Tunakabiliwa na tatizo kubwa, lakini lina suluhisho.

Because these two forms are related but not identical:

• kukabili = to face / confront something
• kukabiliwa na = to be faced with something

So:

• Tunakabili tatizo = We are facing/confronting a problem
• Tunakabiliwa na tatizo = We are faced with a problem

In this sentence, tunakabiliwa na is the more natural way to express being faced with a problem.

Yes:

• tu- = we
• -na- = present tense / ongoing action
• kabili = verb root related to facing
• -w- = passive marker
• -a = final vowel

So tunakabiliwa literally works like we are being faced..., and with na tatizo it gives the idea we are faced with a problem.

No. In tunakabiliwa na tatizo, na means with.

Swahili na is a very common word and can mean different things depending on context, including:

• and
• with
• have in some structures
• part of other fixed expressions

Here:

• kukabiliwa na tatizo = to be faced with a problem

So do not read this na as and.

In Swahili, adjectives usually come after the noun.

So:

• tatizo kubwa = big problem
• not kubwa tatizo

This is normal Swahili word order:

• mtu mzuri = good person
• nyumba kubwa = big house
• tatizo kubwa = big problem

Because adjectives in Swahili agree with the noun class of the noun they describe.

Tatizo belongs to noun class 5 in the singular. With the adjective -kubwa, that class gives the form kubwa.

So:

• tatizo kubwa = big problem
• matatizo makubwa = big problems

The plural changes both the noun and the adjective:

• tatizo → matatizo
• kubwa → makubwa

The it is built into the verb.

In lina:

• li- = subject marker for a singular class 5 noun, such as tatizo
• -na = present tense / a has-type meaning in this structure

So lina suluhisho literally means something like:

• it has a solution

Since tatizo is already understood from the first clause, Swahili does not need to repeat the noun:

• Tunakabiliwa na tatizo kubwa, lakini lina suluhisho.
• literally: We are faced with a big problem, but it has a solution.

Tatizo is a class 5 singular noun. Its plural is matatizo in class 6.

This matters because noun class affects agreement in Swahili, including:

• subject markers on verbs
• adjectives
• sometimes pronouns and other modifiers

In this sentence:

• tatizo → class 5 singular
• so the verb in the second clause uses li-: lina
• and the adjective is kubwa

If it were plural, you would get:

• matatizo makubwa, lakini yana...

Here ya- matches the plural noun class.

Swahili does not normally use articles like English a, an, or the.

So:

• tatizo can mean a problem or the problem
• suluhisho can mean a solution or the solution

The exact meaning depends on context.

That is why tatizo kubwa can be understood as:

• a big problem
• or the big problem

And lina suluhisho can mean:

• it has a solution
• or sometimes it has the solution, depending on context

Here suluhisho is the thing being had.

So:

• lina suluhisho = it has a solution

This is a very common Swahili pattern:

• ana gari = he/she has a car
• wana watoto = they have children
• tatizo lina suluhisho = the problem has a solution

So even though English uses has, Swahili expresses this through the agreement marker plus -na.

A natural plural version would be:

• Tunakabiliwa na matatizo makubwa, lakini yana suluhisho.

The changes are:

• tatizo → matatizo = problem → problems
• kubwa → makubwa = big → big, plural agreement
• lina → yana = it has → they have

So the agreement changes to match the plural noun.

Yes. Both are possible.

• Tunakabiliwa na tatizo kubwa, lakini lina suluhisho.
• Tunakabiliwa na tatizo kubwa, lakini tatizo hilo lina suluhisho.
• Tatizo kubwa lina suluhisho.

Using just lina is natural because the noun tatizo is already clear from the first clause. Swahili often avoids repeating a noun when the agreement marker already shows what is being referred to.