ndakwanga
The phrase "I hate you" in Kinyarwanda is ndakwanga.
ndakwanga is used as an expression of intense dislike.
Meaning: expression of intense dislike (phrase)
How does it change in a sentence?
ndakwanga is in the present tense. If you want to express "I hated you" in the past tense, you would use narakwangiye.
Did you know?
- A common way to soften the blow of dislike is to use the word ntugushimiye, which literally means 'I do not praise you' rather than 'I hate you'.
- In Kinyarwanda, the word for 'hate' kwanga can also mean 'to refuse' or 'to reject'. This suggests that hating a person is viewed as a fundamental act of rejecting their presence.
- While English speakers often use 'I hate you' jokingly with friends, using ndakwanga in a playful context is extremely rare and could be perceived as a genuine, serious insult due to the lack of linguistic cushions.
Examples in context
- Ndakwanga cyane.I hate you very much.
Example conversation
Alice and Olivier are having a heated argument.
- AliceUrakora ibintu bibi cyane.You do very bad things.
- OlivierKuki uvuze ibyo?Why are you saying that?
- AliceKuko ndakwanga, Olivier!Because I hate you, Olivier!
- OlivierNanjye ndagukwanga.I hate you too.
