Learn Hardcore Swahili: Tabia yako ya kusoma kila siku inaonyesha kuwa wewe ni mchapakazi. - Your habit of studying every day shows that you are hard‑working.

Tabia yako ya kusoma kila siku = your habit of reading every day.
Tabia is quite broad: it can mean habit, behavior, manner, character depending on context.

Examples:

Tabia yake ni nzuri. – His/Her character is good.
Acha tabia mbaya. – Stop bad behavior.

So here it’s naturally translated as “habit” because it’s followed by ya kusoma kila siku (of reading every day), which clearly describes a repeated action.

Why is it tabia yako and not tabia wako for “your habit”?

In Swahili, possessive adjectives like -angu, -ako, -ake, -etu, -enu, -ao agree with the noun class of the thing owned, not with the person who owns it.

Tabia belongs to noun class 9/10.
Class 9/10 takes the ya- form of the possessive, so “your” becomes yako.

Compare:

rafiki wako – your friend (rafiki = class 1, uses wako)
kitabu chako – your book (kitabu = class 7, uses chako)
tabia yako – your habit/behavior (tabia = class 9, uses yako)

So tabia yako is correct because tabia is class 9, not class 1.

What is the function of ya in tabia yako ya kusoma?

Ya here works like “of” in English and links two nouns/nominal phrases:

tabia yako – your habit
ya kusoma – of reading

Together: tabia yako ya kusoma – your habit of reading.

Grammatically:

ya is the “of” connector (sometimes called the associative),
it agrees with the noun tabia (class 9/10), which uses ya.

Other examples:

gari la baba – father’s car (gari = class 5 → la)
shule ya watoto – school of children / children’s school (shule = class 9 → ya)

So ya tells you: this is the habit that is about reading.

Why is kusoma used after ya? Could this be a noun like “usomaji” instead?

Kusoma is the infinitive form “to read / reading”, and infinitives in Swahili often behave like noun-like words (class 15). So:

ya kusoma literally = of (the) reading / of reading / of studying.

You could say:

tabia yako ya usomaji kila siku

This is grammatically fine and uses the abstract noun usomaji (“reading, study, the act of reading”).
However, ya kusoma is more natural and common in everyday Swahili.

So both are possible, but ya kusoma is the typical, simple way to say “of reading”.

What exactly does kila siku mean, and where does it usually go in the sentence?

Kila siku means “every day”.

In this sentence:

tabia yako ya kusoma kila siku = your habit of reading every day.

Placement:

Most naturally, kila siku comes right after the verb it describes:
- kusoma kila siku – to read every day.

It can sometimes be moved for emphasis:

Kila siku nasoma. – Every day I read.
Nasoma kila siku. – I read every day.

Here, putting kila siku next to kusoma clearly shows that it is the reading that happens every day.

How is inaonyesha formed, and what tense/aspect does it show?

Inaonyesha comes from the verb -onyesha (to show). It’s made of:

i-: subject prefix for class 9/10 (referring to tabia).
-na-: present tense marker (is/does, is currently doing / generally does).
-onyesha: verb root “show”.

So:

inaonyesha = it shows / it is showing.
Subject: tabia yako ya kusoma kila siku (“your habit of reading every day”).

The -na- tense in context often has a general/habitual meaning:

Tabia yako … inaonyesha … – Your habit … shows … (generally shows, not just once).

Why is kuwa used after inaonyesha? Could you leave it out?

Kuwa is the infinitive verb “to be”.

In inaonyesha kuwa wewe ni mchapakazi:

inaonyesha – shows
kuwa – that (literally “to be”, but functioning like “that” introducing a clause)
wewe ni mchapakazi – you are a hard-working person

So the structure is:

inaonyesha kuwa … – shows that …

You can very often replace kuwa with kwamba:

inaonyesha kwamba wewe ni mchapakazi – shows that you are a hard worker.

