Ultimate List of 200+ Swahili Verbs plus Example Sentences
This is a list of all the important Swahili verbs we learned while studying Swahili in Tanzania and Kenya.
These Swahili verbs are important everyday verbs that we’d recommend anyone who wants to learn Swahili memorsze.
To understand how to use any of these verbs in Swahili, we’ve put down example sentences, too — sometimes, multiple!
We learned these verbs (and others) while studying Swahili in Tanzania and Kenya for two months. It went pretty well — see our final speaking videos here. So these are from our own personal notes.
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With the help of our favourite teacher, we put together this Swahili learner’s grammar guide. Learn Swahili noun classes, verb conjugation, and sentence structure all explained in simple terms with tons of examples.
Sources for the Swahili example sentences: The example sentences came from
- Teachers (Thank you Philip and Angel in particular!)
- Textbooks like Colloquial Swahili (that’s what I used, anyway)
- BBC Swahili — sometimes I’d search for a word, or sometimes I’d just try reading an article
- Glossika, a sentence bank I regularly used for Swahili
I’ve checked them over a few times — and it took many hours — but please let me know if you find a mistake. It even happens in textbooks! Thank you to those who alerted us of typos.
Oh a word on Glossika… it’s one of the few resources out there for Swahili. It’s not my favourite for all languages, but it’s great for Swahili, where we could understand everything form day one. Give it a try.
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The Epic List of All Swahili Verbs
Without further ado, here are all the Swahili verbs!
I’ve put examples of how all of them are conjugated in Swahili.
If you have another verb/sentence you want to add to the list — contact us any time and make a request and we’ll add the verb and/or sentence.
See below for a basic introduction to Swahili grammar in using these verbs. That introduction doesn’t cover the structures used in all these sentences. Check out our Swahili resource page (everything’s free!) for more about learning Swahili.
Downloadable/printable link: Here for a PDF in A4 size. Last updated 1 March 2020. Optimised to not waste too much paper. Check back here for updates.
| English verb | Swahili verb | English sample sentence(s) | Swahili sample sentences |
|---|---|---|---|
| to be (past/future) | -kuwa | I will be a student next year. I was hungry. You will be our guest It will be different next time. | Mwaka ijayo nitakuwa mwanafunzi. Nilikuwa na njaa. Utakuwa mgeni wetu Mara ijayo itakuwa tofauti. |
| to be (in a place) | -kuwa po/ko, kuwa po/ko | Is he there? No, he’s not here. Where are my keys? They’re on the table. I’m at home I’ll be at home/I won’t be at home I was at home/I wasn’t at home | Yuko hapa? Hapana, hayupo. Funguo zangu ziko wapi? Ziko mezani. Mimi nipo nyumbani Nitakuwepo nyumbani baadae/sitakuwepo nyumbani Nilikuwepo/sikuwepo |
| to be fine, or suitable | -faa | It’s good, it works (describing a thing) It’s no good, it doesn’t work (describing a thing) I don’t like my coworkers they’re no good. This drink is no good; those drinks are fine. | Inafaa Haifai Siwapendi wafanya kazi wenzangu, wote hawafai. Kinywaji kile hakifai, vinyiwaji hivi vinafaa. |
| to happen, to occur | -fanyika | What’s happening now? The party will happen tomorrow. | Nini inafanyika sasa? Sherehe itafanyika kesho. |
| to end | -isha | It will end soon Our time is finished. | Itaisha karibu Wakati wetu umeisha. |
| to open | -fungua | You can open the window. I opened the door. What time will the shops open? | Unaweza kufungua dirisha. Nilifungua mlango. Maduka yatafunguliwa saa ngapi? |
| to close | -funga | I closed the door. The shops will close soon. Sorry, it’s closed today. | Nilifunga mlango. Maduma yatafungwa karibu. Samahani, limefungwa leo. |
