-ta-

Future -ta-

Level 1

The infix -ta- is the standard way to say "will" or "going to" in Swahili. It is placed directly between the subject marker and the verb root.

How It Works

The -ta- marker is highly frequent and used across all levels of formality for future actions.

1. Basic Structure
It slots perfectly into the Swahili verb-slot order: Subject + ta + (Object) + Verb.
Example: Tutasafiri (We will travel) or Nitakisoma (I will read it).

2. Short Verbs (Monosyllabic)
Because Swahili places stress on the second-to-last syllable, short verbs like -la (eat), -ja (come), and -nywa (drink) must keep their infinitive ku- prefix to carry the stress. So, "I will eat" is nitakula, not nitala. This ku- is also retained in the negative future, so "I will not eat" is sitakula. Ku- Retention in Short Verbs is a crucial rule to remember for the future tense.

3. The Negative Future
In Standard Swahili, the future marker -ta- does not change in the negative. You simply use the negative subject prefixes. For "I", this is si-. For other persons, the primary negative marker ha- fuses with the subject prefixes (for example, hu- for "you", hatu- for "we", and hawa- for "they"). For example, nitasoma (I will read) becomes sitasoma (I will not read), and atasoma becomes hatasoma (He or she will not read). However, in everyday spoken Swahili, many native speakers change -ta- to -to- in the negative (e.g., hatokuja instead of hatakuja) to make the negative clearly distinguishable from the positive. You can learn more about this in the future negative pattern.

4. The Relative Future (-taka-)
When a relative infix (like -ye- for a person or -cho- for a thing) is inserted into the verb, the future marker -ta- must change to -taka-. For example, atasoma (he or she will read) becomes atakayesoma (he or she who will read). This is a mandatory shift when forming positive relative clauses in the future tense. Note that you cannot form a negative relative future by combining negative prefixes with -taka- (words like hatakayesoma are ungrammatical). Instead, to form the negative relative future, you must use the amba- relative word followed by the standard negative future verb, such as ambaye hatasoma (who will not read). You can explore this further in the Negative Relative Clauses and Future Relative -taka- patterns.

Examples (5)

  1. Nitasoma kitabu kesho.

    I will read a book tomorrow.

    Word by Word: I-will-read book tomorrow

    A standard future tense sentence showing the basic Subject + ta + Verb structure.

  2. Nitakisoma kesho.

    I will read it tomorrow.

    Word by Word: I-will-it-read tomorrow

    Here, the object marker '-ki-' (it) is inserted right after the future tense marker '-ta-'.

  3. Watakula chakula cha jioni.

    They will eat dinner.

    Word by Word: They-will-eat food of evening

    Notice how the short verb '-la' (eat) keeps its 'ku-' prefix to become 'watakula'.

  4. Sitakula nyama leo.

    I will not eat meat today.

    Word by Word: I-not-will-eat meat today

    In the negative future, short verbs still retain their 'ku-' prefix.

  5. Hatasoma barua.

    He or she will not read the letter.

    Word by Word: He-not-will-read letter

    The negative future uses standard negative prefixes like 'ha-' while keeping the '-ta-' marker unchanged.

Common Mistakes

  • Dropping the 'ku-' prefix on short (monosyllabic) verbs.

    Atala chakula.
    Atakula chakula.

    Monosyllabic verbs like -la (eat) or -ja (come) must keep their ku- prefix in the future tense to maintain the correct word stress on the second-to-last syllable.

  • Changing or dropping the tense marker in negative sentences.

    Sisomi kitabu kesho.
    Sitasoma kitabu kesho.

    Because the present tense marker (-na-) disappears in the negative, learners often assume the future marker does too. However, -ta- stays exactly the same in negative sentences.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-ta-Level 1Future -ta-

Learn This First

To use the -ta- future marker, you must understand the Swahili verb structure, specifically how subject markers are prefixed to tense markers within the verb word.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

-ta-