Leaving it out is sometimes possible in informal speech, but inaonyesha kuwa… is the clean, clear structure to introduce what it is that is being shown.

Why do we have wewe here? Can we just say inaonyesha kuwa ni mchapakazi?

Wewe means “you (singular)”.

In Swahili, subject pronouns (mimi, wewe, yeye, sisi, ninyi, wao) are often optional, because the subject is usually indicated by verb prefixes. But in copula sentences with ni (to be), the subject pronoun is often used for clarity and emphasis.

wewe ni mchapakazi – you are a hard-working person.
ni mchapakazi – could mean I am / you are / he is a hard worker, depending only on context. It’s ambiguous if standing alone.

In this sentence, wewe:

makes it clear the statement applies specifically to you,
adds a bit of emphasis (“you are a hard worker”).

You could say inaonyesha kuwa ni mchapakazi in a broader context where “who” is already 100% obvious, but the version with wewe is more natural and explicit here.

What does mchapakazi literally and idiomatically mean? Is it positive or negative?

Mchapakazi is a compound noun meaning a hard-working person / a diligent worker.

Breakdown:

It comes from the expression kuchapa kazi – literally “to hit work”, idiomatically “to work very hard”.
m-: noun class 1 prefix (person)
chapakazi: from chapa kazi (hit work)

So mchapakazi = someone who “hits work” → a very hardworking person.

Nuance:

It is generally positive, praising someone’s industriousness and diligence.
It does not inherently mean “workaholic” in a negative sense, though depending on tone/context, it could imply “they really work a lot”.

Why is it wewe ni mchapakazi and not something like wewe una mchapakazi or another form of “are”?

Swahili handles “to be” in two main ways:

With ni (copula) before nouns/adjectives:
- wewe ni mchapakazi – you are a hard worker
- huyu ni mwalimu – this is a teacher
- mji huu ni mzuri – this town is beautiful
With subject + verb for actions/states:
- wewe unafanya kazi – you work/are working
- wewe unaumwa – you are sick

For equating a person with a noun or an adjective (you are a teacher, you are happy, you are hard-working), Swahili normally uses ni, not -na- or another verbal form.

So:

wewe ni mchapakazi is the correct copular structure: you = hard-working person.
wewe una mchapakazi would be more like “you have a hard worker” (and is not what is meant).

Can the sentence start with kila siku instead, like “Kila siku tabia yako ya kusoma inaonyesha …”?

You can start a sentence with kila siku for emphasis:

Kila siku tabia yako ya kusoma inaonyesha kuwa wewe ni mchapakazi.

This would sound like:

Every day, your habit of reading shows that you are hardworking.

However, the original sentence emphasizes the habit itself, described as “of reading every day”:

tabia yako ya kusoma kila siku – your habit of reading every day

Both are grammatically correct, but:

Original: highlights what kind of habit you have.
With Kila siku first: highlights how often this happens (the time frame).

Could we say Kusoma kwako kila siku kunaonyesha kuwa wewe ni mchapakazi instead?

Yes, that’s another natural way to express a similar idea:

Kusoma kwako kila siku kunaonyesha kuwa wewe ni mchapakazi.
- kusoma kwako kila siku – your reading every day
- kunaonyesha – shows (subject prefix for ku- class)

Difference in nuance:

Tabia yako ya kusoma kila siku… – focuses on your habit/character trait.
Kusoma kwako kila siku… – focuses more directly on the action of your reading every day.

Both are fine; the original emphasizes the habit (tabia) as the thing that reveals your hard-working nature.

Is inaonyesha more like “shows” or “is showing” in English?

-na- in inaonyesha covers both simple present and present continuous meanings, depending on context.

Here:

Tabia yako ya kusoma kila siku inaonyesha kuwa wewe ni mchapakazi.

The most natural English is:

“Your habit of reading every day shows that you are hardworking.”

So in this general, habitual context, inaonyesha corresponds best to “shows” (a general truth), not a one-time “is showing (right now)”.