Usiposahau daftari lako la mazoezi, mwalimu atakagua kazi yako.

Swahili often puts information that English spreads across several words into a single verb form.

usiposahau can be broken down like this:

• u- = you singular
• -si- = negative
• -po- = part of the negative conditional pattern
• -sahau = forget

So u-si-po-sahau gives the idea if you do not forget.

The positive version would normally be ukisahau, meaning if you forget.

So the contrast is:

• ukisahau = if you forget
• usiposahau = if you do not forget

This is a very useful pattern to notice:

• affirmative conditional often uses -ki-
• negative conditional often uses -si-...-po-

Because in Swahili, conditional meaning is often built into the verb itself rather than expressed with a separate word.

Here, the conditional idea is carried by the verb form usiposahau. English needs if, but Swahili can encode that meaning inside the verb.

Swahili does also have separate words such as ikiwa, but they are not necessary here.

This is because possessives in Swahili agree with the noun being possessed, not with the person who owns it.

• daftari belongs to noun class 5, so your becomes lako
• kazi belongs to noun class 9, so your becomes yako

So:

• daftari lako = your notebook
• kazi yako = your work

This kind of agreement is a central part of Swahili grammar.

Literally, daftari la mazoezi means notebook of exercises.

• daftari = notebook / exercise book
• la = linking word meaning something like of, agreeing with daftari
• mazoezi = exercises / practice

The la is used because daftari is in noun class 5. So the connector has to match that noun class.

In natural English, daftari la mazoezi is often best understood as exercise book or workbook.

atakagua means he/she will check, he/she will inspect, or sometimes he/she will mark, depending on context.

It breaks down like this:

• a- = he/she
• -ta- = future
• -kagua = check / inspect

So atakagua means he/she will check.

Because the subject is mwalimu, the verb uses the class 1 singular subject marker a-.

It can mean either. mwalimu is not marked for gender.

So mwalimu atakagua kazi yako can mean:

• the male teacher will check your work
• the female teacher will check your work

Swahili usually does not force you to specify gender unless it matters.

Swahili generally does not use articles like English the and a.

So a noun like mwalimu can mean:

• the teacher
• a teacher
• simply teacher

The exact sense comes from context.

That is why Swahili sentences often look shorter than their English equivalents.

Because here kazi is being treated as singular or as an uncountable idea, meaning work in a general sense.

With class 9 singular agreement, you get:

• kazi yako = your work

If you were talking about several separate tasks or jobs, kazi zako could be possible, with plural agreement.

So in this sentence, kazi yako is the natural choice because it refers to your work as a whole.

kagua has a range of meanings such as:

• check
• inspect
• review
• examine

In a school context, mwalimu atakagua kazi yako usually means the teacher will check or look over your work. In some contexts, mark is also a natural translation, but kagua is broader than just grading.

The sentence begins with the condition:

• Usiposahau daftari lako la mazoezi = the condition
• mwalimu atakagua kazi yako = the result

This order is very common in both Swahili and English: If X, then Y.

The comma helps separate those two parts clearly. It is especially natural when the condition comes first.

A few helpful points:

• Swahili stress usually falls on the second-to-last syllable
• mwalimu is pronounced roughly mwa-LI-mu
• daftari is daf-TA-ri
• mazoezi is ma-zo-E-zi
• usiposahau is u-si-po-sa-HA-u

Also, mw in mwalimu is pronounced together, not as two separate words. Swahili pronunciation is usually very regular once you know the spelling.