| to start/begin | -anza | I haven’t started yet. I started a week ago. | Sijaanza bado Nimeanza wiki iliyopita. |
| to inform, explain | -fahamisha | I will inform you. If there is any problem, plese let me know. | Nitakufahamisha. Ikiwa kuna shida yoyote, tafadhali nifahamisha. |
| to mean | -maanisha | What I mean is… What does this word mean? | Ninamaanisha… Neno hili linamaanisha nini? |
| to say | -sema | What are you saying? Did they say we should go? You said yesterday there will be no rain. As I was saying, we need more time. | Unasema nini? Walisema twende? Ulisema jana hatakuwa na mvua leo. Kama nilivyosema, tunahitaji muda zaidi. |
| to speak | -ongea | Do you speak English? Please speak to me in Swahili. No, I don’t speak Swahili | Unaongea kiingereza? Tafadhali ongea na mimi kwa Kiswahili. Hapana, siongei Kiswahili |
| to understand | -elewa | Do you understand? I don’t understand how to do this Did you understand? | Unaelewa? Sielewi namna ya kufanya hii Umeelewa? |
| to speak/converse | -zungumza | I want to speak Swahili with you I spoke with you yesterday | Nataka kuzungumza Kiswahili na wewe Nilizungumza na wewe jana! |
| to request, ask for | -omba | I’d like [to order] bananas and meat. We’d like [to order] fish I’d like some help. | Naomba ndizi na nyama. Tunaomba samaki Naomba msaada. |
| to tell | -ambia | She told me to come today. Did they say we should go today? | Aliniambia nije leo. Je, walituambia twende leo? |
| to write | -andika | Write [it] here. I’ve written two books. Can you write it? | Andika hapa Nimeshaandika vitabu viwili. Unaweza kuandika? |
| to show | kuonyesha | Let me show you! Can you show me? I want to show her | Hebu nikuonyeshe! Unaweza kunionyesha? Ninataka kumwonyesha. |
| to recommend | -sifia | What food do you recommend? | Unasifia chakula gani? |
| to communicate (with each other) | -wasiliana | We can communicate in Swahili My goal is to be able to communicate | Tunaweza kuwasiliana kwa Kiswahili sasa Lengo langu ni kuwasiliiana |
| to confirm/to make sure | -hakikisha | I have to confirm something. Make sure you understand what he tells you. | Ninahitaji kuhakikisha kitu. Hakikisha unaelewa ambacho anakuambia |
| to read, to study | -soma | I need to study I read an article about politics this morning | Ninahitaji kusoma Nilisoma makala kuhusu siasa asubuhi |
| to explain | -eleza (from elewa) | I can’t explain it well. He explained it to us. I explained it to you once. | Siwezi kueleza vizuri. Alitueleza. Nilikueleza mara moja. |
| to be called, to be named | -itwa | My name is Dana, what’s your name? What’s this thing called in Swahili? What is your brother’s name? | Ninaitwa dana, unaitwa nani? Kitu hiki kinaitwa nini kwa Kiswahili? Kaka yako anaitwa nani? |
| to come from, out of | -toka | I come from Australia. Where are you from? I just came from eating. | Ninatoka Australia. Unatoka wapi? Nimetoka kula. |
| to live/live at | -ishi | It’s the first time they lived outside the house We live together We don’t live here | Ni mara ya kwanza wameishi nje ya nyumba Tunaishi pamoja Hatuishi hapa |
| to stay (to live in a place) | -kaa | You can sit here We’re staying for two weeks. Where do you (pl) live? We don’t live in the village; we live in the city. | Unaweza kukaa hapa. Tunakaa kwa wiki mbili. Mumekaa wapi? Hatukai kijijini, tunakaa mjini. |
| to die | -kufa | You might die! I won’t die today. | Unaweza kufa! Sitakufa leo. |
| to be born | -zaliwa | Where were you born? I was born in London | Umezaliwa wapi? Nimezaliwa London |
| to give, offer, take out, subtract | -toa | I got divorced They gave them money. | nimetoa talaka Waliwatolea pesa |
| to pay | -lipa | I didn’t want to pay We want to pay now We will pay tomorrow | Sikutaka kulipa pesa Ninataka kulipa sasa Tutalipa kesho |
| to give | -pa (pea) | It will give us more time. I can’t give you money, but I can give you food. I gave you 1000. | Itatupea muda zaidi. Siwezi kukupea pesa, lakini naweza kukupea chakula. Nilikupea elfu moja. |
