Adjectives

1. Nyũmba nene

   Big (house)

   Usage

   An example of describing size.

   Grammar Note

   Adjectives change form to agree with the noun class, so each is shown with a noun it is attested with in the Bible. "nene" means "big"; "nyũmba nene" appears 8x in the Bible, and Wiktionary has "-nene (big, large)".

2. Kĩndũ kĩnini

   Small (thing)

   Usage

   An example of describing something small.

   Grammar Note

   Adjectives change form to agree with the noun class, so each is shown with a noun it is attested with in the Bible. "kĩnini" is the class-7 form of "small"; "kĩndũ kĩnini" appears 5x in the Bible, and Wiktionary has "-nini (little, small)".

3. Kĩndũ kĩega

   Good (thing)

   Usage

   An example of praising something.

   Grammar Note

   Adjectives change form to agree with the noun class, so each is shown with a noun it is attested with in the Bible. "kĩega" is the class-7 form of "good"; "kĩndũ kĩega" appears 5x in the Bible, and Wiktionary has "-ega (good)".

4. Kĩndũ kĩũru

   Bad (thing)

   Usage

   An example of describing something bad.

   Grammar Note

   Adjectives change form to agree with the noun class, so each is shown with a noun it is attested with in the Bible. "kĩũru" is the class-7 form of "bad"; "kĩndũ kĩũru" appears 2x in the Bible, and Wiktionary has "-ũru (bad, ugly)".

5. Mũndũ mũkũrũ

   Old person / elder

   Usage

   Refers to an elderly person.

   Grammar Note

   Adjectives change form to agree with the noun class, so each is shown with a noun it is attested with in the Bible. "mũkũrũ" is the class-1 form of "old"; "mũndũ mũkũrũ" appears 10x in the Bible, and Wiktionary has "-kũrũ (old)".

6. Andũ aingĩ

   Many people

   Usage

   To describe a crowd.

   Grammar Note

   Adjectives change form to agree with the noun class, so each is shown with a noun it is attested with in the Bible. "aingĩ" is the class-2 form of "many"; "andũ aingĩ" appears 170x in the Bible, and Wiktionary has "-ingĩ (many, much)".

7. Gũkuhĩ

   Near

   Usage

   To say a place is near.

   Grammar Note

   "gũkuhĩ" is "near" for a place (Bible 71x; Benson 1964 has the stem "-kuhĩ (short; near, close)" and the example "Nairobi ni gũkuhĩ", Nairobi is close). It is the stem with the locative prefix gũ-; the bare stem "kuhĩ" is not used alone. "hakuhĩ" (Bible 325x) also means nearby.

8. Kũraya

   Far

   Usage

   To say a place is far.

   Grammar Note

   Bible 136x; Wiktionary "-raya (long; tall; far)".

9. Heho

   Cold

   Usage

   About cold weather. The Central Kenya highlands are cool in the mornings and evenings.

   Grammar Note

   Wiktionary "coldness"; Bible 26x. It is a noun, used to say that it is cold.

10. Wega mũno

    Very good

    Usage

    For praise or a verdict.

    Grammar Note

    Bible "wega mũno" 33x, also "Nĩ wega mũno". "mũno" means "very" (1,514x).

11. Njĩra njega

    A good road

    Usage

    An example of describing a road.

    Grammar Note

    Adjectives change form to agree with the noun class, so each is shown with a noun it is attested with in the Bible. "njega" is the class-9 form of "good"; "njĩra njega" appears 3x in the Bible.

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