Baba alipogusa kidevu chake, alisema atajinyoa kesho asubuhi.

Alipogusa means when he touched.

It can be broken down like this:

• a- = he/she
• -li- = past tense
• -po- = when
• -gusa = touch

So a-li-po-gusa literally gives the idea he did-when-touch, which is understood as when he touched.

This -po- form is very common in Swahili for clauses like:

• nilipofika = when I arrived
• ulipoona = when you saw
• waliposikia = when they heard

In Swahili, when is often built directly into the verb instead of being a separate word.

So instead of saying something like:

• when he touched his chin

Swahili commonly says:

• alipogusa kidevu chake

The idea of when is carried by -po- inside the verb. This is a very natural Swahili structure.

Baba means father or dad.

In context, Baba can function almost like a title or name, similar to Dad in English. Swahili often does not need articles like the or a, because the language has no article system like English.

So Baba could mean:

• Father
• Dad
• the father

Which one sounds best in English depends on context and the translation already given.

Kidevu chake means his chin.

It breaks down like this:

• kidevu = chin, beard area
• chake = his/her, agreeing with the noun class of kidevu

A very important point: Swahili possessives agree with the noun possessed, not with the owner.

So in kidevu chake:

• ki- / cha- comes from the noun class of kidevu
• -ke means his/her

That is why it is chake, not some single unchanging word for his.

Because kidevu belongs to the ki-/vi- noun class.

In Swahili, possessives change to match the noun class:

• kitabu changu = my book
• kiti chake = his/her chair
• kidevu chake = his/her chin

Here, nouns in the ki-/vi- class use possessive forms beginning with ch- in the singular:

• changu = my
• chako = your
• chake = his/her

So kidevu chake is the correct agreement.

Usually kidevu refers to the chin or beard area. In real usage, it can overlap a bit depending on context.

In this sentence, because the next part says atajinyoa (he will shave himself), the idea is probably that he touched his chin/beard area and then said he would shave the next morning.

So English might choose:

• his chin
• sometimes his beard

depending on context, but chin is the safer basic meaning.

Alisema means he said.

It breaks down as:

• a- = he/she
• -li- = past
• -sema = say

Yes, Swahili can follow alisema directly with another clause:

• alisema atakuja = he said he would come
• alisema amechoka = he said he is tired / was tired
• alisema atajinyoa kesho asubuhi = he said he would shave tomorrow morning

Sometimes kwamba (that) can be added, but it is often omitted:

• alisema kwamba atajinyoa kesho asubuhi

Both are possible.

Atajinyoa means he will shave himself.

It breaks down like this:

• a- = he/she
• -ta- = future
• -ji- = himself/herself
• -nyoa = shave

So a-ta-ji-nyoa = he will shave himself.

This is different from atanyoa, which would mean he will shave someone or something else, depending on context.

Compare:

• atamnyoa mtoto = he will shave the child
• atajinyoa = he will shave himself

English often just says he will shave, but Swahili often makes the reflexive idea explicit with -ji-.

-ji- is the reflexive marker. It means the action comes back to the subject: himself, herself, myself, yourself, and so on.

Examples:

• ninajiona = I see myself
• alijisikia vibaya = he felt bad / he felt himself badly
• tutajiandaa = we will prepare ourselves
• atajinyoa = he will shave himself

In this sentence, it shows that Baba is the one being shaved as well as the one doing the shaving.

Swahili often expresses time with separate words:

• kesho = tomorrow
• asubuhi = morning

So kesho asubuhi literally means tomorrow morning.

This is a normal and natural expression. Swahili often keeps time expressions fairly straightforward like this:

• jana usiku = last night
• leo mchana = this afternoon / today during the day
• kesho jioni = tomorrow evening

Yes. Swahili word order is fairly flexible, especially with time expressions.

These are all possible depending on style and emphasis:

• alisema atajinyoa kesho asubuhi
• alisema kesho asubuhi atajinyoa
• kesho asubuhi alisema atajinyoa

The original version is very natural. Putting kesho asubuhi near atajinyoa clearly connects the time with the shaving.

Both verbs are in the past because the sentence narrates past events:

• alipogusa = when he touched
• alisema = he said

The first verb sets the time/background event, and the second gives the main action.

So the structure is:

• When he touched his chin, he said...

This is very common in storytelling or narration in Swahili.

Because the future is relative to the moment of speaking inside the sentence.

The overall situation is in the past:

• he touched his chin
• he said something

But what he said referred to a future action from his point of view:

• I will shave tomorrow morning

So Swahili uses:

• alisema = he said
• atajinyoa = he will shave himself

This is similar to English, although English sometimes changes the tense in reported speech:

• He said he would shave tomorrow morning

Swahili often keeps the straightforward future form here.

Yes, but it is also very typical Swahili.

The sentence follows a common pattern:

1. background clause
   Baba alipogusa kidevu chake
2. main clause
   alisema atajinyoa kesho asubuhi

This is similar to English:

• When Dad touched his chin, he said he would shave tomorrow morning.

So although some individual words work differently from English, the overall flow is quite easy to follow once you recognize the verb forms.