Kipindi hiki ni ngumu, lakini sisi hatutakata tamaa.

This period is difficult, but we will not give up.

Breakdown of Kipindi hiki ni ngumu, lakini sisi hatutakata tamaa.

• ni: to be
• sisi: we
• lakini: but
• hiki: this
• ngumu: difficult
• kukata tamaa: to give up
• kipindi: the show

Questions & Answers about Kipindi hiki ni ngumu, lakini sisi hatutakata tamaa.

What exactly does kipindi mean here, and how is it different from other Swahili words for “time”?

Kipindi literally means a period or phase of time — something with a more or less clear start and end. Common uses:

• a phase/season in life: kipindi kigumu – a difficult period
• a school term: kipindi cha kwanza – first term
• a TV/radio show or episode: kipindi cha redio – a radio program

It’s different from:

• wakati – general “time/when”:
  
  • wakati huu – this time / at this time
• muda – the amount or length of time:
  
  • muda mfupi – a short time
• saa – hour / o’clock / clock time:
  
  • saa saba – one o’clock (by Swahili counting)

In Kipindi hiki ni ngumu, kipindi suggests “this phase/season/term” rather than time in the abstract.

Why is it kipindi hiki and not hiki kipindi or kipindi hii?

Two things are going on: noun class agreement and usual word order.

1. Noun class agreement

   • kipindi is in the ki-/vi- noun class (class 7/8).
   • The “this (near me)” demonstrative for that class is hiki.
     So:
   • kipindi hiki = this period (correct)
   • kipindi hii – wrong, because hii is the “this” for a different class (the N-class, like siku hii “this day”).

2. Word order
   The normal pattern is noun + demonstrative:

   • kitabu hiki – this book
   • mtihani huu – this exam
   • kipindi hiki – this period

   You can see hiki kipindi in special contexts (e.g. poetic, very emphatic: “this period”), but the neutral, everyday form is kipindi hiki.

How do you pronounce Kipindi hiki ni ngumu?

Break it into syllables; Swahili stress is usually on the second‑to‑last syllable:

• ki-PI-ndi – kee-PEEN-dee
• HI-ki – HEE-kee (h as in house)
• ni – nee
• NGU-mu – ngoo-moo

Tips:

• In ngumu, ng is like the ng in fingers (a nasal + g), not like two clearly separate sounds n
  • g.
• Vowels are pure and short: i like ee in see, u like oo in food, a like the a in father.

So roughly: kee-PEEN-dee HEE-kee nee NGOO-moo.

What is the function of ni in ni ngumu, and can it be left out?

Ni is the copula – it works like “is/are/am” in English.

• Kipindi hiki ni ngumu.
  = “This period is difficult.”

You generally cannot omit ni in normal sentences of this type.

• ✅ Kipindi hiki ni ngumu. – correct
• ❌ Kipindi hiki ngumu. – feels incomplete; only acceptable as very clipped speech or a headline style.

So for clear, standard Swahili, keep ni here.

Does the adjective ngumu have to agree with kipindi? Why doesn’t it change form?

Many Swahili adjectives change form to match the noun class, but some very common ones are effectively invariable in many everyday uses. Ngumu is one of those that is very often used in one fixed form, especially in predicate structures like:

• Kazi ni ngumu. – The work is hard.
• Hali ni ngumu. – The situation is tough.
• Kipindi hiki ni ngumu. – This period is difficult.

So in this pattern ([subject] + ni + ngumu), you don’t have to change ngumu to match kipindi; it stays ngumu.

When ngumu comes directly after a noun, you’ll also hear things like:

• kazi ngumu – hard work
• safari ngumu – a difficult journey

You do not need to add extra class markers to ngumu in normal speech for sentences like the one you’re learning.

What does lakini do in this sentence, and are there other ways to say “but”?

Lakini is a conjunction meaning “but / however”. It introduces a contrast:

• Kipindi hiki ni ngumu, lakini sisi hatutakata tamaa.
  This period is difficult, *but we will not give up.*

Other options with a similar idea:

• ila – “but / except that”
  
  • Kipindi hiki ni ngumu, ila sisi hatutakata tamaa.
• hata hivyo – “however / even so” (usually starts a new sentence):
  
  • Kipindi hiki ni ngumu. Hata hivyo, hatutakata tamaa.

