Asante and Akuapem Verb Differences

Level 5

Asante hunu, firi, duru, twerɛ = Akuapem hu, fi, du, kyerɛw (see, come from, arrive, write).

How It Works

1. The main pairs (Asante / Akuapem)

  • hunu / hu (see): Ɔhunuu no / Ohuu no (He saw her.)
  • firi / fi (come from, leave): Ɔfiri Kumase / Ofi Kumase (She is from Kumasi.) See Coming From: firi.
  • duru / du (arrive, reach): Ɔduruu fie / Oduu fie (He arrived home.)
  • twerɛ / kyerɛw (write): Wɔatwerɛ / Wɔakyerɛw (It is written.)

2. The tense forms follow the verb
Past, perfect and future work the same way on both forms: hunuu / huu (saw, before an object), ahunu / ahu (has seen), bɛhunu / bɛhu (will see). See Simple Past Before an Object and Perfect a-. Akuapem spelling also shows Vowel Harmony on the prefix: ohuu and ofi where Asante writes ɔhunuu and ɔfiri.

3. Phrases built on these verbs
Phrases keep their variety's form: Asante firi ase (begin; see Begin: firi ase) is Akuapem fi ase, and Asante ɛfiri sɛ (because) is Akuapem efisɛ.

4. A trap: kyerɛw and kyerɛ
Akuapem kyerɛw (write) looks like kyerɛ (show, teach), which is the same in both varieties. In Asante, write is twerɛ, so kyerɛ in an Asante sentence means show.

5. Short forms in Asante speech
Asante speakers also use short hu, fi and du, especially in quick speech, and Asante dictionaries list both forms. Written Asante and the Asante Bible prefer the longer forms, and this course uses them. See Akuapem Forms in Print for the other differences you will meet in books.

Examples (6)

  1. Ɔhunuu Kofi wɔ dwam.

    She saw Kofi at the market.

    Akuapem prints this as Ohuu Kofi wɔ dwam.

  2. Ɔfiri Kumase.

    She is from Kumasi.

    Akuapem: Ofi Kumase.

  3. Ɔduruu fie anadwo.

    He arrived home at night.

    Akuapem: Oduu fie anadwo.

  4. Twerɛ wo din wɔ ha.

    Write your name here.

    Akuapem: Kyerɛw wo din wɔ ha.

  5. Matwerɛ wo din wɔ m'akoma mu.

    I have written your name in my heart.

    Ma- is me + the perfect a-, on the Asante verb twerɛ.

  6. Mɛhunu wo ɔkyena.

    I will see you tomorrow.

    Akuapem uses the short verb: Mɛhu wo ɔkyena.

Common Mistakes

  • Using kyerɛ for write (intended: Write your name here).

    Kyerɛ wo din wɔ ha.
    Twerɛ wo din wɔ ha.

    Kyerɛ means show or teach in both varieties, so this asks the person to show their name. The Akuapem word for write is kyerɛw, with a final w; the Asante word is twerɛ.

How It Connects

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

Asante and Akuapem Verb DifferencesLevel 5

Learn This First

Verb differences build on the varieties.

Words in This Pattern

hunuhufirifidurudutwerɛkyerɛw