| to get, to find | -pata | I will get water later. I need to get more food. I found eggs but they were very expensive! | Nitapata maji baadaye. Ninahitaji kupata chakula zaidi. Nilipata mayai lakini yalikuwa ghali san! |
| to bring | -leta | Did you bring money? I forgot to bring my wallet. Can you bring us a bottle of water? I brought you bread. | Umeleta pesa? Nimesahau kuleta mkoba wangu. Unaweza kutuletea chupa ya maji? Nilikuletea mkate. |
| to take | -chukua | How long will this journey take? It will take two hours Take this money. | Safari hii itachukua muda gani? Itachukua saa mbili Chukua pesa hizi. |
| to put | -weka | Where should I put it? Put the plate there. Where did you put the keys? | Nikiweke wapi? Weka sahani huko. Uliweka funguo wapi? |
| to take | -peleka | You can take the eggs I have taken your time | Unaweza kupeleka mayai Nilipeleka wakati wako |
| to carry | -beba | I can carry your bag | Ninaweza kubeba begi yako |
| to pass (by), to turn | -pita | Do not pass here Turn left here | Usipite hapa Pita kushoto hapa |
| to pick up | -otoka | It fell and I picked it up | Imeshuka na niliiotoka |
| to send | -tuma (tumia for “to” someone) | I sent you an email Did you receive the thing I sent you? | Nilikutumia baruapepe Umepokea kito ambacho nilikutumia? |
| to receive | -pokea | Did you receive the message I sent you? | Umepokea ujumbe ambao nilikutumia? |
| to come | -kuja | I’m coming on foot The cat came inside | Ninakuja kwa miguu Paka alikuja ndani |
| to go | -elekea | Where are you going? Heading home now | Unaelekea wapi? Naelekea nyumbani sasa. |
| to leave, depart | -ondoka | The train will leave at 11 We’ll leave tomorrow morning Leave! | Treni itaondoka saa tano asubuhi Tunaondoka kesho asubuhi Ondoka! |
| to come back, to return | -rudi | We’ll come back every day I’ll come back in five minutes | Tutarudi kila siku Nitarudi baada dakika tano |
| to visit/pass through (place) | -pitia | How many countries have you visited? | Ulipitia nchi ngapi? |
| to do | -fanya | What are you doing They already did it | Unafanya nini? Wameshafanya kitu |
| to have | -na, kuwa na | I have a pen Excuse me, I don’t have time now When I was young I had a dog | Ninayo kalamu Samahani, sina muda sasa Nilipokuwa mdogo nilikuwa na mbwa |
| to go, to travel | -kwenda | I’ll go by car Where are you going? Go straight ahead | Nitakwenda kwa gari Unakwenda wapi? Nenda moja kwa moja |
| to arrive, come to | -fika | Fortunately, you can come to class by foot. The train will arrive at 9:30am We arrived! | Kwa bahati wewe unaweza kufika darasani kwa miguu. Treni itafika saa tatu na nusu asubuhu Tulifika! |
| to walk, take a walk | -tembea | It’s not far, so I prefer to walk. Can I walk here? | Siyo mbali sana, kwa hivyo ninapendelea kutembea. Je, naweza kutembea hapa? |
| to be lost | -potea | I’m lost! Are you lost? No we’re not lost. | Nimepotea! Mumepotea? La, hatujapotea. |
| to turn (left/right) | -pinda | Turn right, then turn left | Pinda kulia, halafu pinda kushoto |
| to arrive at | -fikia | We have arrived at the hotel a little early You’ve already arrived at home? | Tumefikia hoteli mapema kidogo Mumeshafikia nyumbani? |
| to run | -kimbia | I ran 20km today | Nilikimbia kilomita ishirini leo. |
| to use | -tumia | I’m learning using a book. You can use this pen. I want to use a phone. | Ninakujifunza kwa kutumia kitabu. Unaweza kutumia kalamu hii. Nataka kutumia simu |
| to buy | -nunua | We need to buy more milk. I bought you something. | Tunahitaji kununua maziwa zaidi. Nilikununulia kitu |
| to sell | -uza | They want to sell us things How much are you selling it for? (You sell it for what price?) What food are you selling? Maybe we can sell them | Wanataka kutuuzia vitu Unauza bei gani? Unauza chakula gani? Labda tunaweza kuwauza. |
