guhatswa
goo-HAH-tswah
How to say it
Kirundiguhatswagoo-HAH-tswah
Englishto nearly (do or suffer)
Frenchfaillir, manquer de
Meaning
Used before another verb to say that something almost happened but did not, like 'nearly' or 'almost'.
Good to know
Mostly in the perfect, followed by an infinitive: yahatswe gupfa, he nearly died; bahatswe kugandagurwa, they were nearly killed.
Examples
- Yahatswe gupfa mu mpanuka y'imodoka.He nearly died in a car accident.
- Twahatswe gutsindwa ariko amaherezo turatsinda.We nearly lost, but in the end we won.
- Abana bahatswe gutwarwa n'amazi.The children were nearly carried away by the water.
Not yet checked by a native speaker.