In this short video lesson, we will look at the way adjectives are used in Bemba, as compared to English.

A noun is a part of a sentence that names a person, place, thing, idea, action or quality. Examples:

Itaba = cob of maize

Umuntu = person

Kapenta = a type of small fish

Amenshi = water

An adjective is added to a noun to give more information about it, e.g. size, colour or number.

In Bemba, adjectives usually follow the noun, eg.

Umusebo ukalamba = a big road
Itaba ilyabola = a rotten cob of maize
Umuntu umutali = a tall person
Kapenta uwalula = bitter Kapenta fish
Amenshi ayatalala = cold water

In this short lesson, we saw that there is a difference between English and Bemba in the way adjectives and nouns are used: In Bemba, the adjective usually follows the noun.

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