Convenience Store

1. Duka linafunguliwa saa ngapi?

   Du-ka li-na-fu-ngu-li-wa saa nga-pi?

   What time does the shop open?

   Usage

   A "duka" is the small shop found on every East African residential lane, selling sugar, flour, soap and batteries in small quantities. Opening is around 6am and closing around 9pm, though it depends entirely on the owner. Note that the answer will come in Swahili time

   Grammar Note

   Swahili time counts from sunrise, so "saa moja" is 7am and the whole system runs six hours off the clock: "saa mbili asubuhi" is 8am, "saa tatu" is 9am. Locals quote times in this system, so check whether the figure needs a six-hour shift

2. Mnapokea M-Pesa?

   Mna-po-ke-a M-Pe-sa?

   Do you accept M-Pesa?

   Usage

   In Kenya the mobile-money service M-Pesa is more widespread than cash and works even at the smallest back-lane duka. Tanzania uses M-Pesa, Tigo Pesa and Airtel Money; Uganda runs on MTN Mobile Money. Travellers can register once they have a local SIM

   Grammar Note

   Swahili verbs stack prefixes: "m-" (you plural) + "-na-" (present) + "pokea" (receive) gives "mnapokea". First person would be "ninapokea", third person singular "anapokea". The word "pesa" itself means money

3. Namba ya till ni ipi?

   Nam-ba ya till ni i-pi?

   What is your till number?

   Usage

   Paying a shop by M-Pesa means sending to its assigned till number (for goods) or paybill. The number is usually handwritten on a card by the counter or the door; if you cannot see it, ask. Both sides get a confirmation SMS afterwards, which serves as the receipt

   Grammar Note

   The Swahili possessive "of" changes shape with the noun class — "ya", "wa", "la", "cha" and so on. "Namba" belongs to the N class and therefore takes "ya", and the question word "ipi" agrees with the same class

4. Nina noti ya elfu moja tu, una chenji?

   Ni-na no-ti ya el-fu mo-ja tu, u-na chen-ji?

   I only have a thousand-shilling note — do you have change?

   Usage

   A duka's takings come in tens of shillings, so it often cannot break a 1000 or 2000 note. ATMs dispense large denominations, so breaking one early in the day on a matatu ride or at a food stall makes everything easier

   Grammar Note

   "Nina" is "ni-" (I) plus "-na" (with), the standard way to express having something — Swahili has no separate verb "to have". "Una" is you have, "ana" is he or she has

5. Una maji baridi?

   U-na ma-ji ba-ri-di?

   Do you have cold water?

   Usage

   Power supply is patchy in many areas, so plenty of dukas have no fridge, or one that has been off all day. Check before buying if you want it cold. Tap water is not drunk in East Africa — always take a bottle with an unbroken seal

   Grammar Note

   "Maji" is a MA-class noun that exists only in the plural, a pattern shared by other liquids such as "mafuta" (oil) and "maziwa" (milk). "Baridi" serves as both the adjective "cold" and the noun "coldness"

6. Naomba sukari ya nusu kilo

   Na-om-ba su-ka-ri ya nu-su ki-lo

   Half a kilo of sugar, please

   Usage

   Selling loose is the heart of duka trade: sugar, rice, beans and flour are scooped into a paper or plastic bag in whatever quantity you ask for. Households buy only what they need that day, so even 100 grams is a perfectly normal request — handy for travellers too

   Grammar Note

   "Naomba" is the first-person present of "omba" (to request, to pray) and is the politest all-purpose way to ask for something, softer than "nataka" (I want). Both "sukari" and "nusu" are Arabic loans — roughly a third of Swahili vocabulary comes from Arabic

7. Naomba mkate mmoja

   Na-om-ba mka-te mmo-ja

   One loaf of bread, please

   Usage

   The "mkate" in a duka is usually a bag of sliced white bread, eaten with chai at breakfast; you can also buy "nusu mkate", half a loaf. Kenyan street corners also sell fried "mandazi" and "chapati", but those go by their own names

   Grammar Note

   "Mkate" belongs to the M/MI class, with plural "mikate"; the class covers tools, plants and manufactured things. Numerals agree with the class too: "one" is "mmoja" for M/MI nouns but "kimoja" for KI/VI nouns

8. Naomba mfuko

   Na-om-ba mfu-ko

   A bag, please

   Usage

   Kenya introduced one of the world's strictest plastic-bag bans in 2017, with penalties for making, importing or using single-use bags. A duka gives you paper, cloth, or simply hands the goods over. Rwanda and Tanzania have similar rules, so bring your own bag

   Grammar Note

   "Mfuko" is another M/MI noun, plural "mifuko". Besides a bag it means a pocket and, figuratively, a purse or fund — "mfuko wa serikali" is the state treasury. To specify a paper bag, say "mfuko wa karatasi"

9. Nataka salio la shilingi mia moja

   Na-ta-ka sa-li-o la shi-li-ngi mi-a mo-ja

   I'd like a hundred shillings of airtime

   Usage

   Most dukas sell mobile airtime, either as a scratch card or by sending it straight to your number. You can buy from about fifty shillings upward, and topping up in small amounts is the local habit. Airtime is a separate balance from your M-Pesa money — do not confuse the two

   Grammar Note

   "Salio" derives from the verb "salia" (to remain) and belongs to the JI/MA class, which takes "la" for "of". Since each class has its own possessive, it helps to learn them as chunks: "namba ya…", "salio la…", "mkate wa…"

10. Tarehe ya mwisho wa matumizi ni lini?

    Ta-re-he ya mwi-sho wa ma-tu-mi-zi ni li-ni?

