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Austin
Professional TeacherI'm seeing contradictory information about the formation of the future tense. Some sources say single syllable verbs like -ya and -dla need to have -ku- before them, but others say they don't. Is this dialectical or is there a reason for this? For example, which of the following are correct? Or both or neither?
A: ngizodla; ngizoya; angizudla; angizuya
B: ngizokudla; ngizokuya; angizukudla; angizukuya
Dec 18, 2025 3:29 PM
Answers · 3
Invitee
1
Ngizodla =I will eat
Ngizoya= I will go
Angizudla , Now that is an opposite to Ngizodla.
Angizuya opposite for Ngozoya( I will go)
Now when it comes to Ngizodla and Ngizokudla same thing, maybe it will depend on the sentence how it will sound, from either. same applies to Angizukudla and Angizudla.
e.g Ngizodla mangibuya
or Ngizokudla mangibuya, same thing, just short and long syllable, you will have to choose which one you want to go with. hope this will help.
December 18, 2025
Invitee
1
Hi, both sets are correct. Set A is common IsiZulu that you will come across when conversing with native speakers in everyday speech. Question: Uzodla nini? {When will you eat?} Answer: Ngizodla ntambama. {I will eat in the afternoon.} Set B is formal use for tests, formal writing etc or used by elders who speak deep IsiZulu. Where you must add -ku before single-syllable verbs. The use of -ku is also associated with deep IsiZulu and when writing a test you will not be penalised for saying ngizodla instead of ngizokudla.
December 18, 2025
Invitee
Both options are correct. Which one you use can depend on where you come from, what you grew up hearing, and how “deep” or formal the Zulu is.
December 19, 2025
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Austin
Language Skills
Amharic, Chewa (Chichewa), English, Spanish, Swahili
Learning Language
Spanish
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