Swahili
/swəˈhiːli
/ /swɑːˈhiːli/noun (plural same)
1 [mass noun] A Bantu language widely used as a lingua franca in East Africa and having official status in several countries. There are probably fewer than 2 million native speakers, but it is in everyday use by over 20 million. Also called Kiswahili.Many of the dialects borrow from Bantu languages, Swahili, Arabic, English, and French....
- One of the most important integrating forces is the use of the national lingua franca - Swahili, a language spoken and revered by nearly all Tanzanians.
- I also learned that in Tanzania, they speak over 150 different tribal languages, but Swahili is the official mother tongue. just imagine!
2A member of a people of Zanzibar and nearby coastal regions, descendants of the original speakers of Swahili.This synthesis of spiritual worldviews is not unique to Hausa Islam, but is found in most other Afro-Islamic communities, such as those of the Somali, the Swahili, and the Bambara....
- Derived from a Swahili, the word means working together.
adjective
Relating to Swahili or to its native speakers.There is also the Swahili coast - that is the Tanzanian Coastline - with some great beaches south of Dar es Salaam....
- I never managed to figure out the difference between samosas and sambusas (I think it's simply that the latter is the Swahili name).
- My Swahili phrase book - bought at the station - came in surprisingly handy with ‘there is a grinding noise’.
Origin
From Arabic sawāḥil, plural of sāḥil 'coast'.
Rhymes
- reinsist
- reinsman
- reinspect
- reinspection
- reinspire
- reinspirit
- reinstal
- reinstall
- reinstallation
- reinstalment
- reinstate
- reinstatement
- reinstation
- reinstator
- reinstauration
- reinstaure
- reinstil
- reinstitute
- universal arithmetic
- Universal Aunt
- Universal Aunts
- universal bank
- universal banking
- universal bishop
- Universal City