    When is the expiry date?

    Usage

    Stock turnover at a duka is unpredictable and milk or yoghurt may be sitting at room temperature. Packaging usually prints "EXP" or "Best before" in English, so check yourself first and ask only when the print is missing or illegible

    Grammar Note

    "Tarehe ya mwisho wa matumizi" chains two possessives — "the date of the end of use" — with "ya" and "wa" each agreeing with the noun before it. "Matumizi" is an MA-class abstract noun formed from the verb "tumia" (to use)

11. Mnauza kwa vipimo vidogo?

    Mna-u-za kwa vi-pi-mo vi-do-go?

    Do you sell in small measures?

    Usage

    East African dukas line up detergent, shampoo, coffee and seasonings in single-use sachets so nobody has to buy a full container. For travellers it is a neat way to get exactly what you need without extra luggage. You may also hear "kwa rejareja" (retail, in small amounts)

    Grammar Note

    "Vipimo vidogo" is the KI/VI plural: the noun "kipimo" (measure) and the adjective "kidogo" (small) both shift to "vi-". Swahili adjectives carry the noun-class prefix as well, so noun and adjective visibly rhyme at the start

12. Kitu kingine?

    Ki-tu ki-ngi-ne?

    Anything else?

    Usage

    Said by staff. A short question that follows the moment your items reach the counter. If you are done, answer "hapana, asante" (no, thank you) or "basi, asante" (that's all). Dukas are sociable places and exchanges normally open with a greeting

    Grammar Note

    "Kitu" is a KI/VI noun (plural "vitu"), so "other" takes the matching form "kingine". With an M/MI noun it becomes "mwingine", and for people in the M/WA class "mwingine" with plural "wengine"

13. Sina chenji, una fedha ndogo?

    Si-na chen-ji, u-na fe-dha ndo-go?

    I have no change — do you have smaller money?

    Usage

    Said by staff. Running short of change is routine at a duka; the owner may pop next door to break a note or promise to hand over the balance later. Paying by M-Pesa settles the amount to the shilling and sidesteps the problem entirely — a real advantage

    Grammar Note

    Negation changes the subject prefix itself: "nina" (I have) becomes "sina", "una" becomes "huna", "ana" becomes "hana". "Fedha" is borrowed from Arabic "fidda" (silver) and covers money in general

14. Tuma kwa namba hii ya till

    Tu-ma kwa nam-ba hii ya till

    Send it to this till number

    Usage

    Said by staff. Once you say you will pay by M-Pesa, the owner points to a written number or the card by the till. The shop's registered name appears on your screen before you confirm, so check it matches — a mistyped number is hard to reverse

    Grammar Note

    The Swahili imperative is simply the bare verb stem — "tuma" (send), "kaa" (sit), "njoo" (come). Addressing several people you change the ending to "-eni": "tumeni". The imperative is not considered brusque and is used routinely

15. Nimepokea malipo, asante

    Ni-me-po-ke-a ma-li-po, a-san-te

    I've received the payment, thank you

    Usage

    Said by staff. After an M-Pesa transfer the owner's phone receives a confirmation SMS and only then are the goods handed over. The message can lag when the network is busy, so showing your own confirmation screen while you wait is normal. This phrase closes the transaction

    Grammar Note

    The tense marker "-me-" is the perfect: an action completed with its result still standing. "-na-" is present progressive, "-li-" past and "-ta-" future — these four cover most of what you need

16. Mfuko ni shilingi ishirini

    Mfu-ko ni shi-li-ngi i-shi-ri-ni

    The bag is twenty shillings

    Usage

    Said by staff. Where plastic is banned, the paper or cloth bag the shop provides usually carries a charge, and it adds up over a trip. Buying one sturdy cloth bag — or a traditional East African woven "kiondo" — is practical and doubles as a souvenir

    Grammar Note

    "Ni" is the copula linking two nouns and is one of the rare Swahili words that never changes with noun class. Its negative is "si": "mfuko si bure" (the bag is not free). "Ishirini" is borrowed from Arabic "ishrin" (twenty)

17. Unaweza kulipa kesho

    U-na-we-za ku-li-pa ke-sho

    You can pay tomorrow

    Usage

    Said by staff. Dukas run on neighbourhood credit — "mkopo" — with regulars' purchases written in a book and settled later. Travellers rarely get the offer, but on a longer stay, once the owner knows your face, you might. It signals trust, so decline politely if you decline at all

    Grammar Note

    The infinitive is formed with the prefix "ku-": "kulipa" (to pay), "kula" (to eat), "kunywa" (to drink). Modal-like verbs such as "weza" (to be able) are always followed by this "ku-" form

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