Vocabulary

Understanding Different Word Types

• Nouns: Known as 'nomino' in Swahili, these are words used to identify people, places, things, and ideas. Familiarise yourself with common nouns in Swahili.
• Verbs: Called 'tendo' in Swahili, these words express actions or states of being. Verbs are usually conjugated according to tense and subject.
• Adjectives: Referred to as 'sifa' in Swahili, adjectives describe or modify nouns. They usually follow the noun they modify in Swahili syntax.
• Adverbs: Also called 'vielezi' in Swahili, adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. Often formed by adding '-ly' to adjectives in English, in Swahili adverbs can be more varied.
• Prepositions: Known as 'kiunganishi' in Swahili, these are words that show relationship between other words in a sentence, such as 'at', 'in', 'from', etc.

Boosting Vocab Comprehension

• Context Clues: Use other words and phrases in a sentence to work out the meaning of unfamiliar words.
• Word Roots, Prefixes, and Suffixes: Knowledge of these can help you guess the meanings of many new words.
• Frequent Practice: Regular engagement with the language, whether it be reading, writing or speaking, will help increase your vocabulary naturally.
• Dictionary Use: Regularly use Swahili-English dictionaries to understand the meaning, usage and context of new words.

Developing a Wider Lexicon

• Common Phrases and Sayings: Learn commonly used phrases, proverbs and sayings as they can be an interesting part of the language and often come up in conversation or written text.
• Synonyms and Antonyms: Boost your expressive power in Swahili by learning different words with similar or opposite meanings.
• Thematic Words: Expand your vocabulary within specific themes or topics, such as school, family, animals, etc.
• Idiomatic Expressions: Idioms can be challenging but are a crucial part of fluency. Learning them can significantly improve your reading and writing skills.

Strategies for Learning and Retaining Words

• Flashcards: Writing words and meanings on flashcards is a classic and favourite way to remember new words.
• Word of the Day: Select a new word each day, use it in sentences and try to incorporate it into your daily conversations.
• Language Apps: They offer interactive exercises that can be useful for learning and remembering vocabulary.
• Reading and Writing: The more you use the language, the better. Practice reading and writing Swahili regularly to reinforce vocabulary learning.