kukata tamaa
Literally to cut hope
Means to give up, to lose hope
English idiom to throw in the towel
Example Ijapokuwa alishindwa mara tatu, hakukata tamaa.
Even though he failed three times, he did not give up.
An idiom is a phrase you cannot translate word for word. Here are the 24 most common Swahili idioms, ranked by how often you will actually meet them, each with its literal translation, real meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation, so you know what natives actually mean.
Common Swahili idioms are everyday expressions whose meaning cannot be guessed from the individual words. For example, kukata tamaa literally means "to cut hope" but is used to mean to give up, to lose hope. This free page ranks the 24 most common Swahili idioms by how often you meet them, each with its literal translation, meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation.
All 24 idioms, most common first.
Guess the meaning, then tap a card to check.
Idiom list verified as of August 2026.
kukata tamaa
Literally to cut hope
Means to give up, to lose hope
English idiom to throw in the towel
Example Ijapokuwa alishindwa mara tatu, hakukata tamaa.
Even though he failed three times, he did not give up.
kutia moyo
Literally to put heart
Means to encourage someone, to lift their spirits
Example Mama alimtia moyo binti yake kabla ya mashindano.
The mother encouraged her daughter before the competition.
kuwa macho
Literally to be eyes
Means to be alert, vigilant, watchful
English idiom to keep your eyes peeled
Example Kuwa macho usiku huu, kuna taarifa za wezi katika eneo hili.
Be alert tonight, there are reports of thieves in this area.
kupiga soga
Literally to hit chat
Means to chat casually about nothing in particular
English idiom to shoot the breeze
Example Tulikaa dukani tukipiga soga hadi usiku.
We sat at the shop chatting until nightfall.
kuvunja moyo
Literally to break heart
Means to discourage someone, to drain their motivation
Example Maneno yake yalinivunja moyo nikaacha kuomba kazi.
His words discouraged me and I stopped applying for jobs.
kufa moyo
Literally to die heart
Means to become discouraged, to give up inside
English idiom to lose heart
Example Usife moyo, mtihani mwingine utakuja.
Do not lose heart, another exam will come.
kula rushwa
Literally to eat a bribe
Means to take bribes, to be corrupt
English idiom to be on the take
Example Afisa yule alifukuzwa kazi kwa kula rushwa.
That officer was fired for taking bribes.
Note It describes the person receiving the bribe, while the one paying it is a mtoa rushwa.
kutupa jicho
Literally to throw an eye
Means to take a quick look at something
English idiom to cast an eye over
Example Tafadhali tupa jicho kwenye barua hii kabla sijaituma.
Please take a quick look at this letter before I send it.
kutia chumvi
Literally to add salt
Means to exaggerate when telling something
English idiom to lay it on thick
Example Anapenda kutia chumvi anaposimulia habari.
He likes to exaggerate when he tells a story.
kupiga moyo konde
Literally to hit the heart with a fist
Means to gather your courage and face something hard
English idiom to steel yourself
Example Nilipiga moyo konde nikamwambia ukweli.
I gathered my courage and told him the truth.
kufumba na kufumbua
Literally to close and to open the eyes
Means in a very short moment, almost instantly
English idiom in the blink of an eye
Example Kwa kufumba na kufumbua, mwaka mmoja umepita.
In the blink of an eye, a whole year has gone by.
kupiga chenga
Literally to hit a dodge
Means to dodge or evade a question, an issue or a person
Example Waziri alipiga chenga swali la mwandishi.
The minister dodged the reporter's question.
Note It comes from football, where a chenga is a dribble past a defender.
kula njama
Literally to eat a plot
Means to conspire, to scheme together against someone
English idiom to hatch a plot
Example Walikuwa wanakula njama za kumwondoa mkurugenzi.
They were plotting to remove the director.
kuvuta subira
Literally to pull patience
Means to wait patiently, to keep holding on
English idiom to hang in there
Example Vuta subira, majibu yatatoka wiki ijayo.
Be patient, the results will come out next week.
kula chumvi nyingi
Literally to eat much salt
Means to have lived long and seen a lot of life
English idiom to have been around the block
Example Babu yangu amekula chumvi nyingi, ushauri wake ni wa thamani.
My grandfather has seen a lot of life, his advice is valuable.
kuwa na roho ngumu
Literally to have a hard soul
Means to be hard hearted or unwilling to give
English idiom to have a heart of stone
Example Tajiri yule ana roho ngumu, hasaidii hata jamaa zake.
