Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini.

The sailor likes to swim in the ocean.

Breakdown of Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini.

• kupenda: to like
• bahari: the ocean
• kuogelea: to swim
• kwenye: in
• baharia: the sailor

Questions & Answers about Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini.

Why is it baharini instead of just bahari?

Bahari means sea as a plain noun.
Baharini adds the locative suffix -ni, which often means in / at / on.

So:

• bahari = sea
• baharini = in the sea / at the sea / on the sea

In this sentence, baharini is used because the swimming happens in the sea, not just “likes to swim sea”.

What does the ana- in anapenda mean?

Swahili verbs usually start with a subject prefix that tells you who is doing the action.

• a- = he / she / it (3rd person singular)
• na = present tense marker
• -penda = like / love

So anapenda literally breaks down as:

• a- (he/she) + -na- (present) + -penda (like)
  → he/she likes / he/she loves

It can mean either a general fact (he likes) or something happening now (he is liking / loves), depending on context. In practice, it usually translates as “he/she likes / loves”.

Why is it kuogelea and not just ogelea?

Ogelea is the verb stem meaning “swim” (as an imperative or base form).
When you use a verb after another verb such as kupenda (to like), kutaka (to want), etc., Swahili usually uses the infinitive form: ku- + verb.

• kuogelea = to swim

So:

• anapenda ogelea ❌ (ungrammatical)
• anapenda kuogelea ✅ (correct: “he/she likes to swim”)

Is ku- in kuogelea the same as “to” in English infinitives like “to swim”?

Functionally, yes, it’s similar:

• kuogelea ≈ to swim

However, ku- is a prefix attached to the verb, not a separate word like English to. It also behaves differently in some contexts (for example, it can change to kw- before some vowels).

So you can remember it as “the infinitive marker, similar to English to,” but structurally it’s part of the verb.

Why is it spelled kuogelea and not kugelea?

The verb stem is -ogelea, starting with the vowel o.
The infinitive is formed by adding ku- to the front of the verb stem, without changing the stem:

• ku-
  • ogelea → kuogelea

The g is already part of the root ogelea; we don’t add another g or drop vowels. Therefore kuogelea is the correct form.

Is baharia singular or plural? How do you say “sailors”?

In this sentence, baharia is singular: a sailor / the sailor.

Its common plural is mabaharia:

• baharia = sailor (1 person)
• mabaharia = sailors (more than one person)

So:

• Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini.
  = The sailor likes to swim in the sea.

• Mabaharia wanapenda kuogelea baharini.
  = The sailors like to swim in the sea.

What’s the difference between anapenda and hupenda? Could I say Baharia hupenda kuogelea baharini?

Yes, you can say Baharia hupenda kuogelea baharini, but the nuance changes.

• anapenda (a- + -na- + -penda): normal present tense, can mean “likes / is liking / loves” – often just “likes”.
• hupenda (hu- + -penda): marks a general / habitual action, like “usually likes / tends to like”.

So:

• Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini.
  → The sailor likes / loves swimming in the sea. (a present fact, possibly specific or general)

• Baharia hupenda kuogelea baharini.
  → The sailor usually likes / tends to like swimming in the sea. (strongly habitual or characteristic)

Is anapenda more like English “likes” or “is liking”?

In everyday translation, anapenda corresponds best to “likes / loves” in English.

• Swahili present (-na-) can cover both simple present (“likes”) and present progressive (“is liking”), but for stative verbs like kupenda (to like/love), English normally uses simple present.

So in practice:

• anapenda → he/she likes / loves, not “is liking”.

Can the word order change, like Anapenda baharia kuogelea baharini?

No, not in the same way as English. Normal, natural order here is:

[Subject] [Verb] [Infinitive] [Locative]
→ Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini.

You can move elements for emphasis in more advanced, marked structures, but:

• Anapenda baharia kuogelea baharini. ❌ sounds wrong/confusing.
• Baharia kuogelea baharini anapenda. ❌ ungrammatical in normal speech.

For a learner, keep to:

• Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini.

Does baharia tell you if the sailor is male or female?

No. Baharia itself does not mark gender. It can mean male or female sailor.

If you need to specify gender, you add words like:

• baharia mwanaume = male sailor
• baharia mwanamke = female sailor

But normally, baharia alone is gender-neutral, and context or pronouns (e.g. yeye = he/she) might clarify if needed.

Does baharini mean specifically “in the sea,” or can it also mean “at the sea / on the sea”?

-ni is a general locative suffix, so baharini can mean:

• in the sea
• at the sea
• on the sea

The exact preposition in English depends on context.
In a sentence about swimming, “in the sea” is the most natural translation, but grammatically baharini can cover all three ideas of being at/inside/on that location.

How would you say “The sailors like swimming in the sea” using this pattern?

Make the subject plural and use the plural verb prefix:

• Mabaharia = sailors
• wa- = they (3rd person plural subject prefix)
• wanapenda = they like (wa- + -na- + -penda)

So:

Mabaharia wanapenda kuogelea baharini.
= The sailors like to swim / like swimming in the sea.

Can I say kwenye bahari instead of baharini? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say kwenye bahari, and it’s correct:

• baharini = locative form using -ni
• kwenye bahari = “at/in the sea” using the preposition kwenye

Differences:

• baharini is shorter and very natural; the -ni locative is built into the noun.
• kwenye bahari is a bit more explicit and works with any noun, even when -ni is awkward or ambiguous.

In this sentence both are fine:

• Baharia anapenda kuogelea baharini. ✅
• Baharia anapenda kuogelea kwenye bahari. ✅

The first is more compact and very typical Swahili.