hawa-

They Do Not Hawa-

Level 1

Use hawa- to say 'they do not' or 'they are not' doing something right now.

How It Works

Forming the present negative for 'they' requires four strict rules:

Attach the prefix hawa-: The negative marker ha- combines with the Noun Class 2 (WA-) plural animate subject prefix wa- to form hawa-. The overall structure is simply [Negative Subject Prefix] + [Optional Object Marker] + [Verb Stem with Appropriate Final Vowel], with hawa- attached to the beginning of the verb complex (before any object prefixes or the verb stem).
Drop the tense marker: Swahili does not use a negative present tense marker. The affirmative tense markers for continuous (-na-) and simple (-a-) are completely removed. For the habitual (hu-) tense, since it does not use a subject prefix in the affirmative, the entire hu- prefix is simply replaced by hawa-.
Change the final vowel: For most verbs (Bantu origin), the final -a changes to -i (e.g., soma becomes hawasomi). This change happens even if an object prefix or the reflexive ji- is inserted before the verb stem (e.g., hawajifunzi). However, verbs of Arabic origin ending in -e, -i, or -u do not change (e.g., jibu becomes hawajibu).
Drop ku- or kw- on short and special verbs: Monosyllabic verbs lose their infinitive ku- prefix (e.g., kula becomes hawali, and kuja becomes hawaji). The common verb kwenda (to go) also drops its kw- prefix to become hawaendi.

Important Notes:
Swahili does not distinguish between 'they do not read' (habitual) and 'they are not reading' (continuous); hawa- covers both.

Also, because of animacy agreement, hawa- is used for ALL plural animals and insects, not just humans! Finally, do not confuse this prefix with the standalone word hawa, which means 'these'.

Exceptions: The verbs kuwa (to be) and kuwa na (to have) behave differently. For 'they have', the verb becomes hawana. For simple states of being, 'they are not' uses the negative copula si or locative forms like hawako.

Final Vowels and Give:
An a-final loan verb also changes final -a to -i: kutawala → hawatawali (to rule → they do not rule). It is the final-vowel pattern, not a ban on all borrowed vocabulary, that matters. With -pa (give), identify the recipient using an object marker: hawampi pesa (they do not give him/her money).

Examples (5)

Watoto hawasomi vitabu.
The children are not reading books.
Word by Word: Children they-not-read books.
A standard Bantu verb where the final -a changes to -i.
Wageni hawali nyama.
The guests do not eat meat.
Word by Word: Guests they-not-eat meat.
The monosyllabic verb 'kula' (to eat) drops its 'ku-' prefix and changes -a to -i.
Wanafunzi hawajibu maswali.
The students are not answering the questions.
Word by Word: Students they-not-answer questions.
An Arabic loanword ending in -u ('jibu') keeps its final vowel.
Mbwa hawalali.
The dogs are not sleeping.
Word by Word: Dogs they-not-sleep.
All plural animals use the hawa- prefix due to animacy agreement.
Watu hawa hawasemi.
These people are not speaking.
Word by Word: People these they-not-speak.
Shows the difference between the demonstrative word 'hawa' (these) and the negative prefix 'hawa-'.

Common Mistakes

Keeping the present tense marker -na-.
Watoto hawanasoma.
Watoto hawasomi.
The present tense marker -na- must be completely dropped in the present negative.
Forgetting to change the final vowel from -a to -i.
Wanafunzi hawasoma.
Wanafunzi hawasomi.
For verbs of Bantu origin, the final -a must change to -i in the present negative.
Keeping the ku- on short (monosyllabic) verbs.
Wageni hawakuli.
Wageni hawali.
Monosyllabic verbs like kula (to eat) drop their infinitive ku- prefix in the present negative.

How It Connects

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

hawa-Level 1They Do Not Hawa-

Learn This First

To understand 'hawa-', a learner needs to be familiar with the Class 2 subject marker 'wa-' and the general rules for forming present negative verbs in Swahili, which involve prefixing 'ha-' and modifying the subject marker.

Words in This Pattern