| to eat | -kula | Eat! I want to eat something | Kula! Ninataka kula kitu |
| to wash (things) | -osha, -nawa | I’m washing my face, hands. | Ninaosha uso. Ninanawa uso, mikono |
| to turn off | -zima | Turn off the light. I forgot to turn off the light | Zima taa Nimesahau kuzima taa |
| to turn on | -kuwasha | Turn on the light | Washa taa. |
| to make | -tengeneza | I’m making bread. | Ninatengeneza mkate. |
| to add | -ongeza | Add a little sugar It’s too little. Add a little more (money) | Ongeza kidogo sukari Ni rahisi sana, ongeza kidogo |
| to reduce | -punguza | Please try to reduce the price for me Reduce [the price] for me! | Tafadhali jaribu kunipunguza bei! Nipunguzie! |
| to leave (something) | -acha | Leave [it] here. He left the others inside | Acha hapa. Aliwaacha watu wengine humo ndani |
| to organise, to prepare | -anda | I organised everything. She organised a party for me! | Nilianda kila kitu. Aliniandalia sherehe! |
| to mix | -changanya | I don’t like to mix different foods You mix flour and water We mix languages. | Sipendi kuchaganya vyakula tofauti. Unachanganya unga na maji Tunachanganya lugha |
| to bite | -uma | The dog might bite you. | Mbwa anaweza kukuuma |
| to boil (food) | -chemsha | Boil the water. I boil the water, but then I forget right away. | Chemsha maji. Ninachemsha maji, lakini halafu ninasahau mara moja. |
| to cut | -kata | Cut the pineapple with a knife! I cut myself. | Kata nanasi kwa kisu! Nimejikata. |
| to modify, to adapt, repair, fix | -rekebisha | We can modify the style We’ll fix the window tomorrow. | Tunaweza kurekebisha mtindo. Tutarekebisha dirisha kesho. |
| to drink | -kunywa | Drink! | Kunywa! (pronounced kunioa) |
| to break | -vunja | Who broke it? I broke it! | Nani aliivunja? Niliivunja! |
| to break (itself) | -vunjika | The window broke! | Dirisha limevunjika! |
| to lose | -poteza | I lost it! I lost my key | Niliipoteza. Nilipoteza ufunguo wangu |
| to look for | -tafuta | I’m looking for my friend. I’ll have to find her. | Ninatafuta rafiki yangu. Nitahitaji kumtafuta |
| to know | -jua | I know this person I don’t know, do you know? | Namjua! Sijui, unajua? |
| to remember | -kumbuka | Now I remember. Remember your phone! I just remembered. | Sasa ninakumbuka. Kumbuka simu yako! Nilikumbuka tu. |
| to forget | -sahau | I forgot I didn’t forget what you said (your news) | Nimesahau Sisahau habari zako |
| to ask | -uliza | I will ask I want to ask a question | Nitauliza Nataka kuuliza swali. |
| to learn | -jifunza | I have to study more We’re learning Swahili here. We have been learning for two weeks. | Ninahitaji kujifunza zaidi. Tunajifunza Kiswahili hapa. Tumejifunza kwa wiki mbili. |
| to remind | -kumbusha | Can you remind me? Otherwise I’ll forget. I’ll remind you later. | Unaweza kunikumbushia? Vinginevyo nitasahau. Nitakukumbushia. |
| to be wrong | -kosea | You are wrong! I thought the village was close, but I was wrong. | Umekosea! Nilifikiri kijiji kilikuwa karibu na hapa, lakini nimekosea. |
| to think | -fikiri | I thought it was something different What do you think we should do? | Nilifikiri ilikuwa kitu tofauti Unafikiri tunapaswa kufanya nini? |
| to be able to, can | -weza | Can you please help me? I wanted to go, but I wasn’t able to. | Je unaweza kunisaidia? Nilitaka kuenda pale, lakini sikuweza. |
| to be going to | -enda | What are you going to buy? | Unaenda kununua nini? |
| to have to | -takiwa | You have to try once. Children should be told what to do. | Unatakiwa kujaribu mara moja. Watoto wanatakiwa kuelezwa. |
| to ‘should’ | -paswa | You should come. I realised I should have gone. | Unapaswa kuja. Nilitambua kuwa nilipaswa kwenda. |
| to like | -penda | Do you like bananas? I don’t like it much She didn’t like it. | Unapenda ndizi? Sipendi sana. Hakuipenda. |
| to be thirsty | -na kiu, -ona kiu | I’m thirsty. Are you thirsty? | Nina kiu/Naona kiu. Una/Uona kiu? |
