Imilayezo Nezaziso
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Read short public notices, announcements, and messages, and identify their main purpose.
- Recognize passive verbs, from Chapter 14, as they appear naturally in public and media texts.
- Listen to short announcements and radio-style items, and extract key information such as time, place, and what has happened.
- Understand a short written message, such as a note or a text message, and respond to it appropriately.
- Identify the difference between a formal public notice and an informal personal message, and choose language suited to each.
- Write a short notice or message of your own, using vocabulary and grammar already under your control.
- Connect the passive forms from Chapter 14, and the applicative forms from Chapter 13, to authentic-style public communication.
Communication Scenario
A few days after the visit described in Chapter 14, Thandeka checks the community noticeboard near her home, and Nomvula sends her a short message on her phone. Between the printed notice on the wall and the message on the screen, Thandeka has to work out what is being announced, what has already happened, and what she still needs to do. Public and personal texts like these are usually short, but they pack a great deal of meaning into a few sentences, and much of that meaning depends on the passive forms you have just learned.
- Before you begin, think, in English, about the last public notice or text message you read quickly, perhaps a sign about a delayed train, or a note left on a door. Notice how little language such notices actually use, and how much they still manage to communicate.
- Look back briefly at the passive verbs from Chapter 14, thengwa, phekwa, bhalwa, and enziwa. This chapter shows you how the same passive pattern extends easily to new, everyday verbs that appear often in public notices.
Where This Chapter Fits
Chapter 15 continues Unit 3 of Volume II. It reuses the passive extension from Chapter 14, and the applicative forms from Chapter 13, and applies them to a new communicative purpose, reading and listening to short public texts. Chapter 16 then moves from short public texts toward longer narrative expansion and connected dialogue.
From Chapter 14
The passive extension, thengwa, phekwa, bhalwa, and enziwa, along with the agentless pattern, and the ngu- agent pattern.
New in This Chapter
Reading and listening to short public notices, announcements, and personal messages, recognizing new passive verbs built on the same pattern, and choosing between formal and informal written registers.
Looking Forward
Chapter 16 moves from short, self-contained texts toward longer stories with dialogue and sequencing.
Core Vocabulary
This chapter introduces vocabulary for public notices, announcements, and personal messages, together with a small set of new verbs whose passive forms you can now build using the pattern from Chapter 14.
| isiZulu | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| isaziso | notice, announcement | class 7 noun, plural izaziso |
| umlayezo | message | class 3 noun, plural imilayezo |
| ibhodi lezaziso | noticeboard | literally, board of notices |
| vala, valwa | to close, to be closed | plain root and passive pair |
| hlela, hlelwa | to arrange or organize, to be arranged | plain root and passive pair |
| shintsha, shintshwa | to change, to be changed | plain root and passive pair |
| misa, miswa | to stop or postpone, to be postponed | plain root and passive pair |
| umhlangano | meeting | class 3 noun |
| usuku lokugcina | final day, deadline | useful in notices |
Valwa, hlelwa, shintshwa, and miswa follow the same -w- pattern as thengwa, phekwa, and bhalwa from Chapter 14.
Pronunciation Review
No new click series is introduced in this chapter. This chapter reviews the plain and aspirated click series together, c, q, x, ch, qh, and xh, since these appear often in the names of places, offices, and institutions mentioned in public notices.
Public notices are often read aloud quickly, over a loudspeaker or on the radio, so the click consonants and the passive -w- can pass by fast. Practice reading each notice in this chapter aloud twice, once slowly, checking every click and every -w-, and once at a faster, more natural pace, the way an announcer might read it.
Grammar: Media, Messages, and Announcements
15.1 Extending the passive pattern to new verbs
Purpose: recognize and use the same passive pattern from Chapter 14 on a small new set of verbs common in public notices.
Public notices describe results, a meeting has been arranged, a time has been changed, a road has been closed, far more often than they describe who did the arranging, changing, or closing. The passive pattern you learned in Chapter 14 extends directly to these new verbs, adding -w- before the final vowel, exactly as before.
