-o- (ngeli ya 2)

Class 2 Relative -o-

Level 3

The Class 2 relative marker -o- translates to "who" or "whom" when talking about plural people (like watoto or watu). It connects a noun to a descriptive clause.

How It Works

The Class 2 relative marker -o- is the Class 2 form of the 'O of Reference', a marker that refers back to a previously mentioned noun. It appears in four main environments:

1. As a Verb Infix (Tensed Relative)
This is the most common and natural way to say "who" or "whom." The -o- is inserted right after the tense marker and before the object marker or verb root. However, it only works with three specific tenses:

  • Present -na-: wa-na-o-soma (who are reading)
  • Past -li-: wa-li-o-soma (who read)
  • Future -taka-: wa-taka-o-soma (who will read) - Note that the standard future marker -ta- changes to -taka-!

Negative Relatives: The negative marker -si- is tenseless (e.g., wa-si-o-soma - who do not read). Its time reference depends entirely on context. To specify time in the negative, you must use the amba- strategy with standard negative verbs (e.g., ambao hawakusoma - who did not read).

Subject vs. Object Relatives:

  • Subject Relative ("who"): The subject prefix matches the doer (Class 2 wa-): watu wanaosoma (the people who are reading).
  • Object Relative ("whom"): The subject prefix matches the doer, while -o- stays the same to match the Class 2 object. Crucially, because Class 2 nouns are animate, the Class 2 object prefix (-wa-) is strictly required right before the verb root: watu ninaowaona (the people whom I see).

2. With Amba- (Analytic Relative)
You can attach -o- to the stem amba- to form ambao. This is required for tenses that cannot take an infix, like the perfect tense -me- (ambao wamesoma), the habitual hu- (ambao husoma), and conditionals like -nge- or -ngali- (ambao wangesoma). Do not try to infix -o- into these tenses (e.g., wangeosoma is incorrect). It is also used for stylistic emphasis, with complex verbs, or to specify time in negative relative clauses. For object relatives, remember that the amba- suffix matches the head noun (Class 2), not the subject of the verb (e.g., watu ambao ninawaona - the people whom I see).

3. As a Suffix (Tenseless Relative)
Attached to the end of a verb without a tense marker (e.g., wasomao). This indicates a general truth or habitual action. It is standard in daily journalism, news broadcasts, literature, religious texts, and proverbs.

4. With Copulas and Prepositions
It attaches to words like ndi- to mean "it is they" (ndio) or na to mean "with them / and they" (nao).

Important Notes:

  • Never use the question word nani (who?) to connect sentences. Nani is strictly for asking questions, not for saying "the people who..."
  • The relative marker -o- is also shared with Class 3 (e.g., mti) and Classes 11/14 (e.g., ukuta).

A Negative Object Relative:
Watu nisiowaona means “people whom I do not see.” Segment ni-si-o-wa-on-a: I + relative negation + Class 2 relative + them + see + final vowel. Compare watu wasioona (people who do not see), where the people are the subject and there is no -wa- object marker.

Examples (5)

  1. Watoto wanaosoma kitabu watafurahi.

    The children who are reading a book will be happy.

    Word by Word: Children they-present-who-read book they-will-rejoice.

    This uses the infix -o- with the present tense -na- to relativize the subject.

  2. Watu ambao walifika jana ni wageni.

    The people who arrived yesterday are guests.

    Word by Word: People who they-past-arrive yesterday are guests.

    This uses the analytic relative amba- (ambao) which is interchangeable with the infix form (waliofika) in the past tense.

  3. Wanafunzi niliowaona wanasoma.

    The students whom I saw are reading.

    Word by Word: Students I-past-who-them-see they-present-read.

    This is an object relative. The -o- refers to the students "whom" I saw. Notice it appears before the object marker -wa-.

  4. Wageni ambao wamefika wamechoka.

    The guests who have arrived are tired.

    Word by Word: Guests who they-perfect-arrive they-perfect-tire.

    Because the perfect tense -me- cannot take a relative infix, you must use ambao.

  5. Wale ndio walimu wetu.

    Those are indeed our teachers.

    Word by Word: Those it-is-they teachers our.

    The relative -o- attaches to the emphatic copula ndi- to mean "it is they."

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'nani' instead of the relative marker.

    Watu nani wanasoma ni wanafunzi.
    Watu wanaosoma ni wanafunzi.

    A common beginner error is translating the English relative pronoun 'who' with the Swahili question word 'nani'. 'Nani' is strictly for asking questions. To connect clauses, you must use the relative infix -o- or the word ambao.

  • Using the relative infix with the perfect tense -me-.

    Watu wameofika wamechoka.
    Watu ambao wamefika wamechoka.

    The perfect tense marker -me- is incompatible with relative infixes. You cannot say 'wameofika'. You must use the independent relative word 'ambao' instead.

  • Confusing the singular Class 1 -ye- with the plural Class 2 -o-.

    Watoto anayesoma watafurahi.
    Watoto wanaosoma watafurahi.

    The relative marker -ye- is only for one person (Class 1). When talking about plural people (Class 2), you must use the subject prefix wa- and the relative marker -o-.

How It Connects

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-o- (ngeli ya 2)Level 3Class 2 Relative -o-

Learn This First

To understand the Class 2 relative marker -o-, you must first be familiar with the M-WA noun class (Class 2) and its corresponding subject marker 'wa-'. Additionally, you need to understand the general mechanism of how relative infixes are placed within the Swahili verb template.

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-o--o