Learn how to ask whether something is what you think it is
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get a breakdown of the dialogue and translations instantly with the Premium line-by-line Audio. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Unlock Lesson Notes and Transcripts for every single lesson. Sign Up for a Free Lifetime Account and Get 7 Days of Premium Access.
| INTRODUCTION |
| Brandon: Hello everyone, and welcome back to SwahiliPod101.com. This is Absolute Beginner, season 1, lesson 9 - Asking Questions in Swahili. My name is Brandon. |
| Medina: Jambo, My name’s Medina. |
| Brandon: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to ask about objects in Swahili, and can confirm your impressions of the object and express appreciation for it. |
| Medina: So Brandon, where does the conversation take place? |
| Brandon: The conversation takes place in a house. A visitor, Musa, has traveled some distance and brought a gift for the host, Fatuma. |
| Medina: The conversation is between close friends, so they’ll be using informal Swahili. |
| Brandon: Let’s listen to the conversation. |
Lesson conversation |
|---|
| Fatuma: Usharudi Mwenzangu? |
| Musa: Ndio nilirudi leo asubuhi. |
| Fatuma: Habari ya Ujerumani? |
| Musa: Salama kabisa. |
| Fatuma: Safari ilipendeza kweli, naona uko na mzigo. |
| Musa: Ni yako hii fungua. |
| Fatuma: Hii ni manukato? |
| Musa: Ndio, hii ni manukato kutoka Ujerumani. |
| Fatuma: Kweli naona unanijali. Asante sana. |
| Musa: Karibu. |
| Brandon: Let’s hear the conversation one time slowly. |
| Fatuma: Usharudi Mwenzangu? |
| Musa: Ndio nilirudi leo asubuhi. |
| Fatuma: Habari ya Ujerumani? |
| Musa: Salama kabisa. |
| Fatuma: Safari ilipendeza kweli, naona uko na mzigo. |
| Musa: Ni yako hii fungua. |
| Fatuma: Hii ni manukato? |
| Musa: Ndio, hii ni manukato kutoka Ujerumani. |
| Fatuma: Kweli naona unanijali. Asante sana. |
| Musa: Karibu. |
| Brandon: Now let’s hear it with the English translation. |
| Fatuma: Usharudi Mwenzangu? |
| Brandon: Have you already come back, my dear? |
| Musa: Ndio nilirudi leo asubuhi. |
| Brandon: Yes, I came back this morning. |
| Fatuma: Habari ya Ujerumani? |
| Brandon: How was Germany? |
| Musa: Salama kabisa. |
| Brandon: Really well. |
| Fatuma: Safari ilipendeza kweli, naona uko na mzigo. |
| Brandon The journey was worthwhile. I can see you have a package. |
| Musa: Ni yako hii fungua. |
| Brandon: This is yours; you can open it. |
| Fatuma: Hii ni manukato? |
| Brandon: Is this perfume? |
| Musa: Ndio, hii ni manukato kutoka Ujerumani. |
| Brandon: Yes, it is. This is perfume from Germany. |
| Fatuma: Kweli naona unanijali. Asante sana. |
| Brandon: I can see that you care for real. Thanks a lot. |
| Musa: Karibu. |
| Brandon: You’re welcome. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Brandon: Medina, why is it important to know how to ask a question in Swahili? |
| Medina: Well, Kenyans have a habit of asking about something even when they can see it! It expresses excitement. |
| Brandon: So how do you express this in Swahili? |
| Medina: Hii ni nini? |
| Brandon: Meaning, “What is this?” Are there any gestures accompanying the words? |
| Medina: There are! Kenyans will point at the object with an expression on their faces that depends on their expectation. |
| Brandon: So in a situation like this dialogue, the recipient of the gift is sure to be smiling and excited. |
| Medina: That’s right. Fatuma is happy at the thought of receiving the present. |
| Brandon: And is perfume a common gift in Kenya? |
| Medina: Perfume is one of the best gifts that you can give someone in Kenya. Kenyans love to look and smell good. And when people travel far away, people back home expect gifts upon their return. |
| Brandon: Well, we know from past lessons that Kenyans are very generous. |
| Medina: And, as an expression of disbelief or excitement, Kenyans may ask questions just to confirm that whatever they’re seeing or hearing is true. |
| Brandon: So, for example, if a wife has received some expensive jewelry from her husband, who just got back from a trip, she may ask, “Is this real gold?” |
| Medina: That’s right. Although she is questioning the gift, she is actually showing appreciation by asking about it. If you’re coming to see a friend in Kenya, bringing a gift will be appreciated. |
| Brandon: That’s a good tip. Okay, now on to the vocab. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Brandon: Let's review the vocabulary for this lesson. The first phrase is... |
| Medina: ...hii ni. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: this is... |
