Learn the question How tall are you? in Swahili and how to answer it
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get a breakdown of the dialogue and translations instantly with the Premium line-by-line Audio. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Unlock Lesson Notes and Transcripts for every single lesson. Sign Up for a Free Lifetime Account and Get 7 Days of Premium Access.
| Eric: Top 25 Swahili Questions You Need to Know - Lesson 14 “How tall are you?” in Swahili. In each lesson of this 25 part series, you'll encounter a common question for Swahili learners, and then learn how to answer like a native. You'll learn how these key phrases work by breaking them down into each component. Then, through repetition and new vocabulary, you'll expand your understanding of the question, its answers, and any variations. |
| In this lesson, you'll learn how to respond to the common question “How tall are you?” In Swahili this is |
| Medina: Wewe ni mrefu kiasi gani? |
| Eric: The first word in the question is |
| Medina: Wewe |
| Eric: meaning “you” in English. |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) Wewe |
| Eric: Listen again and repeat. |
| Medina: Wewe |
| {Pause} |
| Eric: This pattern of first introducing a word at natural speed, providing the translation, breaking it down, and then giving it again at natural speed will be repeated throughout the series. Try to speak aloud as often as possible. The next word in the question is |
| Medina: ni |
| Eric: meaning : are |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) ni |
| Eric: Now repeat |
| Medina: ni |
| {Pause} |
| Eric: Listen to the first two words of the question and repeat. |
| Medina: wewe ni |
| {pause} |
| Eric: And after that |
| Medina: mrefu |
| Eric: meaning “tall” or “long.” |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) mrefu |
| Eric: Now repeat. |
| Medina: mrefu |
| {Pause} |
| Eric: Listen to the first three words of the question and repeat. |
| Medina: wewe ni mrefu |
| {pause} |
| Eric: And next is |
| Medina: kiasi gani |
| Eric: meaning “how tall” |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) kiasi gani |
| Eric: Now repeat. |
| Medina: kiasi gani |
| {Pause} |
| Eric: Listen to the entire question and repeat. |
| Medina: Wewe ni mrefu kiasi gani? |
| {pause} |
| Eric: (You will hear this common question again and again throughout your studies.) Master the following pattern and responses to the question “How tall are you?” |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja themanini. |
| Eric: "My height is 180 centimeters” Listen as it’s repeated slowly. Repeat the phrase. |
| Medina: (Slow) Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja themanini. |
| {pause} |
| Eric: Let's break it down from the beginning. The first word is |
| Medina: urefu |
| Eric: meaning “height” |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) urefu |
| Eric: Now repeat |
| Medina: urefu |
| {Pause} |
| Eric: And next is |
| Medina: wangu |
| Eric: meaning “my” |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) wangu |
| Eric: Now repeat. |
| Medina: wangu |
| {Pause} |
| Eric: Next is |
| Medina: ni |
| Eric: meaning “is.” |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) ni |
| Eric:Now repeat. |
| Medina: ni |
| {Pause} |
| Eric: And next, |
| Medina: sentimita |
| Eric: “centimeters” |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) sentimita |
| Eric:Now repeat. |
| Medina: sentimita |
| Eric: And after that is |
| Medina: mia moja themanini. |
| Eric: which means “180.” |
| Medina: (Slow, by syllable) mia moja themanini. |
| Eric:Now repeat. |
| Medina: mia moja themanini. |
| {Pause}Eric: Listen to the speaker say “My height is 180 centimeters” and then repeat. |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja themanini. |
| {pause}Eric: To make another phrase, replace “180” with “160.” |
| Medina: mia moja sitini |
| Eric: “160” |
| Medina: (slow) mia moja sitini (regular) mia moja sitini |
| Eric: Listen to the phrase again, this time with “160.” |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja sitini |
| Eric: It mostly stays the same, we just replaced “180” with “160.” Now say, "My height is 160 centimeters” |
| {pause} |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja sitini |
| Eric: For more practice, replace “160” with “175.” |
| Medina: mia moja sabini na tano |
| Eric: “175” |
| Medina: (slow) mia moja sabini na tano (regular) mia moja sabini na tano |
| Eric: Listen to the phrase again, this time with “175.” |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja sabini na tano |
| Eric: It’s almost the same, we just replaced “160” with “175.” Now say, "My height is 175 centimeters” |
| {pause} |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja sabini na tano. |
| Eric: For a different answer, replace “175” with “190.” |
| Medina: mia moja tisini |
| Eric: “190” |
| Medina: (slow) mia moja tisini (regular) mia moja tisini |
| Eric: Listen to the phrase again, this time with “190.” |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja tisini |
| Eric: Here we just replace 175 with 190. Let’s practice. Say "My height is 190 centimeters” |
| {pause} |
| Medina: Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja tisini |
| Eric: Now it's time for a quiz. Imagine you’re visiting Kenya and someone asks you how tall you are. You’re 180 centimeters. What do you say? |
| Medina: Wewe ni mrefu kiasi gani? (five seconds) Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja themanini. |
| Eric: Imagine you’re 160 centimeters. Respond to the question. |
| Medina: Wewe ni mrefu kiasi gani? (five seconds) Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja sitini. |
| Eric: Now imagine you’re 175 centimeters. Answer the speaker's question. |
| Medina: Wewe ni mrefu kiasi gani? (five seconds) Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja sabini na tano. |
| Eric: Imagine you're 190 centimeters. How would you answer? |
| Medina:Wewe ni mrefu kiasi gani? (five seconds)Urefu wangu ni sentimita mia moja tisini. |
| Eric: Now you want to ask that person how tall they are. Ask the question. |
| (5 seconds) |
| Medina: Wewe ni mrefu kiasi gani? |
| {pause} |
| Eric: This is the end of Lesson 14. |
Comments
Hide