This, That, and That Over There — Swahili Grammar

Where English has two words for pointing, Swahili has three. One points at what is near the speaker, one at what has already been mentioned, and one at what is far away. All three take class agreement, so each has as many shapes as there are classes.

The Three Series

the h- series — this, near me
the -o series — that, the one we were just speaking of
the -le series — that one over there, away from us both

Jamani, mnaona hii?
Everyone, do you see this?
Unaweza kurudia hilo?
Can you repeat that?
Je, yule kijana kule ni mumeo?
Is that young man over there your husband?

The first points at something in the speaker's hand, the second at words just spoken, the third across the room.

The Shapes

class 1 , ,
class 2 , ,
class 5 , ,
class 7 , ,
class 9 , ,
class 10 , ,

Kila mtu anajua tatizo hili.
Everyone knows this problem.
Mashua zile ni ghali sana.
Those boats over there are very expensive.

The Middle Series Does Real Work

, and their relatives are not a second-best that. They mean the one we have been talking about, and they are how Swahili keeps track of a subject across several sentences.

Sijui wimbo wowote wa bendi hiyo.
I do not know any song by that band.
Laptop hiyo inagharimu euro elfu moja.
That laptop costs a thousand euros.

Neither the band nor the laptop is present. Both were raised a moment earlier, and that is exactly what the -o series signals.

Position and Emphasis

The pointing word normally follows its noun. Putting it in front is possible and adds weight.

Kitabu hiki ni cha zamani.
This book is old.
Hiki kitabu ni cha zamani.
This book is old.

Standing as Pronouns

A pointing word needs no noun after it. On its own it means this one, and it is the ordinary way to introduce people and identify things.

Huyu ni rafiki yangu, Anna.
This is my friend, Anna.
Nikifikiria tena, hilo ni wazo baya.
Thinking about it again, that is a bad idea.

Pointing at Something Not Yet Named

A pointing word has to agree with a class, but when you point at a thing without naming it, there is no noun to agree with. Swahili speakers then use class 7, the class of thing: , , . For a person it is class 1: , .

Nini kile? Kile ni redio kuukuu.
What is that? - That is an old radio.
Yule ni nani?
Who is that?

itself is a class 9 noun, but the answer keeps the class 7 of the question, because it still speaks of that thing. Once the noun is named beside the pointing word, the pointing word agrees with the noun instead: this radio, with the class 9 .

Pointing at Places

The place classes have their own pointing words, and these are among the most useful in the language.

- right here
- there, at the spot mentioned
- over there
- around here
- over yonder

Tafadhali usivute sigara hapa.
Please do not smoke here.
Msikae tu hapo. Njooni mcheze nasi.
Do not just sit there. Come and dance with us.

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Swahili course

87 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 2. A few of them, with the words “This, That, and That Over There” is about in bold:

Huyu ni rafiki yangu, Anna. Yeye ni mwanafunzi.
This is my friend, Anna. She is a student.
Lesson 2
Maji haya ni ya baridi. Maji yale ni ya moto.
This water is cold. That water is hot.
Lesson 68
Nikifikiria tena, hilo ni wazo baya.
On second thought, that is a bad idea.
Lesson 338

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