| to be satisfied, full (after eating) | -shiba | Are you full? I’m full, thanks | Umeshiba? Nimeshiba, asante |
| to get tired | -choka | Are you tired? | Umechoka? |
| to prefer | -pendelea | I prefer to wake up early. | Ninapendelea kuamka mapema. |
| to be afraid of, to be scared | -ogopa | I am afraid of accidents Foreigners are afraid of getting sick. Don’t be scared! | Ninaogopa ajali Wageni wanaogopa kuumwa. Usiogope! |
| to be used to | -zoea | I’m used to the heat We have to get used to it. I’m not used to the humidity. Are you used to the food? | Nimezoea joto Tunahitaji kuzoea Sijazoea mvuke Umezoea chakula? |
| to hate, dislike | -chukia | Something I hate a lot… | Kitu ambacho ninachukia sana… |
| to listen | -sikiliza | Are you listening? Sorry, I wasn’t listening | Unasikiliza? Samahani, sikusikiliza |
| to hear | -sikia | Can you hear the sound of that bird? I heard his news | Unasikia sauti ya ndege ile? Nilisikia habari zake |
| to see | -ona | Let’s see… What do you think? See you tomorrow | Natuone… Unaionaje? Tuonane kesho |
| to look at, to watch | -angalia | Look, a lion! Don’t look at me! It’s free to look | Angalia! Simba! Usiniangalie! Kuangalia ni bure |
| to help | -saidia | Can I help you? Can you help us? | Naweza kukusaidia? Unaweza kutusaidia? |
| to wait | -subiri | Wait for a minute please I have waited for half an hour. | Subiri tafadhali Nilisubiri kwa muda wa nusu saa. |
| to stand up/stop (bus, taxi) | -simama | Please stop here. Don’t stand close to me. | Tafadhali simama hapa. Usimame karibu na mimi. |
| to wake (oneself) up | -amka | I wake up very early What time did you wake up? How did you sleep (lit. wake up)? | Mimi huamka mapema sana Umeamka saa ngapi? Umeamka vipi? |
| to cook | -pika | Can you show me how to cook octopus? I cooked dinner for you | Unaweza kunionyesha namna ya kupika pweza? Nilikupikia chakula cha jioni |
| to have a shower | -oga bafuni | I have to have a shower twice a day | Ninahitaji kuoga bafuni mara mawili kila siku |
| to rest | -pumzika | I need to rest today She needs to rest | Nahitaji kupumzika leo Lazima apumzike |
| to sleep | -lala | She likes to sleep more. He’s asleep! Sleep well! | Yeye anapenda kulala zaidi. Amelala! Lala salama! |
| to relax | -starehe | I usually relax after a lesson. | Mimi hustarehe baada ya darasa |
| to order | -agiza | We (would like to) some food Would you like to order now? | Tunaagiza chakula Munataka kuagiza sasa? |
| to buy (cut) tickets | -kata tiketi | When you get tickets, you can choose your food. | Ukikata tiketi, utaweza kuchagua chakula chako. |
| to hope | -tumaini | I hope you liked it. Small businesses hope Obama’s visit will lift their business. | Ninatumaini umependa. Wafanyabiashara wadogo wanatumaini ziara ya Obama kuinua biashara zao. |
| to be married (female) | -olewa | Are you (f) married? Yes, I (f) am married No, I (f) am not yet married | Je, umeolewa? Ndiyo, nimeshaolewa. Hapana, bado sijaolewa. |
| to be married (male), to marry | -oa | When I was married Are you (m) married sir? Yes, I’m (m) married. No, I’m (m) not yet married He married again | Nilipokuwa nimeoa… Umeoa bwana? Ndiyo, nimeshaoa. Hapana, bado sijaoa Ameoa tena |
| to hope, to plan | -tegemea | When do you hope to come? We hope to arrive at 4pm. | Unategemea kuja lini? Tunategemea … |
| to give birth | -zaa | When will you give birth? | Utazaa lini? |
| late, to be late | -chelewa | We’re going to be late! | Tutachelewa! |
| to watch | -tazama | I am watching television I like watching TV, but not much | Ninatazama TV Ninapenda kutazama TV, lakini si mengi |
| to be enough | -tosha | One kilo is enough I don’t have enough money now. We don’t have enough time | Kilo moja kinatosha Sina pesa za kutosha sasa. Hatuna muda wa kutosha |
| to feel cold (see/hear) | ona baridi, sikia baridi (see/hear) | I feel cold. Do you feel cold? | Ninaona/Ninasikia baridi. Unaona/Unasikia baridi? |
