The M-WA class is the noun class for people, including the word for 'people':
mtu - watu (person - people)
There are only two nouns in this class that are not people:
mnyama - wanyama (animal)
mdudu - wadudu (insect)
A few M-WA nouns:
mtoto - watoto (child)
mwanamke - wanawake (woman)
mwanamume - wanaume (man)
msichana - wasichana (girl)
mvulana - wavulana (boy)
mwana - wana (son/daughter)
mzee - wazee (old man)
mzungu - wazungu (white person)
mwalimu - walimu (teacher)
mwanafunzi - wanafunzi (student)
mhandisi - wahandisi (engineer)
mkulima - wakulima (farmer)
mpishi - wapishi (cook)
Mwafrika - Waafrika (African)
Mtanzania - Watanzania (Tanzanian)
Mwingereza - Waingereza (English person)
Mkenya - Wakenya (Kenyan)
Mganda - Waganda (Ugandan)
Mfaransa - Wafaransa (French person)
Mjerumani - Wajerumani (German)
Mholanzi - Waholanzi (Dutch person)
Marekani - Wamerekani (American)
And most other nationalities - you get the idea. The only unexpected one is
Mreno - Wareno (Portuguese person)
The reason it's called the M-WA class should be fairly obvious by now. The same rule applies to adjectives describing the nouns. The word nzuri is actually -zuri in its most basic form. So instead of nzuri, words in this class are mzuri in the singular and wazuri in the plural.
Mwalimu mzuri (a good teacher)
Wakenya wazuri (beautiful Kenyans - or good Kenyans, depending on the context).
In the M-WA class the verb prefixes are a- (third person singular, i.e. he/she), and wa- (third person plural, i.e. they). We've learnt these already, because we were using verbs to talk about people.
Mtoto anakwenda shuleni (The child is going to school)
Waholanzi wanapenda chizi (Dutch people like cheese)
A few useful M-WA class words:
huyu - yule this - that Huyu ni mtoto wangu This is my child
hawa - wale these - those Hawa ni watoto wangu These are my children
wengi many Watu wengi sana! A lot of people
mwengine other, another Mtoto mwengine Another child
wengine other (plural) Wazungu wengine Other white people
wote all Wanafunzi wote wanasoma All the students are reading
The most important letter for the M-WA class is W. W is the prefix for the A of association and for possessives, for example:
mtoto wa jirani the neighbour's child
mwalimu wa Kiswahili the Swahili teacher
mwalimu wake his/her teacher
wadudu wangu my insects
****
Mbwa wa jirani anakuja The neighbour's dog is coming
Mbwa mkali A fierce dog
Mbwa wakali Fierce dogs
mtu - watu (person - people)
There are only two nouns in this class that are not people:
mnyama - wanyama (animal)
mdudu - wadudu (insect)
A few M-WA nouns:
mtoto - watoto (child)
mwanamke - wanawake (woman)
mwanamume - wanaume (man)
msichana - wasichana (girl)
mvulana - wavulana (boy)
mwana - wana (son/daughter)
mzee - wazee (old man)
mzungu - wazungu (white person)
mwalimu - walimu (teacher)
mwanafunzi - wanafunzi (student)
mhandisi - wahandisi (engineer)
mkulima - wakulima (farmer)
mpishi - wapishi (cook)
Mwafrika - Waafrika (African)
Mtanzania - Watanzania (Tanzanian)
Mwingereza - Waingereza (English person)
Mkenya - Wakenya (Kenyan)
Mganda - Waganda (Ugandan)
Mfaransa - Wafaransa (French person)
Mjerumani - Wajerumani (German)
Mholanzi - Waholanzi (Dutch person)
Marekani - Wamerekani (American)
And most other nationalities - you get the idea. The only unexpected one is
Mreno - Wareno (Portuguese person)
The reason it's called the M-WA class should be fairly obvious by now. The same rule applies to adjectives describing the nouns. The word nzuri is actually -zuri in its most basic form. So instead of nzuri, words in this class are mzuri in the singular and wazuri in the plural.
Mwalimu mzuri (a good teacher)
Wakenya wazuri (beautiful Kenyans - or good Kenyans, depending on the context).
In the M-WA class the verb prefixes are a- (third person singular, i.e. he/she), and wa- (third person plural, i.e. they). We've learnt these already, because we were using verbs to talk about people.
Mtoto anakwenda shuleni (The child is going to school)
Waholanzi wanapenda chizi (Dutch people like cheese)
A few useful M-WA class words:
huyu - yule this - that Huyu ni mtoto wangu This is my child
hawa - wale these - those Hawa ni watoto wangu These are my children
wengi many Watu wengi sana! A lot of people
mwengine other, another Mtoto mwengine Another child
wengine other (plural) Wazungu wengine Other white people
wote all Wanafunzi wote wanasoma All the students are reading
The most important letter for the M-WA class is W. W is the prefix for the A of association and for possessives, for example:
mtoto wa jirani the neighbour's child
mwalimu wa Kiswahili the Swahili teacher
mwalimu wake his/her teacher
wadudu wangu my insects
****
NB. There are many nouns for humans and animals that are not in the M-WA class. They take the plural of whichever noun class they are in, e.g. the plural of mbwa (dog) is mbwa. BUT they follow M-WA class agreements for other things:
Mbwa wa jirani anakuja The neighbour's dog is coming
Mbwa mkali A fierce dog
Mbwa wakali Fierce dogs
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