How to Use Swahili in a Sentence

Swahili

noun
Definition of Swahilinext
  • Your kids may even pick up a few words in Swahili which is sometimes spoken on the show!
    — Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 2 Oct. 2023
  • Wali wa kukaanga, Kenya Wali wa kukaanga is Kenya’s answer to fried rice, and translates to just that in Swahili.
    — Terry Ward, CNN, 4 May 2023
  • One such inlet is Jumba beach, which abuts the site of an old Swahili village near the bustling city of Mombasa, in southern Kenya.
    — Juma Adero, The New Yorker, 26 July 2023
  • How do these results gleaned from ancient DNA restore heritage for the Swahili?
    — The Conversation, Fortune, 30 Mar. 2023
  • The researchers intend to gather more samples to continue to fill in the missing pieces of Swahili ancestry.
    — Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Mar. 2023
  • Accented on the first syllable, Zahra means beautiful flower in Swahili, the zoo said.
    — Martin Weil, Washington Post, 11 June 2023
  • Ramazani’s eyes lit up big and wide when Kavita began speaking to Ramazani’s family in Swahili.
    — Joseph Goodman, al, 27 July 2023
  • The hybrid culture created out of these violent and unhappy encounters was doomed to die; the one thing that has remained is the language, Swahili, which has captured that history like a fly in amber.
    — Nadifa Mohamed, Harper's Magazine, 15 June 2022
  • Families can also enjoy raft rides together, including the large funnel attractions Stingray and Swahili Swirl.
    — Gabi De La Rosa, Chron, 16 May 2023
  • Henriette speaks multiple languages including English, French, and Swahili.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 22 July 2023
  • The show, whose name reportedly derived from the Swahili word variously translated as brotherhood unity or building together, was one of the only hour-long daily programs in a major market designed specifically for a Black audience.
    — Adam Bernstein, Washington Post, 15 Aug. 2023
  • One is the Wazalendo, Swahili for patriots, a coalition of once-rival militias that the government cobbled together to repel M23, despite the fighters’ reputation for factionalism and brutality.
    — Declan Walsh Arlette Bashizi, New York Times, 17 Dec. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'Swahili.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: