“I”, “You” or “It” in Verbs: Subject Prefixes
Shortcut: This is usually one of the following:
| Person | I | you | he/she, or animate objects | inanimate object/s (n class) | we | you (pl.) | they |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Positive | ni- | u- | a- | i-/zi- | tu- | m- | wa- |
| Negative | si- | hu- | ha- | hai-/hazi- | hatu- | ham- | hau- |
These are the prefixes that you attach to the beginning of a verb.
For all animated objects, this is “A/wa” class. Mostly, animate objects are the items doing things, e.g. the man is coming here. So in nearly all cases, it will be a or wa.
There are a few things that “do” things other than people or animals, and they’re usually man-made objects like airplanes. Those are usually I/Zi-class, and for those, the prefix is i- or z-.
Examples of subject prefixes in verbs with example sentences:
| English | Noun | Class | Conjugation | Swahili |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| My friend isn’t coming now. | rafiki (friend) | a/wa | **ha-**kuji/ha-ji | Rafiki yangu hakuji/haji |
| The dog is not eating today. | mbwa (dog) | a/wa | **ha-**kuli/ha -li | Mbwa hakuli leo. |
| The plane has left | ndege (plane) | i-zi | **i-**meondoka | Ndege imeondoka. |
| The cars are arriving now. | gari (car) | li-ya | **ya-**nakuja | Magari yanakuja sasa. (this is an exception to the simplification above!) |
| The fridge doesn’t work. | friji (fridge) | i-zi | **hai-**fanyi kazi | Friji haifanyi kazi. |