Time & Dates

1. Bushe ilelo ni bushiku nshi?

   What day is it today?

   Usage

   Checks which day of the week it is

   Grammar Note

   Literally "today is which day"; answer with a day name such as "Ilelo ni Cimo." Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

2. Ubushiku bumo

   One day

   Usage

   One day; used to state a length of stay or duration

   Grammar Note

   "ubushiku" is a class 14 noun, so the numeral takes the form "bumo"; the plural "days" is "inshiku"

3. Umweshi umo

   One month

   Usage

   One month; used to state a length of stay or period

   Grammar Note

   "umweshi" means both the moon and a calendar month; the plural is "imyeshi". Composed from known words; native review recommended

4. Umwaka umo

   One year

   Usage

   One year; used to state a length of stay or period

   Grammar Note

   The plural is "imyaka", and "cila mwaka" means "every year"

5. Nsa imo

   One hour

   Usage

   One hour; used to state how long something takes

   Grammar Note

   "nsa" is a length of time in hours; "awala" is also used for an hour of the clock

6. Nsa shibili

   Two hours

   Usage

   Two hours; used to state how long something takes

   Grammar Note

   In the plural the numeral takes the form "shibili" (the singular uses "imo")

7. Mamineti amakumi yatatu

   Thirty minutes

   Usage

   Thirty minutes; used to state a short duration

   Grammar Note

   "mamineti" is a loanword (singular "mineti"); "amakumi" means "tens", so "amakumi yatatu" is thirty. Native review recommended

8. Cimo

   Monday

   Usage

   Monday; "on Monday" is "pali Cimo"

   Grammar Note

   Day names come from numerals, and Monday corresponds to "one"

9. Cibili

   Tuesday

   Usage

   Tuesday; "on Tuesday" is "pali Cibili"

   Grammar Note

   A day name derived from the numeral "two"

10. Citatu

    Wednesday

    Usage

    Wednesday; "on Wednesday" is "pali Citatu"

    Grammar Note

    A day name derived from the numeral "three"

11. Cine

    Thursday

    Usage

    Thursday; "on Thursday" is "pali Cine"

    Grammar Note

    A day name derived from the numeral "four"; the same spelling "cine" also means "truly". Native review recommended

12. Cisano

    Friday

    Usage

    Friday; "on Friday" is "pali Cisano"

    Grammar Note

    A day name derived from the numeral "five". Native review recommended

13. Cibelushi

    Saturday

    Usage

    Saturday; "on Saturday" is "pa Cibelushi"

    Grammar Note

    A day name not derived from a numeral; "pa" marks the time ("on")

14. Sondo

    Sunday

    Usage

    Sunday; "on Sunday" is "pa Sondo", and "Sande" is also written

    Grammar Note

    Apparently a loanword from English "Sunday"; "mulungu" is mainly used for "week". Native review recommended

15. Ulucelo

    Morning

    Usage

    Morning; used to point to the morning hours

    Grammar Note

    A class 11 noun (prefix ulu-); placed after a clock time it means "a.m."

16. Icungulo

    Evening

    Usage

    Late afternoon into evening; used to point to that time of day

    Grammar Note

    Also written without the prefix as "cungulo"; it covers the afternoon into the evening

17. Ubushiku

    Night

    Usage

    Night; "at night" is "pa bushiku"

    Grammar Note

    The same word also means a whole day of 24 hours; the daytime is "akasuba"

18. Cila bushiku

    Every day

    Usage

    Every day; used to say something happens daily

    Grammar Note

    "cila" means "each" and the following noun drops its initial vowel; it is also written as one word, "cilabushiku"

19. Ukufuma pali Cimo ukufika pali Cisano.

    From Monday to Friday.

    Usage

    States a range of days such as opening or service days

    Grammar Note

    "ukufuma ... ukufika ..." means "from ... to ..." and the same pattern works for times and places. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

20. Mulungu umo

    One week

    Usage

    One week; used to state a length of stay or period

    Grammar Note

    "mulungu" is "week", and "uyu mulungu" means "this week". Composed from known words; native review recommended

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