The following tables show theIPA representations of Swahili pronunciation. The first two section concern Unguja standard Swahili, which is based on the Swahili of Zanzibar town and which is spoken by the large majority of Swahili speakers whose mother tongue is not Swahili (and who have come to make up the bulk of speakers of the language). English approximations are in some cases very approximate, and only intended to give a general idea of the pronunciation.
| Vowels |
|---|
| IPA | Examples | English approximation |
|---|
| ɑ | baba[ˈɓɑɓɑ] 'father' | father |
| ɛ | ndege[ˈⁿdɛɠɛ] 'bird' | let |
| i | Kiswahili[kiswɑˈhili] 'Swahili (language)' | meat |
| ɔ | mtoto[m̩ˈtɔtɔ] 'child' | off |
| u | uhuru[uˈhuɾu] 'freedom' | fool |
| ː | kondoo[kɔˈⁿdɔː] 'sheep' | vowellength |
| Suprasegmentals |
|---|
| IPA | Examples | Explanation |
|---|
| ˈ | safari[sɑˈfɑɾi] 'journey' | stress[1] |
| Consonants |
|---|
| IPA | Examples | English approximation |
|---|
| ɓ | baba[ˈɓɑɓɑ] 'father' | bill |
| ɗ | dola[ˈɗɔlɑ] 'dollar' | delta |
| ð | dhambi[ˈðɑᵐbi] 'sin, offence'[2] | that |
| ʄ ~dʒ | maji[ˈmɑʄi] ~[ˈmɑdʒi] 'water' | jab |
| f | fisi[ˈfisi] 'hyena' | focus |
| ɠ | gani[ˈɠɑni] 'what, of which' | gag |
| ɣ | ghali[ˈɣɑli] 'expensive'[2] | Scottishloch but voiced |
| h | uhuru[uˈhuɾu] 'freedom' | ahead |
| j | yeye[ˈjɛjɛ] 'he/she' | yellow |
| k | kitabu[kiˈtɑbu] 'book' | scald |
| l | lakini[lɑˈkini] 'but'[3] | lack |
| m | damu[ˈɗɑmu] 'blood' | mocha |
| m̩ | mtoto[m̩ˈtɔtɔ] 'child' | rhythm |
| ᵐb | mbali[ˈᵐbɑli] 'far' | clamber |
| ᶬv | mvinyo[ˈᶬviɲɔ] 'spirits' | Humvee |
| n | nini[ˈnini] 'what' | ninny |
| n̩ | nchi[ˈn̩tʃi] 'country' | even (syllabic nasal) |
| ⁿd | muhindi[muˈhiⁿdi] 'corn, maize' | handy |
| ᵑɡ | ngoma[ˈᵑɡɔmɑ] 'drum' | finger |
| ⁿdʒ | injili[iˈⁿdʒili] 'gospel' | range |
| ⁿz | kwanza[ˈkwɑⁿzɑ] 'to begin' | pansy |
| ɲ | nyoka[ˈɲɔkɑ] 'snake' | canyon |
| ŋ | ng'ombe[ˈŋɔᵐbɛ] 'cow, ox' | sing |
| p | kikapu[kiˈkɑpu] 'basket' | spill |
| ɾ | rafiki[ɾɑˈfiki] 'friend'[3] | robot |
| s | sisi[ˈsisi] 'we' | stole |
| ʃ | shamba[ˈʃɑᵐbɑ] 'farm, field' | shell |
| t | moto[ˈmɔtɔ] 'fire' | stand |
| tʃ | chumba[ˈtʃuᵐbɑ] 'room' | chase |
| θ | thelathini[θɛlɑˈθini] 'thirty'[2] | think |
| v | vitabu[viˈtɑbu] 'books' | vittle |
| w | watu[ˈwɑtu] 'people' | with |
| x | subulkheri[suɓulˈxɛɾi] 'good morning'[2] | Scottishloch |
| z | maziwa[mɑˈziwɑ] 'milk' | zoo |
Outside of Zanzibar, many dialects distinguish alveolar from dental stops:
| Alveolar | Dental |
|---|
| IPA | Examples | IPA | Examples |
|---|
| t | kata[ˈkɑtɑ] 'to cut' | t̪ | taka[ˈt̪ɑkɑ] 'to want' |
| ⁿd | ndani[ˈⁿdɑni] 'inside' | ⁿd̪ | ndia[ˈⁿd̪iɑ] 'way' (Kimvita) |
There is no phonemic aspiration in Standard Swahili. Polomé[4] explains that voiceless stops are aspirated when word-initial or when in the stressed syllable. A great many dialects do distinguish aspirated from unaspirated voiced stops, and this can change the meaning of a word.
| Plain | Aspirated |
|---|
| IPA | Examples | IPA | Examples |
|---|
| p | paa[pɑː] 'roof' | pʰ | paa[pʰɑː] 'impala' |
| t | mto[ˈm̩.tɔ] 'river' | tʰ | mtu[ˈm̩.tʰu] 'person' |
| t̪ | taa[t̪ɑː] 'lamp' | t̪ʰ | nti[ˈn̩.t̪ʰi] 'country' (Kimvita) |
| tʃ | choo[tʃɔː] 'toilet' | tʃʰ | choo[tʃʰɔː] 'earthworm' |
| k | kaa[kɑː] 'charcoal' | kʰ | kaa[kʰɑː] 'crab' |
Finally, some speakers pronounce Arabic loans with a pronunciation closer to the original Arabic one:
| Arabic sounds |
|---|
| IPA | Examples | Notes |
|---|
| ˤ◌̹ | sultani/sulˈt̪ˤɑ̹.ni/ 'sultan' | pharyngealization is often realized by making the consonant dental and the subsequent vowel more rounded; details vary by speaker |
| ː | hata[ˈħɑtːɑ] 'even if' | geminate consonant |
| ħ | hata[ˈħɑtːɑ] 'even if' | |
| q | akili[ɑˈqi.li] 'common sense' | |
| ʕ | laana[lɑˈʕɑ.nɑ] 'curse' | |
