussed. English “evening” is the usual translation, but it’s not a perfect one-to-one match.

How is the future tense formed in itamalizika?

The future tense in Swahili is formed with:

1. Subject marker
2. -ta- (future marker)
3. Verb root

In this sentence:

• Subject marker: i- (for sherehe, class 9)
• Future marker: -ta-
• Verb root: -malizika

So: i- + -ta- + -malizika → itamalizika – “it will end.”

How would I say “The party will not end in the evening”?

To make the future negative in Swahili, you add a negative prefix and still use -ta-:

• Negative marker: ha-
• Subject marker (class 9): i-
• Future: -ta-
• Verb root: -malizika

This gives: haitamalizika – it will not end.

So the full sentence is:

• Sherehe haitamalizika jioni. – The party will not end in the evening.

Why is there no separate word for “will” in itamalizika?

In Swahili, tense and aspect are usually marked inside the verb instead of with separate helping verbs like English “will,” “did,” “is,” etc.

• -ta- inside the verb shows the future.
• There is no stand-alone word like “will.”

So:

• itamalizika – it will end
• inamalizika – it is ending / it is coming to an end (present)
• ilimalizika – it ended (past)

All of those tense meanings are contained in the verb form itself.

Is sherehe always singular? How would I say “The parties will end in the evening”?

Sherehe can be singular or plural, depending on context. To make the verb clearly plural, you change the subject marker:

• Class 9 singular subject marker: i-
• Class 10 plural subject marker: zi-

So:

• Sherehe itamalizika jioni. – The party will end in the evening.
• Sherehe zitamalizika jioni. – The parties will end in the evening.

Here, zitamalizika = zi- + -ta- + -malizika (“they will end”). The noun form sherehe itself does not change.

Do I have to pronounce every vowel clearly in itamalizika?

Yes. In standard Swahili pronunciation, every vowel is pronounced clearly and evenly. itamalizika has six syllables:

• i–ta–ma–li–zi–ka

Each vowel is pronounced, and the stress is usually on the second-to-last syllable:

• i–ta–ma–li–zi–ka

So you say it roughly like: ee-ta-ma-LEE-zee-ka (with short, clear vowels).