The same -w- pattern applies to new roots. Compare vala, to close, with valwa, to be closed. Hlela, to arrange, becomes hlelwa, to be arranged. Shintsha, to change, becomes shintshwa, to be changed. Misa, to stop or postpone, becomes miswa, to be postponed.
| Plain verb | Meaning | Passive form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| vala | to close | valwa | to be closed |
| hlela | to arrange | hlelwa | to be arranged |
| shintsha | to change | shintshwa | to be changed |
| misa | to stop, to postpone | miswa | to be postponed |
These four verbs are recognition and controlled production items in this chapter, since the underlying passive pattern is already active from Chapter 14. Building fully independent passive forms from any verb root remains a later-chapter target.
15.2 Reading public notices for key information
Purpose: pull out the most important facts from a short public notice, without needing to understand every word.
A public notice usually answers a small number of questions, what has happened or will happen, when, and where. Reading strategically means looking first for these anchors, rather than trying to translate the notice word by word.
Notices and messages also frequently use the reason clauses from Chapter 12 to explain why something has changed.
- Isikole sivaliwe namuhla, ngoba kunemvula enkulu. The school is closed today, because there is heavy rain. Passive valiwe (resultative) + ngoba reason clause
- Isikhathi somhlangano sesishintshiwe, kusuka ekuseni kuya emini. The meeting time has been changed, from the morning to midday. Passive shintshiwe (resultative)
15.3 Formal notices and informal messages compared
Purpose: notice how the same passive grammar appears in both a formal public notice and an informal personal message, while the surrounding language changes with the setting.
A formal notice on a board or in a newspaper tends to use complete sentences, a clear opening such as isaziso, and no direct address to a particular person. An informal message to a friend or family member is shorter, may drop some grammatical words, and often opens with a greeting or the person's name.
- Isaziso: Umhlangano wesikole usumiswe kuze kube ngoLwesihlanu. Notice: The school meeting has now been postponed until Friday. Formal register, no direct address
- Sawubona Thandeka, umhlangano usumisiwe, size ngoLwesihlanu. Hello Thandeka, the meeting has been postponed, we'll go on Friday. Informal register, direct address and greeting
Both sentences use the same passive verb, miswa, but the formal notice states the fact plainly, while the informal message speaks directly to a known person.
Model Dialogue
Isimo: UThandeka usebona isaziso ebhodini lasendaweni, futhi ubuye athole umlayezo kaNomvula ocingweni lwakhe.
Setting: Thandeka reads a notice on the community board, and then finds a message from Nomvula on her phone.
Thandeka's phone rings, and she sees a new message from Nomvula.
Thandeka writes a short reply.
This dialogue moves between a formal public notice and an informal text message, and combines the passive forms miswa and shintshwa with a reason clause and a plan for the future.
Imibuzo yokuqonda — Comprehension questions:
- Kwenzekeni kumhlangano wesikole? (What happened to the school meeting?)
- Kungani umhlangano umisiwe? (Why has the meeting been postponed?)
- Bazohlangana nini esikhundleni salokho? (When will they meet instead?)
Listening
Ask your instructor, a study partner, or a qualified isiZulu speaker to read the following short announcement aloud, at the pace of a public address announcement. Listen twice. On the first listen, note what has happened. On the second listen, note the day, the time, and the place mentioned.
If no speaker is available, this is a Listening Script for Independent Use. Read the passage aloud yourself, at a measured, announcer-like pace, pausing naturally at the end of each sentence. All audio models must be verified by a qualified isiZulu speaker before being treated as a pronunciation model.
Isaziso somphakathi — A community announcement:
"Isaziso kubantu bendawo, itiye lomphakathi selihlelwe ngoMgqibelo, kusukela ehora leshumi ekuseni. Indawo yokuhlangana isishintshiwe, kusuka ehholo elidala kuya esikoleni esisha. Labo abafuna ukuza, kucelwa bafike ekuqaleni, ngoba isango livalwa ngemuva kwehora elilodwa."