| to think (Bantu) | -waza | I thought you said you were hungry. And now? | Niliwaza umesema unanjaa. Na sasa? |
| to answer | -jibu | I can answer Can you answer this question? | Naweza kujibu Unaweza kujibu swali hili? |
| to swim | -ogelea | I can’t swim well. If the water were warm, I’d have swum | Siwezi kuogelea vizuri. Ikiwa maji yangalikuwa joto, ningaliogelea. |
| to wash (self, hands) | -nawa | I need to wash my hands | Ninahitaji kunawa mikono. |
| to watch (television) | -angaliza | I like watching television | Napenda san kuangaliza TV. |
| to try | -jaribu | I try to speak with everyone. | Ninajaribu kuzungumza na kila mtu. |
| to argue | -gombana | Why are we arguing? They argue all the time. | Kwa nini tunagombana? Wanagombana siku zote. |
| to dance, to play | -cheza | We will dance tonight! | Tutacheza usiku! |
| to agree | -kubali | I agree Do you agree? She agrees. I disagree completely! | Nakubali. Unakubali? Anakubali. Sikubali kabisa! |
| to disagree | -bisha | I disagree! | Nabisha! |
| to enter, go inside, go in | -ingia | Can we go inside here? | Tunaweza kuingia kwa hapa? |
| to expect, hope, wait for | -tarajia | Today I expect to come at 2 | Leo natarajia kuja saa nane. |
| to continue, to keep | -endelea | Continue, please. We’re going to keep using it. | Tafadhali endelea. Tutaendelea kuutumia. |
| to wear, to put on | -vaa | Put on a hat I’m wearing a hat They’re wearing shoes | Vaa kofia Nimevaa kofia Wamevaa viatu |
| hunger/to feel hungry | -ona njaa | Are you hungry? I’m hungry. | Unaona njaa? Naona njaa |
| to taste | -onja | Taste this! Can I taste? | Onja hili! Naweza kuionja? |
| to phone someone | -piga simu | Call me tomorrow. I’ll call you later. | Nipigia simu kesho. Nitakupigia simu baadaye. |
| to pray | -sali | Do you pray five times a day? | Unasali mara tano kwa siku? |
| to clean | -safisha (from -safa) | I’m cleaning the plates. You don’t need to clean today. | Ninawasafisha sahani Huhitaji kusafisha leo. |
| to touch | -gusa | I touched my eyes. I touched it. Don’t touch me! | Niliyagusa macho. Niliigusa Usiniguse! |
| to realize, recognise | -tambua | I realized it was not true. | Nilitambua kwamba hii ni si kweli. |
| to decide | -amua | We decided to go. My uncle decided to start a business. I decided I want to see my family more. | Tuliamua kwenda Mjomba wangu aliamua kuanza biashara. Niliamua kwamba nataka kuona zaidi familia yangu. |
| share (ar.), to participate | -shiriki | We will share everything. Every person wants to participate. Girls can also participate. | Tutashiriki kila kitu. Kila mtu anataka kushiriki. Wasichana wanaweza pia kushiriki. |
| share | -gawana | We will share everything. | Tutagawana kila kitu. |
| to sing | -imba | She is good at singing Sing a song! | Yeye Nni mzuri katika kuimba Imba wimbo! |
| to laugh/smile | -cheka | Smile! (to group) What’s so funny? | Chekeni! Unacheka nini? |
| to play | -cheza | What game are you playing? Can I play with you? | Mnacheza mchezo gani?Naweza kucheza na ninyi? |
| to be happyx | -furahi | Are you happy? We had a lot of fun. If I lived in America, I wouldn’t be happy. | Umefurahi? Tulifurahi sana. Ningaliishi America, nisingalifurahi. |
| to be angry | -kasirika | Why are you angry? Don’t be angry. | Umekasirika kwa nini? Usikasirike. |
| to cross (a road) | -vuka | Cross this street | Vuka barabara hii |
| to be sick, in pain | -umwa | I’m sick. I have a stomach-ache, or headache She’s sick If I eat eggs, I don’t get sick | Ninaumwa. Ninaumwa na tumbo/kichwa Naumwa tumbo/kichwa Anaumwa Ningekula mayai, nisingeumwa |
| to finish | -maliza | The lesson is finished What time will it finish? We should finish now. Have you finished yet? If we hurry now, we’ll finish our work | Darasa alimaliza Itamaliza lini/saa ngapi? Tunapaswa kumaliza sasa Umemaliza bado? Kama tukifanya haraka, tutamaliza kazi yetu. |
| to be closed | -fungwa | What time do they close? The shop closed. | Duka limefungwa. Yanafungwa saa ngapi? |
