Urefu ni mita tano.

• urefu = height or length
• ni = is / are
• mita = meter(s)
• tano = five

So the sentence literally comes out as Height is five meters, and in natural English that would usually be The height is five meters or It is five meters tall, depending on context.

Swahili often puts things together in a more literal X is Y pattern.

So:

• Urefu = the height
• ni = is
• mita tano = five meters

Also, in Swahili, numbers normally come after the noun they describe:

• mita tano = meters five = five meters

That is why you do not say the equivalent of five meters with the number first.

Ni is the copula, the word used for is / are in sentences like this.

It links the subject and the description:

• Urefu ni mita tano = The height is five meters

A useful point for learners: ni does not change the way English is/am/are does. The same ni is used in many basic identification or description sentences.

For example:

• Huyu ni mwalimu = This is a teacher
• Jina lake ni Asha = Her name is Asha

In Swahili, the noun usually comes before the number.

So:

• mita tano = five meters
• vitabu viwili = two books
• watu watatu = three people

This is a very common pattern, so it is worth getting used to early.

It can mean height or length, depending on context.

That is because urefu comes from -refu, which has the idea of being long / tall.

So:

• for a person or building, urefu often means height
• for an object, it can mean length

If the context is already clear, native speakers understand which one is meant.

With measurement words like mita, the same form is commonly used with different numbers, and the number tells you whether it is one or more.

So you can say:

• mita moja = one meter
• mita mbili = two meters
• mita tano = five meters

So yes, mita can be used even when English would use the singular meter.

Swahili numbers can show noun-class agreement, but with mita in this kind of measurement phrase, the normal form is simply tano.

So:

• mita tano = five meters

For a learner, the safest thing is to memorize common measurement phrases as units:

• mita moja
• mita mbili
• mita tatu
• mita tano

That will sound natural.

Yes, but it can sound a little general or context-dependent on its own.

Urefu ni mita tano means The height is five meters, so it works if everyone already knows what height you are talking about.

Very often, Swahili would make the reference more explicit, for example:

• Urefu wake ni mita tano = Its/his/her height is five meters
• Jengo lina urefu wa mita tano = The building has a height of five meters

So the sentence is correct, but in real conversation you will often hear a fuller version.

A very useful pattern is to use ngapi for how many / how much in this kind of measurement.

For example:

• Urefu ni mita ngapi? = How many meters is the height?
• Urefu wake ni mita ngapi? = How tall is it? / What is its height?

If the thing has already been mentioned, the version with wake is often more natural.

Sometimes, yes, but they are not exactly the same.

• urefu is more general: height / length
• kimo is more specifically stature / height, especially for a person

So for a person, you may hear:

• Kimo chake ni mita tano = His/Her height is five meters

But for things like buildings, poles, roads, or objects, urefu is usually the better general word.

A simple English-style guide would be:

• urefu → oo-REH-foo
• ni → nee
• mita → MEE-tah
• tano → TAH-noh

Swahili pronunciation is usually quite regular, and each vowel is pronounced clearly. That means the words are said more or less as written.