Umsebenzi wokulalela — Listening task:
Complete the table with the details you hear.
| Umbuzo (Question) | Impendulo (Answer) |
|---|---|
| Kwenzekani ngoMgqibelo? | ______ |
| Kusukela ehola elingakanani? | ______ |
| Indawo isishintshelwe kuphi? | ______ |
Reading
Read the following notice and message, which show the same information presented in a formal and an informal way. Read each one aloud twice before answering the comprehension questions.
Imibuzo yokuqonda — Comprehension questions:
- Kungani umtapo wolwazi uzovalwa? (Why will the library be closed?)
- Uzovulwa nini futhi? (When will it open again?)
- Yiziphi izinto ezifanayo phakathi kwesaziso nomlayezo, futhi yiziphi izinto ezahlukene? (What is the same between the notice and the message, and what is different?)
Writing Workshop
In this chapter, you will write a short public notice and a short informal message that convey the same information, using at least one passive verb from Chapter 14 or from this chapter.
Umsebenzi wokubhala — Writing task: Choose an everyday change, a meeting time that has changed, a place that has closed, or an event that has been postponed, real or invented. Write a formal notice of three to four sentences, and then a short informal message of two to three sentences, describing the same change to a friend.
- Choose your change. In English, note what has happened, when, and why.
- Write the formal notice. Begin with isaziso, use a passive verb such as valiwe, shintshiwe, or misiwe, and avoid addressing a particular person directly.
- Write the informal message. Open with a greeting or a name, use the same passive verb, and add a brief personal note.
- Add a reason. Use a ngoba clause from Chapter 12 in at least one of the two texts.
- Audit your draft. Confirm that each passive verb keeps its -w- clearly, and that the formal and informal versions differ in tone, not only in length.
Isikhungo sokuhlola — Editing checklist:
- At least one passive verb is used correctly in both texts.
- The formal notice avoids direct address to a specific person.
- The informal message includes a greeting or a name.
- At least one ngoba reason clause is included.
- Standard isiZulu spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are used throughout.
Speaking Practice
Ukuzilolonga — Controlled practice: reading a notice aloud
With a partner, take turns reading one of this chapter's notices aloud, at a natural, announcer-like pace, then summarize it in one spoken sentence, for example Umtapo wolwazi uvaliwe ngoLwesibili. (The library is closed on Tuesday.)
Umsebenzi wokuxhumana — Communicative task: passing on a message
Working with a partner, one of you reads a short invented notice silently, then tells the other person what it says, as if passing on news, while the other person asks one follow up question, such as nini or kuphi.
Ukuzilolonga wedwa — Solo alternative
Record yourself reading your written notice and message aloud, once in a formal, announcer-like voice, and once in a warmer, informal voice, as if speaking to a friend. Listen back, and check that your tone changes even though some of the words stay the same.
Culture and Communication
Community noticeboards, at schools, clinics, and local offices, remain a common way of sharing practical information in many communities, alongside phone messages and radio announcements. Learning to read these short, information dense texts is a genuinely useful everyday skill, not only a classroom exercise.
Even a short, practical text message to someone you know well, such as Nomvula's message to Thandeka in this chapter, commonly opens with a brief greeting before the main point. Dropping straight into the news without any greeting can come across as abrupt, even in a hurried message.
Local radio stations and public address systems at taxi ranks, schools, and markets often use exactly this kind of short, passive heavy announcement, read at a brisk pace. Listening to real recordings, if they become available to you, is excellent extra practice once you are comfortable with this chapter's script.
Common Mistakes
Error: Trying to translate every word of a notice before answering a comprehension question, and losing track of the main point.
Correction: Ask the three anchor questions first, kwenzekani, nini, kuphi, and only look closely at the surrounding words once you have the main facts, for example noticing quickly that umhlangano usumiswe means the meeting has been postponed, before worrying about every remaining word.
Error: Opening a message to a friend with Isaziso, as if writing a public notice, instead of a greeting.
Correction: Reserve isaziso for genuinely public, impersonal notices, and open a personal message with a greeting, such as Sawubona Thandeka, before giving the news.
Error: Saying isikole sivala namuhla to mean the school is closed today, which instead suggests the school itself is doing the closing.
