Juma anauliza ati mkutano wa wazazi utaanza saa ngapi kesho jioni.

Because a-na-uliza contains the Swahili present marker -na-, which often covers both:

• is asking (right now)
• asks (in a general present sense)

So Juma anauliza can mean either Juma is asking or Juma asks, depending on context.

Breakdown:

• a- = he/she
• -na- = present
• uliza = ask

So literally it is something like he is asking / he asks.

Ati introduces reported speech or reported thought, and it is very common in everyday Swahili.

Here, it links Juma anauliza to the content of the question:

• Juma anauliza ati ... = Juma asks ... / Juma is asking ...

In this sentence, ati works a bit like:

• that
• saying
• or a marker introducing an indirect question

So the sentence is not Juma directly asking the question to us. It is reporting what Juma is asking.

Yes, often it can.

You could also say:

Juma anauliza mkutano wa wazazi utaanza saa ngapi kesho jioni.

That would still mean essentially the same thing: Juma is asking what time the parents’ meeting will start tomorrow evening.

Adding ati makes the reported-question structure more explicit and often sounds natural in conversation.

Usually ati is the more natural choice here.

Kwamba often introduces reported statements, more like that in English:

• Anasema kwamba atakuja. = He says that he will come.

With an indirect question like saa ngapi, ati is much more natural in everyday Swahili.

So for this sentence:

• Juma anauliza ati ... = natural
• Juma anauliza kwamba ... = less natural here

Swahili usually connects nouns like meeting of parents with a linking word such as wa.

So:

• mkutano = meeting
• wa = of
• wazazi = parents

Together:

• mkutano wa wazazi = meeting of parents = parents’ meeting

This wa is called an associative/genitive connector. It is the normal way to show relationships like:

• kitabu cha Juma = Juma’s book
• mwanafunzi wa shule hii = student of this school

So mkutano wazazi would not be correct standard Swahili.

It agrees with mkutano, the first noun, not with wazazi.

That is an important point in Swahili.

• mkutano belongs to noun class 3/4
• the associative form used with singular class 3 nouns is wa
• so you get mkutano wa wazazi

If the head noun were plural, the connector would change:

• mikutano ya wazazi = parents’ meetings

So the connector follows the noun being described, not the noun after it.

Utaanza breaks down like this:

• u- = subject marker for mkutano
• -ta- = future
• anza = begin/start

So:

• utaanza = it will start

Why u-? Because mkutano is the grammatical subject, and it belongs to a noun class that takes u- in the singular.

This can confuse learners because u- can also mean you in other contexts. But here it does not mean you. It means it, referring to mkutano.

In Swahili, the common future marker is -ta-.

Examples:

• nitaenda = I will go
• utakuja = you will come
• atafika = he/she will arrive
• utaanza = it will start

So in this sentence, utaanza clearly places the starting of the meeting in the future.

Yes, saa ngapi is the normal way to ask what time.

Word by word:

• saa = hour / time / o’clock
• ngapi = how many

So literally it is something like how many o’clock?, but naturally it means what time?

Examples:

• Ni saa ngapi? = What time is it?
• Utafika saa ngapi? = What time will you arrive?
• Mkutano utaanza saa ngapi? = What time will the meeting start?

Yes. This is a very common point of confusion for English speakers.

In traditional Swahili timekeeping, the clock starts around sunrise, not at midnight in the same way English clock time does. So:

• saa moja asubuhi = about 7:00 a.m.
• saa moja jioni/usiku = about 7:00 p.m.

So when someone asks saa ngapi, the answer may use Swahili clock time, depending on the region and situation.

That means if the meeting starts at 7 p.m. English clock time, a Swahili speaker may say saa moja jioni.

This is not visible directly in the grammar of the sentence, but it is very important for understanding real-life time expressions.

Kesho jioni means tomorrow evening.

• kesho = tomorrow
• jioni = evening

Using both tells you:

• the day: tomorrow
• the part of the day: evening

So the sentence is specifically asking about the time of the meeting tomorrow in the evening, not just sometime tomorrow.

Because the whole sentence is a statement reporting a question, not the direct question itself.

This is an indirect question:

• Juma anauliza ati mkutano wa wazazi utaanza saa ngapi kesho jioni.

The direct question would be:

• Mkutano wa wazazi utaanza saa ngapi kesho jioni?

So the reported version normally takes a period in English-style punctuation.

The singular is mzazi.

So:

• mzazi = parent
• wazazi = parents

This is a common noun class pattern in Swahili:

• singular m-
• plural wa-

Examples:

• mtoto / watoto = child / children
• mwalimu / walimu = teacher / teachers
• mzazi / wazazi = parent / parents

Yes, in many situations that is a reasonable way to understand it.

Mkutano wa wazazi most naturally means a meeting connected with parents, often:

• a parents’ meeting
• a meeting for parents
• a parents-and-school meeting, depending on context

The wa construction is broader than English apostrophe-s in some cases. It often means of, but the natural English translation depends on context.

So parents’ meeting is usually the best short translation, but meeting for parents can also fit.