Nipigie simu jioni.

A simple breakdown is:

• Ni- = me
• -pigie = call / more literally a form built from piga
• simu = phone / telephone
• jioni = in the evening / this evening

So the whole sentence means Call me this evening or Give me a call in the evening.

In this sentence, ni- is an object prefix, meaning the action is being done to me.

So:

• piga simu = make a phone call
• nipigie simu = call me

This is very common in Swahili: object pronouns are often attached directly to the verb rather than written as separate words.

This is a very common learner question.

The base verb is piga. But in nipigie, the verb has been changed for two reasons:

• it includes the idea of for/to someone
• it uses a form commonly used for requests or commands with an object prefix

So:

• piga = hit / strike / make
• piga simu = make a phone call
• pigia = call someone / do it to/for someone
• nipigie = call me

You can think of -ie here as part of the form that helps express do this for/to me.

Because in Swahili, to call someone on the phone is very often expressed with the phrase piga simu, literally hit/make a phone.

So simu is part of the normal expression.

Compare:

• Nipigie can sometimes be understood from context, but it may sound incomplete by itself.
• Nipigie simu is the full, natural way to say call me on the phone.

Jioni means evening or in the evening.

In this sentence, it most naturally means:

• this evening
• in the evening
• later in the evening

The exact English translation depends on context, but jioni itself covers the time period of the evening.

Because Swahili often does not need a preposition where English does.

English says:

• in the evening

Swahili can simply say:

• jioni

This is normal with many time expressions in Swahili.

It can be either, depending on tone and context.

Nipigie simu jioni is structurally an instruction like:

• Call me this evening

In real life, it may sound like:

• a direct request
• a reminder
• an order

If you want to make it softer or more polite, you can add tafadhali:

• Tafadhali nipigie simu jioni. = Please call me this evening.

The -e ending is very important here. In Swahili, this kind of ending often appears in:

• polite requests
• commands involving certain prefixes
• subjunctive-like meanings such as let someone do..., please do..., or do ... to/for ...

That is why you get:

• piga = basic verb form
• nipigie = call me

So the final -e is part of the grammatical form used here, not just a random sound change.

Yes, but the meaning changes.

• Piga simu jioni. = Make a phone call in the evening / Call in the evening
• Nipigie simu jioni. = Call me in the evening

The ni- specifically adds me. Without it, the sentence no longer says who should be called.

Yes. The verb piga has a broad range of meanings, including hit, strike, beat, and in certain expressions, make/do.

In the expression piga simu, it means make a phone call. This is just how Swahili normally says it. Many languages use verbs in idiomatic ways like this.

So learners should treat piga simu as a set phrase meaning to call or to make a phone call.

Sometimes in translation, yes, depending on context.

Strictly speaking:

• jioni = evening
• usiku = night

But in natural English, Call me tonight may sometimes be used to translate Nipigie simu jioni if the evening/night distinction is not important in the situation.

Still, the most direct meaning is this evening rather than at night.

Yes, but this order is very natural:

• Nipigie simu jioni

That is:

• verb
• object/noun in the expression
• time expression

Swahili word order is often fairly flexible, but this version is the most straightforward and idiomatic for learners.

The easiest way is to add tafadhali:

• Tafadhali nipigie simu jioni. = Please call me this evening.

You could also make the whole request less direct by changing the sentence structure, but for beginners, adding tafadhali is the simplest and most useful strategy.

Because it contains simu, it specifically refers to a phone call.

If simu were not there, the meaning could be less clear. With simu, there is no doubt that the speaker is asking someone to call by telephone.