Correction: Use the passive form when the school is the thing affected, not the doer: isikole sivaliwe namuhla, the school is closed today.
Chapter Review
Ingxenye A — Ukuqonda (Comprehension)
1. Buyela esazisweni somphakathi, uphendule le mibuzo emifushane: (Return to the community announcement, and answer these short questions.)
- Kwenzekani ngoMgqibelo?
- Indawo yokuhlangana isishintshelwe kuphi?
Ingxenye B — Isigabisigabi (Grammar)
1. Guqula amagama la abe izinsizwa ezinesandiso sokwenziwa: (Change these words into their passive form.)
vala → ______ hlela → ______ shintsha → ______ misa → ______
2. Gcwalisa isikhala ngegama elifanele: (Fill in the blank with the correct word.)
- Umtapo wolwazi u___ ngoLwesibili. (vala / valiwe / valela)
- Isikhathi somhlangano se___. (shintshwa / sishintshiwe / shintsha)
- Umhlangano usu___ kuze kube ngoLwesihlanu. (misa / misiwe / miswe)
Ingxenye C — Ukufunda (Reading)
1. Buyela esazisweni nasemlayezweni, uphendule: (Return to the notice and the message, and answer.)
- Kungani umtapo wolwazi uzovalwa?
- Yiziphi izinto ezahlukene phakathi kwesaziso nomlayezo?
Ingxenye D — Ukubhala (Writing)
1. Bhala isaziso esifushane, kanye nomlayezo omfushane oya kumngane, ngendaba efanayo. (Write a short notice, along with a short message to a friend, about the same piece of news.)
Ingxenye E — Ukukhuluma (Speaking)
1. Landisela umngane wakho ngesaziso osesibonile, ubatshele ukuthi kwenzekani, nini, futhi kuphi. (Tell your partner about a notice you have seen, and tell them what happened, when, and where.)
Ukubuyekezwa okuhlanganisiwe — Cumulative review from Chapters 10 through 14
Choose the correct word or form in brackets to complete this short account, drawing on locatives, relative concords, applicative forms, and the passive forms together.
Umhlangano [osubanjelwa / osumiswe] esikoleni [okuhlangenwa / okuhlangenwe] khona njalo, use [shintshiwe / shintsha] kusuka ekuseni kuya emini, [ngoba / ukuthi] izulu [belinzima / elinzima] kakhulu namuhla.
Answer Key
Listening
- Kwenzekile: itiye lomphakathi lihlelwe.
- Kusukela ehora leshumi ekuseni.
- Isishintshelwe esikoleni esisha, kusuka ehholo elidala.
Dialogue — Comprehension
- Umhlangano usumiswe.
- Ngoba kunemvula enkulu.
- Bazohlangana ngoLwesihlanu.
Reading — Comprehension
- Ngenxa yokuthi izinsimbi zikagesi sezihlelwa kabusha.
- Uzovulwa ngoLwesithathu, ehoreni lesikhombisa ekuseni.
- Kufana ukuthi zombili zichaza ukuvalwa nesizathu, kodwa isaziso asikhulumi ngokuqondile noThandeka, kanti umlayezo uyakhuluma naye ngokuqondile, futhi uqala ngesibingelelo.
Chapter Review — Ingxenye B
- vala → valwa, hlela → hlelwa, shintsha → shintshwa, misa → miswa
- (a) valiwe (b) sishintshiwe (c) misiwe
Chapter Review — Ingxenye C
- (a) Ngenxa yokuthi izinsimbi zikagesi sezihlelwa kabusha. (b) Isaziso asikhulumi noThandeka ngokuqondile, kanti umlayezo uyamkhuluma futhi uqala ngesibingelelo.
Cumulative Review — Correct answers
osumiswe / okuhlangenwa / shintshiwe / ngoba / elinzima
Looking Ahead
Okungakwenzeka manje — What you can do now
You can now read a short public notice, listen to a brief announcement, and pick out its key facts, while recognizing that the passive forms from Chapter 14 extend naturally to new, everyday verbs. You can also choose between a formal, impersonal register and a warmer, informal one, depending on who you are speaking to.