| to feel | -hisi | I feel hot | Nahisi joto |
| to look like (sw) | -fanana kama/na | You look like your brother It looks a little big | Unafanana kama kaka yako Linafanana nkubwa kidogo |
| to look like (thing) | -onekana | It looks like an apple. | Inaonekana tofaa. |
| to rain | -nyesha | It’ll rain tonight It’ll continue to rain for two weeks. | Kutanyesha usiku Kutaendelea kunyesha muda wiki wawili. |
| to improve | -jitahidi | You’re improving | Unajitahidi! |
| to feel (listen) | -sikia | I feel good being here. | Najisikia vizuri kuwa hapa. |
| to change, exchange with | -badilishana | Did you exchange money with anyone else? | Umebadilishana pesa na watu wengi? |
| to kill | -ua | I killed the fly! | Niliua nzi! |
| to mean | -maana/-maanisha | It means… They mean the same thing | Inamaana/inamaanisha… Yanamaanisha sawa. |
| to drive (a car) | -endesha | They drive 3 hours a day | Wanaendesha masaa matatu kila siku. |
| to plan (to) | -panga | They’re organising a function We plan to go to Kenya next month | Wanapanga shehere. Tunapanga kuenda Kenya mwezi ijayo |
| to choose | -chagua | I can’t choose one. | Sijui kuchagua moja. |
| to teach | -funza | I’ll teach you English. | Nitakufunza Kiingereza. |
| to hurry | -fanya haraka | Can you hurry? | Unaweza kufanya haraka? (or Unaweza haraka?) |
| to build | -jenga | They are building a new house | Wanajenga nyumba mpya |
| to be shocked | -shtuka | I was shocked! | Nilishtuka! |
| to be interesting, to look great | -pendeza | She looks great today! You look great! | Anapendeza leo! Umependeza! |
| to worry | -sumbuka | Don’t worry! | Usisumbuke! |
| to grow up | -kulia | She grew up by the sea | Alikulia karibu ya bahari |
| to be cold | -a baridi | It was cold this morning It’ll be cold next month | Kulikuwa na baridi asubuhi Kutakuwa na baridi mwezi ijayo |
| to visit | -tembelea | Will they visit another place? I visit my familiy once a year. | Watatembelea sehemu nyingine? Ninatembelea familia yangu mara moja kwa mwaka. |
| to fast | -funga | In East Africa, Muslims on average will fast for 13 hours a day. | Afrika Mashariki, Waislamu kwa wastani watafunga saa 13 kwa siku. |
| to cry | -lia | Don’t cry! I don’t know why he is crying. | Usilie! Sijui kwa nini analia. |
| to compare, to be comapared | -linganisha (linganishwa = to be compared) | I can’t compare these things If you compared me to other people | Siwezi kulinganisha vitu hivi Nikilinganishwa na watu wengine |
| to spoil | -haribika | It spoils, gets destroyed This milk has spoiled | Kinaharibika Maziwa hawa yameharibika |
| to steal | -iba | I’m afraid they will steal it The monkeys will steal your food | Ninaogopa wataiiba Nyani wataiba chakula chako |
| to believe | -amini | I believe you. Do you believe me? I don’t believe it! | Ninakuamini Unaniamini? Siamini! |
| to be proud | -jivunia | It’s nothing to be proud of | Siyo kitu cha kujivunia |
| to be required to | -stahili | I am required to go to work | Ninastahili kwenda kufanya kazi. |
| to think about (consider) | -fikiria | I’ll think about your offer | Nitafikiria ombi lako. |
| to put on weight, to be fat | -nenepa | My friend got fat I don’t want to get fat | Rafiki yangu amenenepa Sitaki kunenepa |
| To get thin, to be thin | -konda | I got very thin | Nimekonda sana |
| to quit | -acha | I quit my job! Don’t quit your job! | Niliacha kazi yangu! Usiacha kazi yako! |
| to approach, to be about to be | -karibia | I’m approaching old age We’re approaching the city He’s about to arrive | Ninakaribia kuwa mzee Tunakaribia mji sasa Anakaribia kufika |
| to fall | -anguka | I fell in the mud Don’t fall! | Nilianguka chini katika matope. Usianguke chini! |
| to permit, to allow | -ruhusu | They don’t allow it | Hawairuhusu |
| to rent (to let out) to rent (receive) | -kodisha -kodishwa | Do you rent (out) motorcycles here? Yesterday we rented a motorcycle We want to rent a motorcycle for one day. | Munakodisha pikipiki hapa? Jana tulikodishwa pikipiki Nataka kukodishwa pikipiki kwa siku moja. |