That rich man has a heart of stone, he does not even help his own relatives.
kuumiza kichwa
Literally to hurt the head
Means to worry or think hard over a problem
English idiom to rack your brain
Example Usiumize kichwa juu ya jambo hilo, tutalitatua kesho.
Do not trouble yourself over that matter, we will sort it out tomorrow.
kuwa na mkono mrefu
Literally to have a long hand
Means to be in the habit of stealing
English idiom to have sticky fingers
Example Mfanyakazi mmoja ofisini ana mkono mrefu, vitu vinapotea kila mara.
One worker in the office has sticky fingers, things go missing all the time.
kutia fora
Literally to put a win
Means to stand out, to do better than everyone else
English idiom to steal the show
Example Timu yetu ilitia fora katika mashindano ya mwaka huu.
Our team stood out at this year's competition.
kuvunja mbavu
Literally to break ribs
Means to make people laugh very hard
English idiom to have someone in stitches
Example Mchekeshaji yule alivunja mbavu za watu jana usiku.
That comedian had everyone in stitches last night.
kupiga danadana
Literally to hit to and fro
Means to stall, to keep putting someone off with delays
English idiom to give someone the runaround
Example Ofisi ile ilinipiga danadana kwa miezi miwili bila kunipa jibu.
That office gave me the runaround for two months without giving me an answer.
Note Most often heard in the passive, kupigwa danadana, about offices and officials that keep people waiting.
kufyata mkia
Literally to tuck the tail
Means to back down out of fear, to retreat from a confrontation
English idiom to turn tail
Example Alipoona polisi wanakuja, alifyata mkia akaondoka.
When he saw the police coming, he turned tail and left.
Note Mocking in tone, so it is not something you say politely to the person's face.
kuwa na jicho baya
Literally to have a bad eye
Means to be envious of what other people have
Example Usimwonyeshe mafanikio yako, ana jicho baya.
Do not show him your success, he is the envious type.
Note It carries the old belief that an envious look can bring harm, so it is a heavy thing to say about someone.
kula bata
Literally to eat duck
Means to enjoy yourself and have a very good time
English idiom to live it up
Example Baada ya kulipwa mshahara, walikwenda mjini kula bata.
After they were paid, they went into town to live it up.
Note Informal slang, so it is out of place in formal writing.
An idiom is a phrase whose meaning is fixed by convention, not built from its words. That is why a word-for-word translation fails: Kukata tamaa comes out as "to cut hope", which makes no sense until you know it means to give up, to lose hope.
Learn a few at a time, not a whole list. Pick the ones you keep running into, say them out loud in a real sentence, and you will remember them far longer than by drilling flashcards.
The most reliable way to absorb idioms is to meet them in context, again and again, in things you actually read. Parallel text and audio let you catch an idiom in a real Swahili sentence and check what it means without breaking your reading. That is what reading in Lingo7 is built for.
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The most common Swahili idioms, ranked by everyday frequency, start with kukata tamaa, kutia moyo, kuwa macho, kupiga soga, kuvunja moyo. Each one means something you could not guess from the words alone, which is exactly why learners have to meet them in context. This page lists 24 of them with meanings and example sentences.
In Swahili, "kukata tamaa" translates literally as "to cut hope", but it actually means to give up, to lose hope. The closest English idiom is "to throw in the towel". Example: Ijapokuwa alishindwa mara tatu, hakukata tamaa. ("Even though he failed three times, he did not give up.")
The Swahili equivalent is "kukata tamaa", literally "to cut hope". Example: Ijapokuwa alishindwa mara tatu, hakukata tamaa. ("Even though he failed three times, he did not give up.")
In Swahili, an idiom is called nahau, and a proverb is methali. A nahau is a fixed expression whose meaning is not the sum of its words, while a methali is a complete proverb that states a piece of wisdom or advice.
Idioms are non-compositional: their meaning is fixed by convention, not built from the individual words. Kukata tamaa translates literally as "to cut hope", yet it means to give up, to lose hope. Translate word for word and you get nonsense, so idioms have to be learned as whole units.
The fastest way is to meet them in context and reuse them, not to memorize a list. Learn a handful at a time, notice them while reading and listening, and try them in your own sentences. Reading real Swahili with tap-to-translate, the way Lingo7 works, turns every page into idiom practice.