Swahili Gender

Welcome to the fifth Swahili lesson about gender. This time we will view a list of people, feminine and masculine, followed by grammar rules, finally a list of expressions in Swahili to help you practice your daily phrases.

man mwanamme

woman mwanamke

husband mume

wife mke

boy mvulana

girl msichana

father baba

mother mama

Gender Grammar Rules

In general, gender is used to distinguish between male and female, sometimes referred to as masculine and feminine. For example: my son and daughter are students the noun [son] is masculine, while [daughter] is feminine. The following examples use gender in different ways and places to demonstrate their behavior.

Grammar + Rules - Swahili
my son is a student [masculine + noun] mwanangu ni mwanafunzi
her daughter is a student [feminine + noun] binti yake ni mwanafunzi
he has a tall brother [adjective + masculine] ana ndugu mrefu
she has a tall sister [adjective + feminine] ana dada mrefu
his brothers are young [plural masculine + adjective] ndugu zake ni vijana
his sisters are young [plural feminine + adjective] dada zake ni vijana

The list below will probably provide more clarification. These are family members (males and females). I think it would be wise to memorize them as part of your important vocabulary list.

son mwana

daughter binti

brother ndugu

sister dada

grandfather babu

grandmother nyanya

child mtoto

children watoto

Expressions in Swahili

Now it's time to practice expressions used in daily conversations. If you're a beginner in learning Swahili, then the phrases below are something you would want to know.

English - Swahili
What do you mean? una maanisha nini?
I don't understand sielewi
I don't know sijui
What is that called in Swahili? kile kinaitwaje kwa kiswahili
What is this? nini hii?
What does that word mean in English? nini maana ya neno hili kwa kiingereza?
Sorry (if you made a mistake) pole

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