| to trust | -na imani na | I trust you! You don’t trust this country. | Nina imani na wewe Wewe huna imani na nchi hii |
| to call (someone a name) | -ita | What do they call you? They call me mzungu | Unaitwa nini? (itwa = passive form of ita) Wananiita mzungu |
| to pass away | -fariki | His parents passed away | Wazazi wake walifariki |
| to worry, care | -jali | Don’t worry! Do you even care? | Usijali! Unajali hata? |
| to fry | -kaanga | It’s good for frying. | Ni nzuri kwa kukaanga. |
| to study (in university) | -somea | She’s studying martial arts. The students are studying under the trees. | Anasomea elimu ya kupigana. Wanafunzi sasa wanasomea chini ya miti. |
| to strengthen | -imarisha | Cardio exercise (exercise that strengthens the heart) is very important | Mazoezi ya kuimarisha moyo ni muhimu sama |
| to educate | -elimisha | My goal is to educate people Empowering a woman without educating a man is futile | Lengo langu ni kuelimisha watu Kuwezesha mwanamke bila kuelimisha mwanaume ni bure |
| to wish | -tamani | I wish I had more money I wish you would come | Ninatamani niwe pesa zaidi Ninatamani uje |
Notes on Conjugating Swahili Verbs
Conjugating Swahili verbs is pretty easy, but of course it takes a lot of practise — and there’s a lot of nuance.
A pretty good reference for Swahili grammar is the Kansas University website. It may take a while to go through it all…
We’re putting together a full grammar guide to Swahili, covering using verbs in Swahili as well as many other cases. It’s in draft form right now (as of early 2020), but if you join our mailing list, we’ll let you know when it’s published (we’re not sure but we might just give it away).
In brief, Swahili verbs are based on stems. The stems usually don’t change, and go in the middle of a verb.
The structure of a simple conjugated Swahili verb is
PREFIX — TENSE MARKER — VERB STEM
Pronouns (like “I”, “you” etc.) do exist, but usually are only for emphasis or more complex sentences. People usually just use a pronoun prefix. These are:
| Person | Pronoun prefix |
|---|---|
| I | ni- |
| You | u- |
| He/she | a- |
| We | tu- |
| You | m-/mu- (depending on whether a vowel follows or not) |
| They | wa- |
The second part of conjugating Swahili verbs is the tense marker.
The tense marker goes between the pronoun marker and the verb stem.
So a typical Swahili verb, conjugated, looks like:
- I want: I-present-want
- She went: He/she-past-go
- Will you eat?: You-future-eat?
Here are the most common tense markers used for conjugating Swahili verbs:
| Tense | Tense marker |
|---|---|
| Present | -na- |
| Past | -li- |
| Past completed | -me- |
| Future | -ta- |
Now for some examples, putting them all together.
| English | Construction | Swahili |
|---|---|---|
| I want | I-present-want | Ni+na+taka = Ninataka |
| She went | He/she-past-go | A+li+enda = Alienda |
| Will you eat? | You+future+eat | U+ta+kula = Utakula? |
That’s just a brief introduction into conjugating Swahili verbs.
There’s lots more to know, like
- How to use direct and indirect objects (like “I will eat it“, or “I will give it to you“)
- More complicated constructions like saying “if” (which also goes inside the verb)
- And much more…
Again if you’re interested, sign up to our email list and we’ll let you know when the grammar guide is done. It’ll be awesome!
I loved it im working hard to learn six languages. Kiswahili is one of them. This page was super helpful. Im truly thankful. P.S. I wrote all the verbs in kiswahili study book as well. Thanks and keep up the great work.
Mimi no mto was Uganda….I love ths website coz t has done alot to help me learn some kiswahili…Asante sana
Yes
Thank you very much for your help. I’m from Zanzibar, Swahili language in my mother tongue and I trie to learn English and Arabic language.