Verb Affixation
Swahili verbs consist of a root and a number of affixes (mostly prefixes) which can be attached to express grammatical persons, tense, and subordinate clauses, which require a conjunction in languages such as English.
Verbs of Bantu origin end in '-a' in the indicative. This vowel changes to indicate the subjunctive and negation.
In most dictionaries, verbs are listed in their indicative root form, for example -kata meaning 'to cut/chop'. In a simple sentence, prefixes for grammatical tense and person are added, as ninakata 'I cut'. Here ni- means 'I' and na- indicates a specific time (present tense unless stated otherwise).
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“The word is the Verb, and the Verb is God.”
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