Latest / Learn Swahili with Fexingo / Swahili Fruits - Ndizi na Maembe
Transcript
- Lucas: Luna, welcome back. I'm thinking about something sweet. Luna: Oh, like cake? You know I love cake. Lucas: Close, but today it's fruit. We're going to learn how to talk about fruits in Swahili. Luna: Fruit, nice. I do love a good mango. Lucas: Perfect. Let's start with one of my favorites: ndizi. That's banana. Luna: Ndizi. Banana. Got it. Lucas: Now, if you want to say 'I like bananas', you say: Napenda ndizi. Luna: Napenda ndizi. I like bananas. Lucas: Yes. Napenda means 'I like' or 'I love'. And ndizi is banana. Luna: Napenda ndizi. So if I wanted to say I like mangoes, it would be napenda... maembe? Lucas: Exactly right. Napenda maembe. Maembe is mangoes. Luna: Napenda maembe. I like mangoes. Lucas: You've got it. Now let's practice a question. If you want to ask someone 'Do you like mangoes?' you say: Unapenda maembe? Luna: Unapenda maembe? So 'una' means 'you'. Lucas: Yes. Unapenda is 'you like'. So Unapenda maembe? is 'Do you like mangoes?' Luna: Unapenda maembe? I think I could ask that at the market. Lucas: Definitely. And if someone asks you, you can answer: Ndiyo, napenda maembe. Or just Napenda maembe. Luna: Napenda maembe. Simple. Lucas: Now, you know what's great about fruit? It's sweet. In Swahili, sweet is tamu. For a single banana, you say: Ndizi ni tamu. 'The banana is sweet.' Luna: Ndizi ni tamu. Banana is sweet. But for mangoes, it's plural right? Lucas: Good catch. For plural, we say: Maembe ni matamu. 'Mangoes are sweet.' Luna: Maembe ni matamu. Mangoes are sweet. I like that. Lucas: Let's do a little scene. Imagine you're at a market. You see some bananas and mangoes. Luna: Okay. I'll point to the bananas and say: Napenda ndizi. Lucas: Exactly. And the seller might say: Ndizi ni tamu. Luna: Then I nod and say: Ndiyo, napenda ndizi. Na napenda maembe pia. Lucas: Oh, 'pia' means 'also'. Good addition. So you like bananas and also mangoes. Luna: Napenda ndizi na maembe. I like both. Lucas: You're a natural. Let's review what we've learned. Repeat after me: Napenda ndizi. Luna: Napenda ndizi. Lucas: Napenda maembe. Luna: Napenda maembe. Lucas: Unapenda maembe? Luna: Unapenda maembe? Lucas: Ndizi ni tamu. Luna: Ndizi ni tamu. Lucas: Maembe ni matamu. Luna: Maembe ni matamu. Lucas: You know, I'm really proud of how you're picking these up. And it's great that Fexingo can do this every week. Luna: Totally. If Fexingo has been helping you make actual progress with Swahili, like it has for me, consider supporting the show. A couple of dollars a month is genuinely what keeps these going — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Lucas: Yeah, it really makes a difference. And it keeps everything ad-free. Now, back to fruit. Let's try a little conversation. Luna: Alright. I'll be you. You be me. Lucas: Okay. Unapenda ndizi? Luna: Ndiyo, napenda ndizi. Na wewe? Unapenda maembe? Lucas: Ndiyo, napenda maembe. Maembe ni matamu. Luna: Oh, I love that. So natural. Lucas: You're ready for the market. So we've learned: napenda ndizi, napenda maembe, unapenda maembe, ndizi ni tamu, maembe ni matamu. Luna: Napenda ndizi, napenda maembe, unapenda maembe, ndizi ni tamu, maembe ni matamu. Got it. Lucas: Practice those, and next time you see a banana or mango, say it in Swahili. Luna: I will. Thanks, Lucas. See you next time. Lucas: See you then. Keep practicing.