You can also put Lakini at the start of the sentence:

• Lakini sisi hatutakata tamaa. – But we will not give up.

Why does the sentence say sisi hatutakata tamaa instead of just hatutakata tamaa?

The subject sisi (“we”) is actually optional here, because its person and number are already marked in the verb:

• ha- – negative
• -tu- – “we” (1st person plural subject)
• -ta- – future
• -kata – cut

So both are grammatically correct:

• Hatutakata tamaa. – We will not give up.
• Sisi hatutakata tamaa. – We will not give up.

Adding sisi puts emphasis on “we”, a bit like in English:

• “We will not give up” (as opposed to others, or despite everything).

The version with sisi sounds more determined or reassuring.

Can you break down the verb form hatutakata for me?

Yes. Hatutakata is a negative future verb form:

• ha- – negative marker
• -tu- – subject prefix “we”
• -ta- – future tense marker
• -kata – verb root “cut”

So hatu‑tu‑ta‑kata → hatutakata
Literal meaning: “we will not cut”.

With the object tamaa (“hope, desire”), the idiom hatutakata tamaa means:

• “we will not lose hope / we will not give up.”

Compare:

• Tutakata tamaa. – We will give up / lose hope.
• Sitakata tamaa. – I will not give up.
  
  • si- (I, negative) + -ta- (future) + kata.

The pattern ha- + subject + -ta- + verb is the standard way to form the negative future in Swahili.

What does the expression kata tamaa literally mean, and how is it used?

Literally:

• kata – to cut
• tamaa – hope, desire, ambition, sometimes greed

So kata tamaa = “to cut (off) hope/desire”.

Idiomatically, it means:

• to lose hope, to give up, to become discouraged.

Examples:

• Usikate tamaa. – Don’t give up.
• Nilikuwa karibu kukata tamaa. – I was about to lose hope.
• Baada ya kushindwa mara nyingi, alikata tamaa. – After failing many times, he gave up.

So hatutakata tamaa = we will not lose hope / we will not give up.

Also note: it stays two words — kata and tamaa. It’s not written as one verb katamaa in standard spelling.

Is tamaa always used with kata, or can it appear in other phrases?

Tamaa can definitely appear without kata. It’s a regular noun meaning “hope, desire, ambition, (sometimes) greed”. Examples:

• Ana tamaa kubwa maishani. – He/she has big ambitions in life.
• Tamaa ni mbaya. – Greed is bad.
• Kuwa na tamaa ya mafanikio. – To have a desire for success.

When combined with kata as kata tamaa, it specifically takes on the idiomatic meaning “lose hope / give up”. But tamaa itself is a normal, flexible noun.

How would you say “We do not give up” in the present tense instead of the future hatutakata tamaa?

For present/habitual (“we don’t give up” as a general fact), you use the present negative:

• Sisi hatukati tamaa.
  or simply
• Hatukati tamaa.

Breakdown of hatukati:

• ha- – negative
• -tu- – we
• verb stem -kat- with a final -i for negative present:
  
  • tunakata – we (do) cut
  • hatukati – we do not cut

So:

• Hatukati tamaa. – We do not give up (in general).
• Hatutakata tamaa. – We will not give up (from now on / in the future).

Your original sentence uses the future to express a promise or resolution about what will (not) happen.

Is there another way to express “this difficult period” or “this is a difficult period” in Swahili?

Yes, you can rearrange the elements a bit while keeping the same idea.

Your sentence:

• Kipindi hiki ni ngumu.
  This period is difficult.

Another very natural option:

• Hiki ni kipindi kigumu.
  This is a difficult period.

Here:

• Hiki functions as “this” (as a pronoun), and
• kipindi kigumu is “a difficult period”.

Both patterns are common; the difference is mostly stylistic:

• Kipindi hiki ni ngumu – starts from “this period” and says something about it.
• Hiki ni kipindi kigumu – starts from “this (situation/time)” and identifies it as “a difficult period”.

Either way, the overall meaning is the same in context: This is a difficult period, but we will not give up.