“Having” - the -enye particle
This particle means “having” or sometimes “becoming”. It takes the verb prefix for the thing being referred to. More than 90% of the time, it’s seen as kwenye, meaning “at” (a colloquial form of ku-enye, where the ku- references a location).
| Class | M-Wa and people, animals | M-Mi | Ji-Ma | Ki-Vi | N | U | Pa | Ku | Mu |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | mwenye | yenye | lenye | chenye | yenye | yenye | penye | kwenye | mwenye |
| Plural | wenye | yenye | yenye | vyenye | zenye | zenye |
Examples of the “having” -enye particle:
| English | Noun | Type of reference. | Referential conford | Swahiili |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| At/on the bus | basi (bus) | a location (ku) | kwenye | Kwenye basi |
| a person with wealth | mtu (person) | person (m-wa) | mwenye | mwenye mali |
| a book with pictures | kitabu (book) | book (ki-vi) | chenye | kitabu chenye picha |