Swahili
Americannoun
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a member of a Bantu people of Zanzibar and the neighboring coast of Africa.
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Also Kiswahili or ki-Swahili the Bantu language of the Swahili people, used also as a lingua franca in Tanzania, Kenya, and parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
noun
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Also called: Kiswahili. a language of E Africa that is an official language of Kenya and Tanzania and is widely used as a lingua franca throughout E and central Africa. It is a member of the Bantu group of the Niger-Congo family, originally spoken in Zanzibar, and has a large number of loan words taken from Arabic and other languages
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Also called: Mswahili. Waswahili. a member of a people speaking this language, living chiefly in Zanzibar
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of Swahili
First recorded in 1810–15; from Swahili, from Arabic sawāḥiliy “of or pertaining to the coast,” equivalent to sawāḥil, plural of sāḥil “coast” + -iy adjective and noun suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Today, it is common to hear Swahili spoken in the valley rather than the Hadzabe language.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 9, 2026
He arrived with the ability to speak three languages — French, Swahili and Lingala.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 2, 2026
Victor, Mark, Erik and Moses were included in WhatsApp groups where fellow Kenyans reassured them in Swahili that they were heading for good salaries and exciting new lives.
From Barron's ● Feb. 9, 2026
"The country's universities, especially the Somali National University, should focus more on developing the Swahili language, which is the language of East Africa," President Mohamud said.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2025
We spent hours teaching them how to sing in Swahili.
From "How Dare the Sun Rise" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana
The Swahilis assumed an unaccustomed silence, and the busy, noisy camp was like a death chamber.
From The Explorer by Maugham, W. Somerset (William Somerset)
But only a few of our men were Swahilis by blood.
From A Book-Lover's Holidays in the Open by Roosevelt, Theodore
“Ready?” asked he of the President, and proceeded with great patience, skill and knowledge of languages and dialects, to interpret the statements of Wadegos, Swahilis, Arabs, and assorted Africans.
From Cupid in Africa by Wren, P. C.
He, however, complains that he is not encouraged by the Administration in either colony, and certainly makes no headway against Islam, which has a very strong hold, especially in British East Africa, with the Swahilis.
From Pan-Islam by Bury, G. Wyman (George Wyman)
They shouted with delight, leaping, brandishing spears, little suspecting the trick which the Swahilis had played on them.
From Settlers and Scouts by Strang, Herbert
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
