Present Tense Verbs in Kikuyu

🎯 Lesson Goal

Until now you have learned names, greetings, family words and numbers. This lesson takes the next big step: putting words together to say what people do. You will learn how to make simple present-tense sentences in Kikuyu, and how the same sentence changes when the person doing the action changes. You will practise with six very common verbs: to read, to eat, to drink, to go, to work and to see. Once you understand how one verb works, you can use the same pattern with many other verbs.

This lesson teaches learners how to make simple present-tense sentences in Kikuyu using different subjects. By the end, learners will be able to say things such as:

• I read a book.
• You eat food.
• He/she drinks water.
• We go to school.
• You work.
• They see a child.

How the lesson is organized: first you learn what the present tense is and how Kikuyu shows who is doing an action. Then you work through six verbs, one at a time, with every person: I, you, he, she, we, you (plural) and they. After that you look at the pattern behind all the sentences, read more example sentences and a short conversation, and finish with practice questions and a short writing exercise.

🎯 Introduction

The present tense is the form of a verb we use to talk about what is happening now, or what happens regularly. When you say “I read a book,” “she drinks water” or “we go to school,” you are using the present tense.

We use the present tense to talk about:

• Things we do regularly. For example, going to school or work every day.
• Things happening in the present. For example, someone eating or reading right now.
• Simple daily activities. For example, drinking water, eating food or seeing a friend.

The present tense is one of the most useful tenses for a beginner because it lets you describe your daily life and ask other people about theirs. In English, we change the verb a little for “he” and “she” (I read, she reads). Kikuyu works differently. In Kikuyu, the verb itself carries a small piece at the front that tells you who is doing the action. In this lesson you will learn what those pieces are and how to use them.

📖 Subject Pronouns

In Kikuyu, the person doing the action (the subject) is shown by a small subject marker that is joined to the front of the verb. The English words “I,” “you” and “we” are not usually said as separate words. Separate pronouns are only added when a speaker wants to stress who is doing the action, so beginners can leave them out.

Notice: Kikuyu uses the same marker, a-, for “he” and “she.” The verb does not show whether the person is male or female. You know from the situation, or from a name, who is being talked about.

📖 Verb 1 – “To Read”

The Kikuyu verb “to read” is gũthoma. The part that carries the meaning is thoma. The sentence we will use is: Nĩ ndĩrathoma ibuku. (I read a book.)

What changes: only the subject marker at the start of the verb changes (ndĩ-, ũ-, a-, tũ-, mũ-, ma-). The rest of the verb, -ra-thoma, stays the same every time. The word nĩ at the beginning stays the same too. “He reads” and “she reads” are the same sentence, and “you” (one person) and “you” (many people) are told apart by the marker.

📖 Verb 2 – “To Eat”

The Kikuyu verb “to eat” is kũrĩa. The part that carries the meaning is rĩa. The sentence is: Nĩ ndĩrarĩa irio. (I eat food.)

What changes: again, only the subject marker changes. The present-tense piece -ra- and the verb rĩa stay the same. The word for “food” is irio.

📖 Verb 3 – “To Drink”

The Kikuyu verb “to drink” is kũnyua. The part that carries the meaning is nyua. The word for “water” is maaĩ.

📖 Verb 4 – “To Go”

The Kikuyu verb “to go” is gũthiĩ. The part that carries the meaning is thiĩ. The sentence is: Nĩ ndĩrathiĩ cukuru. (I go to school.)

A small difference: most Kikuyu verbs end in -a (thoma, rĩa, nyua). The verb “to go” ends in -ĩ (thiĩ). This is a small irregularity, but the subject markers and -ra- work exactly the same way. Notice too that Kikuyu does not need a separate word for “to” here: Nĩ ndĩrathiĩ cukuru means “I go to school.”

📖 Verb 5 – “To Work”

“To work” is said with the verb kũruta and the word wĩra, which means “work.” Together, kũruta wĩra is “to work.” The part that changes with the subject is the verb ruta.

Note: in Kikuyu, “work” is a noun (wĩra) that goes with the verb, so it stays in the sentence like an object, even though in English we simply say “I work.”

📖 Verb 6 – “To See”

The Kikuyu verb “to see” is kũona. The part that carries the meaning is ona. The word for “child” is mwana.

🧩 Pattern Recognition

Every sentence in this lesson follows the same pattern:

Nĩ + subject marker + ra + verb + object

Example: Nĩ + ndĩ + ra + thoma + ibuku = Nĩ ndĩrathoma ibuku. (I read a book.)

What marks the subject? A small marker joined to the front of the verb: ndĩ- (I), ũ- (you), a- (he/she), tũ- (we), mũ- (you plural), ma- (they).

What marks the present tense? The little piece -ra- between the subject marker and the verb. It stays the same for every subject.

What happens to the verb? The verb stem stays the same and ends in -a (for example thoma, rĩa, nyua, ona, ruta). The verb “to go” ends in -ĩ (thiĩ), which is a small irregularity. Can the subject pronoun be left out? Yes. Kikuyu does not need a separate word for “I,” “you” or “we,” because the subject marker already tells you who is doing the action. The word nĩ at the start affirms the sentence (“indeed”). It stays in every example, and it is a good habit for beginners to keep.

More examples of the same pattern with a new verb, “to buy” (gũgũra)

🗣️ Example Sentences

💬 Short Conversation

Wanjiru: Nĩ ũreka atĩa?

What are you doing?

Kamau: Nĩ ndĩrathoma ibuku.

I am reading a book.

Wanjiru: Nĩ ũrarĩa irio?

Are you eating food?

Kamau: Aca, nĩ ndĩranyua maaĩ.

No, I am drinking water.

Wanjiru: Na mũrũ wa maitũ nĩ areka atĩa?

And what is my brother doing?

Kamau: Nĩ araruta wĩra.

He is working.

Wanjiru: Na mwarĩ wa maitũ?

And my sister?

Kamau: Nĩ arathiĩ cukuru.

She is going to school.

✍️ Short Writing Exercise