kupiga chenga
Literally to hit a dodge
Means to dodge or evade (a question, an issue, a responsibility)
Example Waziri alipiga chenga swali la mwandishi.
An idiom is a phrase you cannot translate word for word. Here are 13 of the most common Swahili idioms, each with its literal translation, real meaning, and an example sentence, so you know what natives actually mean.
Common Swahili idioms are everyday expressions whose meaning cannot be guessed from the individual words. For example, kupiga chenga literally means "to hit a dodge" but is used to mean to dodge or evade (a question, an issue, a responsibility). This free tool lists 13 real Swahili idioms, each with its literal translation, meaning, and an example sentence.
All 13 Swahili idioms, with meanings and examples.
Guess the meaning, then tap a card to check.
Idiom list verified as of July 2026.
kupiga chenga
Literally to hit a dodge
Means to dodge or evade (a question, an issue, a responsibility)
Example Waziri alipiga chenga swali la mwandishi.
kula rushwa
Literally to eat a bribe
Means to take bribes, to be corrupt
Example Afisa yule alifukuzwa kazi kwa kula rushwa.
kula njama
Literally to eat a plot
Means to conspire, to scheme together
Example Walikuwa wanakula njama za kumwondoa mkurugenzi.
kufa moyo
Literally to die heart
Means to lose heart, to become discouraged
Example Usife moyo, mtihani mwingine utakuja.
kutia moyo
Literally to put heart
Means to encourage, to hearten someone
Example Mama alimtia moyo binti yake kabla ya mashindano.
kuwa na mkono mrefu
Literally to have a long hand
Means to be light fingered, to be a thief
Example Mfanyakazi mmoja ofisini ana mkono mrefu, vitu vinapotea kila mara.
kula chumvi nyingi
Literally to eat much salt
Means to be very experienced, to have seen much of life
Example Babu yangu amekula chumvi nyingi, ushauri wake ni wa thamani.
kuwa na roho ngumu
Literally to have a hard soul
Means to be hard hearted, stingy, merciless
Example Tajiri yule ana roho ngumu, hasaidii hata jamaa zake.
kuwa na jicho baya
Literally to have a bad eye
Means to be envious, covetous
Example Usimwonyeshe mafanikio yako, ana jicho baya.
kupiga soga
Literally to hit chat
Means to chat casually, to shoot the breeze
Example Tulikaa dukani tukipiga soga hadi usiku.
kukata tamaa
Literally to cut hope
Means to give up, to lose hope
Example Ijapokuwa alishindwa mara tatu, hakukata tamaa.
kutupa jicho
Literally to throw an eye
Means to take a quick glance or look at something
Example Tafadhali tupa jicho kwenye barua hii kabla sijaituma.
kuwa macho
Literally to be eyes
Means to be alert, vigilant, watchful
Example Kuwa macho usiku huu, kuna taarifa za wezi katika eneo hili.
Idioms stick when you see them in context, not on a list. Lingo7 lets you read real Swahili books with sentence-aligned translation and native-narrated audio, so you meet idioms in the wild and tap any line you do not get. Save them and review later. Free to start.
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: Kupiga chenga comes out as "to hit a dodge", which makes no sense until you know it means to dodge or evade (a question, an issue, a responsibility).
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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Some of the most common Swahili idioms are kupiga chenga, kula rushwa, kula njama, kufa 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 tool lists 13 of them with their meaning and an example sentence.
In Swahili, "kupiga chenga" translates literally as "to hit a dodge", but it actually means to dodge or evade (a question, an issue, a responsibility). You would use it like this: Waziri alipiga chenga swali la mwandishi.
Idioms are non-compositional: their meaning is fixed by convention, not built from the individual words. Kupiga chenga translates literally as "to hit a dodge", yet it means to dodge or evade (a question, an issue, a responsibility). 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.