Nzuri au Mbaya? Good or Bad? Basic Descriptions of Things in Swahili

In this post you’ll learn some basic descriptions of things in Swahili. That means that you’ll learn how to use Swahili adjectives to describe things. First you’ll learn colors in Swahili along with some examples. Then you’ll learn other common adjectives you can use to give descriptions of things in Swahili. Along the way, we’ll point out a few important grammar points to keep in mind when you’re using Swahili adjectives.

Colors in Swahili

Let’s start with colors: nyeusi black; nyeupe white; nyekundu red; buluu/samawati blue; njano yellow; kijani green; kahawia/hudhurungi brown; kijivu gray.

• Ni rangi gani?
  What color is it?
• Mbwa ni mweusi.
  The dog is black.
• Paka ni mweupe.
  The cat is white.
• Gari letu ni jeupe.
  Our car is white.
  *You may hear gari yetu in informal speech.
• Miti ni ya kijani.
  The trees are green.

GRAMMAR TIP!

Did you notice that Swahili adjectives take agreement prefixes that match the class of the noun that they describe? For instance, you saw in the list that nyeupe means white. But you saw the different forms in:

• Paka ni mweupe.
  The cat is white.
• Gari yetu ni nyeupe.
  Our car is white.

For much more information on Swahili noun classes and adjective agreement, check out this post, and the series of posts on different noun classes that it links to. Knowing this grammar will help you use Swahili adjectives.

Other Common Swahili Adjectives

Now let’s look at several other important basic adjectives: nzuri good; mbaya bad; kubwa big; ndogo small; rembo beautiful; sura mbaya ugly; mzee old; mpya new; refu long; fupi short; juu high; chini low; tupu empty; kamili full; pana wide; nyembamba narrow; ngumu hard; laini soft; ngumu difficult; rahisi easy.

• Mkahawa huu ni mzuri/mbaya.
  This restaurant is good/bad.
• Ni mkahawa mzuri.
  It’s a good restaurant.
• Wimbo huu ni mzuri/ mbaya.
  This song is good/bad.
• Filamu ni mzee/mpya.
  The film is old/new.
• Jiji ni rembo/kubwa.
  The city is beautiful/big.
• Mtaa ni pana/nyembamba.
  The street is wide/narrow.
• Kitanda ni kigumu/laini.
  The bed is hard/soft.
• Gilasi ni imejaa/tupu.
  The glass is full/empty.

Get on the road to speaking Swahili with the Language Garage!

We hope you’ve enjoyed learning about basic descriptions of things in Swahili. Now you know colors in Swahili along with some other common Swahili adjectives. If you’d like to learn more, check out our other posts on Swahili language, culture, and more. And if you’re looking for convenient and affordable live Swahili lessons with a real teacher, check out The Language Garage Swahili. Our lessons are given online in a virtual classroom, so it doesn’t matter where you live or work. We can come to you. And we have flexible options, with a free trial so that you can decide if there’s a fit. Check us out!

Photo by Bradley Feller on Unsplash