The Habitual hu- — Swahili Grammar

hu- marks something done out of habit, or something true in general. It is unlike every other tense marker in one striking way: it replaces the subject prefix instead of following it, so the verb carries no person marker at all.

The Pattern

Where the present has three pieces, the habitual has two.

Mpishi mzuri hutumia kisu chenye ncha kali.
A good cook uses a knife with a sharp point.

hu- as a rule, habitually
use

There is nothing in that verb saying who does the using. Compare the ordinary present, which always says.

he is reading, beside he reads, as a rule
they are cooking, beside they cook, as a rule

Ananikata nywele. Kila mara yeye hunikata nywele.
He is cutting my hair. He always cuts my hair.

The two forms stand side by side there. The first reports what is happening; the second, what regularly happens.

The Subject Must Be Named

Because the person marker is gone, a habitual verb cannot stand alone the way other verbs can. The subject has to appear as a separate word, or be plain from the sentence around it.

Wakati mwingine kila kitu huenda vibaya.
Sometimes everything goes wrong.

everything is doing work here that a prefix would do in any other tense.

General Truths

The habitual is the natural form for statements about how the world works, which is why it turns up in proverbs, instructions and descriptions of custom.

Samaki huishi majini.
Fish live in water.
Mvua hunyesha mwezi Aprili.
It rains in April.

The Shape It Shares

hu- is identical to the negative prefix for you, but the end of the verb keeps the two apart: the negative present also changes the final -a to -i. is he reads, as a rule; is you do not read. Only a borrowed verb, whose final vowel never changes, looks the same both ways.

Duka limefungwa. Huwezi kuingia.
The shop is closed. You cannot go in.
Mpishi mzuri hutumia kisu.
A good cook uses a knife.

In practice they are easy to keep apart. The negative turns up where a denial is expected; the habitual comes with a named subject and often a word like every.

Set Against the Present

The plain present already covers habits, so the habitual is never obligatory. What it adds is the emphasis on regularity.

Ananikata nywele.
He is cutting my hair.
Kila mara yeye hunikata nywele.
He always cuts my hair.
Mbwa mkali analinda nyumba yao kila usiku.
A fierce dog guards their house every night.

That last is an ordinary present with every night doing the work, and it is just as correct.

No Negative Form

There is no negative habitual. To deny a habit, Swahili uses the ordinary negative present, usually with a word meaning never or usually.

Kwa kawaida sinywi bia nyingi.
I do not usually drink much beer.
Kwa kweli sinywi bia yoyote.
I really do not drink any beer.

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