Dialogue

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Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

Eric: Top 25 Swahili Questions You Need to Know - Lesson 6 “How long have you been studying Swahili?” (In each lesson of this 25 part series, you'll encounter a common question for Swahili learners, and then learn how to answer it 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 long have you been studying Swahili?” In Swahili this is
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda upi?
Eric: The first word in the question is
Medina: umekuwa
Eric: meaning “you have been” in English.
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) umekuwa
Eric: Listen again and repeat.
Medina: umekuwa
{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: ukijifunza
Eric: meaning “studying”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) ukijifunza
Eric: Now repeat.
Medina: ukijifunza
{Pause}
Eric: Listen to the first two words of the question and repeat.
Medina: umekuwa ukijifunza
{pause}
Eric: Next is
Medina: Kiswahili
Eric: meaning “Swahili”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) Kiswahili
Eric: Now repeat.
Medina: Kiswahili
{Pause}
Eric: Listen to the first three words of the question and repeat.
Medina: umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili
{pause}
Eric: And next is
Medina: kwa
Eric: meaning “for”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) kwa
Eric: Now repeat.
Medina: kwa
{Pause}
Eric: Listen to the first four words of the question and repeat.
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa
{pause}
Eric: And next,
Medina: muda
Eric: meaning “period”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) muda
Eric: Now repeat.
Medina: muda
{Pause}
Eric: Listen to the first five words of the question and repeat.
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda
{pause}
Eric: And last is
Medina: upi
Eric: meaning “what”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) upi
Eric: Now repeat.
Medina: upi
{Pause}
Eric: Listen to the entire question and repeat.
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda upi?
{pause}
Eric: (You will hear this common question again and again throughout your studies.) Master the following pattern and responses to the question “How long have you been studying Swahili?”
Medina: Kwa mwezi mmoja.
Eric: "For one month.” Again, slowly. Repeat the phrase.
Medina: (Slow) kwa mwezi mmoja.
{pause}
Eric: Let's break it down from the beginning. The first word is
Medina: kwa
Eric: meaning “for”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) kwa
Eric: Now repeat.
Medina: kwa
{Pause}
Eric: And next is
Medina: mwezi
Eric: meaning “month”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) mwezi
Eric:Now repeat.
Medina: mwezi
{Pause}
Eric: And last,
Medina: mmoja
Eric: meaning “one.”
Medina: (Slow, by syllable) mmoja
Eric: Now repeat.
Medina: mmoja
{Pause}Eric: Listen to the speaker say “For one month” and then repeat.
Medina: Kwa mwezi mmoja.
{pause}Eric: For more practice, let’s replace “one month” with “two years.”
Medina: miaka miwili
Eric: “two years”
Medina: (slow) miaka miwili (regular) miaka miwili
Eric: Listen to the phrase again, this time with “two years.”
Medina: Kwa miaka miwili.
Eric: It mostly stays the same, we just replace “one month” with “two years.” Now say, “for two years.”
{pause}
Medina: Kwa miaka miwili.
Eric: To make another phrase, replace “two years” with “one year.”
Medina: mwaka mmoja
Eric: “one year”
Medina: (slow) mwaka mmoja (regular) mwaka mmoja
Eric: Listen to the phrase again, this time with “one year.”
Medina: Kwa mwaka mmoja.
Eric: Again, we simply replace “two years” with “one year.” Now say, “for one year.”
{pause}
Medina: Kwa mwaka mmoja.
Eric: Now let’s replace “one year” with “three weeks.”
Medina: wiki tatu
Eric: “three weeks”
Medina: (slow) wiki tatu (regular) wiki tatu
Eric: Listen to the phrase again, this time with “three weeks.”
Medina: Kwa wiki tatu.
Eric: Again, it’s almost the same, we just replace “one year” with “three weeks.” Now say “for three weeks.”
{pause}
Medina: Kwa wiki tatu.
Eric:Now it's time for a quiz. Imagine you’re visiting Kenya and someone asks you how long you’ve been studying Swahili. You’ve been studying it for one month. How would you answer?
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda upi? (five seconds) Kwa mwezi mmoja.
Eric: Imagine you've been studying it for two years. Respond to the question.
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda upi? (five seconds) Kwa miaka miwili.
Eric: Imagine you've been studying it for one year. Answer the speaker's question.
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda upi? (five seconds) Kwa mwaka mmoja.
Eric: Imagine you've been studying it for three weeks. How would you answer?
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda upi? (five seconds) Kwa wiki tatu.
Eric: Now you want to ask someone how long they’ve been studying Swahili. Ask the question.
(5 seconds)
Medina: Umekuwa ukijifunza Kiswahili kwa muda upi?
{pause}
Eric: This is the end of Lesson 6.

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