Binadamu anahitaji maji.

Anahitaji can be broken down as:

• a- = he/she or a singular animate subject
• -na- = present tense
• hitaji = need

So anahitaji literally means he/she needs.

In this sentence, it agrees with binadamu, so the whole phrase means a human needs.

The dictionary form of the verb is kuhitaji = to need.

Because a- is the subject marker used for a singular animate noun, especially a person.

Even though binadamu begins with bi-, it refers to a human being, so Swahili uses the agreement pattern for people:

• singular: a-
• plural: wa-

So:

• Binadamu anahitaji maji = A human needs water
• Wanadamu wanahitaji maji = Humans need water

This is a very common feature in Swahili: meaning can matter more than the noun’s first syllable when choosing agreement.

Yes. This sentence uses the very common Swahili word order:

• Subject + Verb + Object

So:

• Binadamu = subject
• anahitaji = verb
• maji = object

That is directly parallel to English:

• A human
  • needs
    • water

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

So binadamu can mean:

• a human
• the human
• human beings / humanity in a general sense

The exact meaning depends on context.

In a sentence like this, it is usually understood as a general truth: a human needs water or humans need water.

Yes. The -na- inside anahitaji marks present tense.

So a-na-hitaji means he/she is needing / needs, but in natural English we usually translate it simply as needs.

Swahili present tense often covers both:

• simple present: needs
• present progressive, depending on context

Here, the best translation is just needs.

Good question. Maji is the normal Swahili word for water, and it is treated as a mass noun.

Even though ma- often appears in plural nouns, you should not think of maji here as waters. In everyday Swahili, maji simply means water.

So in this sentence:

• maji = water

It is just a vocabulary item you learn as a whole word.

Yes, it can express a general truth.

Even though the verb is singular, Swahili can use a singular noun to talk about something in a general, class-wide way, much like English can say:

• A human needs water

meaning

• Humans need water

If you want to make the plural explicit, you could say:

• Wanadamu wanahitaji maji = Humans need water

But the original sentence still works as a general statement.

Yes, you could.

• mtu = person
• binadamu = human being / human

The difference is mainly one of nuance:

• mtu is a very common everyday word for person
• binadamu sounds more specifically human, often contrasting humans with animals or speaking more generally about humankind

So:

• Mtu anahitaji maji = A person needs water
• Binadamu anahitaji maji = A human needs water

Both are grammatical, but they are not exactly identical in tone.

A simple guide is:

• Binadamu → bee-nah-DAH-moo
• anahitaji → ah-nah-hee-TAH-jee
• maji → MAH-jee

Swahili words are usually pronounced quite regularly, and stress normally falls on the second-to-last syllable:

• binaDAmu
• anahiTAji
• MAji

Also, Swahili vowels are usually pure and steady:

• a as in father
• i as in machine
• u as in rule

No. In this sentence, no object marker is needed.

Anahitaji maji is the normal straightforward way to say needs water.

Swahili object markers are often used when the object is:

• already known from context
• especially definite
• a pronoun
• being emphasized

But with a simple noun like maji, leaving the object marker out is completely normal.