Asipotulia baada ya kutapika na kuhara, muuguzi atamrudisha kliniki.

A useful way to see it is:

• asipo- = if he/she does not
• -tulia = be calm, settle down, become stable

So asipotulia means if he/she does not settle down / if he/she does not become stable.

For a learner, the main thing to remember is that asipo- is a very common negative conditional pattern in Swahili.

Because Swahili usually puts the subject information inside the verb itself.

In asipotulia, the verb already tells you the subject is he/she. The exact person is understood from context, such as a child, a patient, or another previously mentioned person.

This is very normal in Swahili. You often do not need an extra pronoun unless you want emphasis.

Literally, kutulia often means to calm down, settle, become quiet, become steady.

In a medical context like this, it can mean something more like:

• to settle down
• to stabilize
• to improve
• to stop being distressed

So the exact English wording depends on context, but the Swahili idea is that the person has not settled or stabilized after being sick.

After baada ya (after), Swahili commonly uses the infinitive form of the verb, which starts with ku-.

So:

• kutapika = to vomit
• kuhara = to have diarrhea

After baada ya, these infinitives work a lot like English -ing forms:

• baada ya kutapika = after vomiting
• baada ya kuhara = after having diarrhea

So baada ya kutapika na kuhara means after vomiting and having diarrhea.

Yes, kuhara is a verb in Swahili. It means to have diarrhea.

So Swahili often expresses this idea as an action, not just as a noun. That is why kuhara fits naturally after baada ya.

You can divide it like this:

• a- = he/she
• -ta- = will
• -m- = him/her
• -rudisha = return / take back / send back

So atamrudisha means he/she will take him/her back or he/she will return him/her.

In this sentence, the subject is muuguzi (the nurse), and the object marker -m- refers to the person who is sick.

Because the two verbs do different jobs:

• kurudi = to return / go back oneself
• kurudisha = to return something/someone / take someone back

So:

• anarudi = he/she is returning
• anamrudisha = he/she is taking him/her back

Here the nurse is causing another person to go back to the clinic, so kurudisha is the correct verb.

This is a noun-class agreement point.

Although the noun is muuguzi, the normal subject marker for a singular person in this class is a-.

So:

• muuguzi anakuja = the nurse is coming
• muuguzi atamrudisha = the nurse will take him/her back

For human singular nouns, you will often see:

• a- as the subject marker
• m- or mw- as the object marker

So the form in the sentence is exactly what you should expect.

Because Swahili does not have articles like English a/an/the.

So:

• muuguzi can mean a nurse or the nurse
• kliniki can mean a clinic or the clinic

Context tells you which one is meant.

Swahili does not always need a separate word that matches English to before a destination.

So atamrudisha kliniki is naturally understood as he/she will take him/her back to the clinic.

English needs to the clinic, but Swahili can often just use the place noun directly.

No. Swahili normally does not mark gender in verbs or pronouns the way English does with he and she.

So:

• muuguzi can be male nurse or female nurse
• a- can mean he or she
• -m- can mean him or her

You only know the gender if the wider context tells you.

Yes, in some contexts that can sound natural in English.

Literally, asipotulia is if he/she does not settle down. But English sometimes prefers unless when the meaning is conditional in that way.

So depending on context, both of these can work:

• If he/she does not settle down...
• Unless he/she settles down...

The more literal grammar match is if he/she does not...

It has two main parts:

1. Asipotulia baada ya kutapika na kuhara

   • a conditional clause
   • if he/she does not settle down after vomiting and having diarrhea

2. muuguzi atamrudisha kliniki

   • the main clause
   • the nurse will take him/her back to the clinic

So the pattern is:

If X happens / does not happen, Y will happen.

That is a very common and useful Swahili sentence pattern.