| Medina: Hii ni... [slowly - broken down by syllable] Hii ni... [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Next we have... |
| Medina: ...ndio. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: yes |
| Medina: Ndio. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Ndio. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Our next word is... |
| Medina: ...manukato. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: perfume |
| Medina: Manukato. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Manukato. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Next... |
| Medina: ...kutoka. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: from |
| Medina: Kutoka. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Kutoka. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Next we have... |
| Medina: ...safari. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: journey |
| Medina: Safari. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Safari. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Our next phrase is... |
| Medina: ...usharudi. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Have you already come back? |
| Medina: Usharudi. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Usharudi. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Next... |
| Medina: ...Ujerumani. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Germany |
| Medina: Ujerumani. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Ujerumani. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: Our last word is... |
| Medina: ...salama. [natural native speed] |
| Brandon: safe |
| Medina: Salama. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Salama. [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| Brandon: Let’s take a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Medina: The first phrase we’ll look at is hii ni... You use this phrase as a pronoun to refer to or point to something or somewhere. |
| Brandon: It can be a product or object... |
| Medina: Such as manukato, or “perfume,” as it was in this dialogue. Products belong to noun class of words. The hii ni phrase can either be used to ask a question, or reply to a question. For example, hii ni nywele yangu halisi… |
| Brandon: Meaning, “This is my real hair.” We use the same words to ask the question and just change the pronoun from “my” to “your.” |
| Medina: For example, Hii ni nywele yako halisi? |
| Brandon: “Is this your real hair?” |
| Medina: Moving on, let’s look at ndio and la. |
| Brandon: These mean “yes” and “no” and are the two Swahili interjections you use to answer questions. We’ve discussed these before. |
| Medina: They’re the most common way to answer a question. |
| Brandon: Then we have another phrase. |
| Medina: Safari ilikuwaje? is a phrase you use to ask “How was your journey?” The word aje, meaning “how,” comes at the end of the sentence. |
| Brandon Okay, now on to the grammar. |
Lesson focus |
| Brandon: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to ask questions. |
| Medina: Learning to ask questions is important. If you don’t ask, then others may think you understand something, when in fact you don’t. |
| Brandon: So how do I say, “What’s this?” Listeners, do you remember? |
| Medina: Hii ni nini? |
| Brandon: That’s right. |
| Medina: Yes, Hii ni .. literally means “This is …” To ask a question in Swahili, the structure is hii ni plus the object. In our dialogue, Fatuma said, hii ni manukato? |
| Brandon: This question is used to confirm your impression about something, when you think you know what it is, but aren’t sure. |
| Medina: And you can ask about something, somewhere, or someone. |
| Brandon: The composition of the question sentence is a pronoun, plus a noun, and then an interrogative particle. |
| Medina: So let’s look at aje, or “how,” as the interrogative word. |
| Brandon: You use this to ask about people’s feelings or actions, or the status of something, such as the weather. |
| Medina: For example, you can say, nilisikia ati bibi yako ni mgonjwa. Anajihisi aje? |
| Brandon: Meaning, “I heard that your wife is sick. How’s she feeling?” |
| Medina: If you want to know about something in English, people usually use different question words. |
| Brandon: That’s right. The words are “How, who, what and where.” |
| Medina: The same adverbs are used in Swahili, and they are aje, nini, nani, and wapi respectively. |
| Brandon: You can use all of these words in asking questions. So be sure to give it a try! |
Outro |
| Brandon: Well, that’s all for this lesson. Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time. |
| Medina: Kwaheri ya kuonana. |
| Brandon: Bye! |
Comments
Hide