-qinile (to be fit, strong)

-qinile (static verb)

to be firm, hard, solid, stiff, strong
to be physically fit
to be headstrong, stubborn, obdurate, pigheaded, stubborn

a word for teenage boys? 
;)

also (I'm finding some more translation sites)
tough, sturdy - wordhippo

uqinile - be strong
hlala uqinile - stay strong
hlale uqinile
mymemory.translated.net 

From a news report  on Zim soccer legend Peter "Nsukuzonke" Ndlovu being discharged from hospital:

“Uqinile wena mfana (you are a strong man) after all that happened. We commend your family for remaining strong and supportive especially Madinda,” said Dr Mpofu. Said Peter in response: “Yini elingiqinisayo mdala. You are one of the people who make me strong,” he said laughing. (nehandaradio.com)

"Nsukuzonke" - every day

A lovely sentence fom isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary:

Uyamethemba uMokohlane lona, kakhulukazi ngoba useyindoda eqinile, futhi enomusa.

You trust this Mokohlane, especially because he is now a man who is strong and kind too.

“Uqinile wena mfana (you are a strong man) after all that happened. We commend your family for remaining strong and supportive especially Madinda,” said Dr Mpofu. Said Peter in response: “Yini elingiqinisayo mdala. You are one of the people who make me strong,” he said laughing.

“Uqinile wena mfana (you are a strong man) after all that happened. We commend your family for remaining strong and supportive especially Madinda,” said Dr Mpofu. Said Peter in response: “Yini elingiqinisayo mdala. You are one of the people who make me strong,” he said laughing.

“Uqinile wena mfana (you are a strong man) after all that happened. We commend your family for remaining strong and supportive especially Madinda,” said Dr Mpofu. Said Peter in response: “Yini elingiqinisayo mdala. You are one of the people who make me strong,” he said laughing.

-banzi (wide)

-banzi (adj)
wide

ububanzi (n)
width, breadth

Isibonelo:

Olunye uphawu lokhozi wukuthi lunamaphiko abanzi.

Another feature of the eagle is that it has broad wings.

(see a very odd one at the bottom of the post)

In names:

Ubanzi, Lubanzi are given names. What is the significance of this name?

On the Wild Coast, Lubanzi Village, and Backpacker 
which having discovered, I feel much drawn to visit.


Lubanzi wine, named after a dog, Lubanzi, who walked for six days with two American hikers along the Wild Coast.

Canis Africanis, is known in isiZulu/isiXhosa as iBanzi according to this blog.
 

Sizwe Banzi Is Dead, a play by Athol Fugard
in which a man, Sizwe Banzi has to give up his name and identity to survive in apartheid times of South Africa
Sizwe - Nation
Banzi - Wide
surely referring to the universality of the character and his experiences.

(So far the only example sentence I've been able to obtain from the isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary is an example of the weirdness one can encounter there among user-submitted contents.

Lapha sisho abantu abanezidingo ezithile, isibonelo, labo abadinga ukufakelwa iminyango ebanzi ezindlini zabo.

Here we mean people who have certain needs, for example those for whom wider doors need to be installed in their homes.)

Memeza!

-memeza
shout, call out

Kwezwakala umuntu ememeza ethi, "Iyasha indlu! Iyasha indlu kwa Mthombeni!"
A person was heard shouting, "A house is burning! A house is burning at Mthombeni!"

Brenda Fassie's song Memeza, title song of her 1997 album:
listen here on youtube.

Lyrics

Bangitholile (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Abanganaxolo (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Bangikhomba (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Ngezibhamu nemikhontho (memeza ma, memeza ma)

Bangitholile (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Abanganaxolo (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Bangikhomba (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Ngezibhamu nemikhontho (memeza ma, memeza ma)

Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
akusizi lutho (memeza ma, memeza ma)
yimi nabo (memeza ma, memeza ma)
yiminabo nkosiyami (memeza ma, memeza ma) (repeat x2)

Chorus
Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Akusizi lutho (repeat x2)

Bangitholile (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Abanganaxolo (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Bangikhomba (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Ngezibhamu nemikhontho (memeza ma, memeza ma) (repeat x2)

Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
akusizi lutho (memeza ma, memeza ma)
yimi nabo (memeza ma, memeza ma)
yiminabo nkosiyami (memeza ma, memeza ma) (repeat x2)

Chorus
Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Noma ngingamemeza ma (memeza ma, memeza ma)
Akusizi lutho (repeat x2)

Lyrics from www.letssingit.com

Example from isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary

Biza

-biza
call, summon
or
call (something/someone/oneself), name; -biza nokuthi

Izibonelo
Yebo ndodana, ubizwe yimina.
Yes, my son, you have been summoned by me.

Bambiza nokuthi uSipho.
They call him Sipho.
 
also
-biza
cost (I guess - calls for a price)

Amathikithi umculo abiza ama-R100 ngalinye.
Tickets for the concert cost R100 each. 

Vocab and examples from isizulu.net and the isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary.

Help - Siza

help (v)

-siza, -nceda, -hlenga, -bambisa

to get helped
-sizeka

help (n)
usizo, uncedo


Abazali bangasiza, kepha isikhole sikhuthaza ukuthi abazenzele ngokwabo amaphrojekthi.
Parents may help, but the school encourages (learners) to do their own projects.

abazenzele: let them do for themselves
ngokwabo: by themselves/on their own

Given names:
Siza, Hlengiwe, Sizeka

vocabulary from isizulu.net
example from isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary

Ubusuku - night

night (n)
ubusuku

at night
ebusuku
ngobusuku

good night
lale kahle, ulale kahle (sleep well)
lalani kahle, nilale kahle (pl)

A search for the word 'busuku' on google brought me:

This beautiful acapella song, sung by a group of Zambian gospel singers. Whether or not one subscribes to any religion, the power of composition and song to express longing, comfort, and beauty present in the human spirit is present in this video.

'Busuku Obuhle' - Beautiful Night is the isiZulu version of 'Silent Night' (the group above is singing something different as far as I can understand). 

And, Busuku is also a surname. One person carrying this name is the young poet Sindiswa Busuku-Mathese. Some of her moving poems can be found on this web page.

PS I wonder if anyone can help me understand why 'oluhle' and 'obuhle' are used in these two expressions - what is the difference that changes the prefix?

Ube nosuku oluhle
Have a beautiful day

Busuku obuhle
Beautiful night

Say

say
-thi, -sho, -khuluma

to say in fun
-fenqa

Izibonelo:

Uthi uzobe ela khona maduze.
She says she'll be here soon.

Ake sithi usuku lwethu lwemakethe luveza ama-R5000.
Let's say our market day brings in R5000.

Gcina

How did I come across this word? Can't remember, but it struck a chord, as it is the name of South Africa's most famous storyteller, Gcina Mhlope.

First I only saw this meaning

-gcina
stop, come to an end
also
get completed or finished

and thought she may have been the last child, and perhaps she was.
But a more likely meaning for a name, and relevant to her work

-gcina
keep, preserve, save, store
take care of, look after
glue, stick

UZodwa uyakwazi ukugcina izimfihlo zabantu.
Zodwa is able to keep peoples' secrets.

and another mysterious example from the isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary:
UMvubu yena uthi wagcina ebangeni lesihlanu.
Mvubu, on the other hand, says he stopped in Grade 5.

Here is a video of Gcina telling a story. Only the beginning, but she is a joy to behold and hear.

Themba - hope

-themba
hope, trust
or transitively
have faith in, have trust in

Ngithemba ukuthi ngizolithola ithuba.
I trust that I will find the opportunity.

Ngithemba uNkulunkulu.
I have faith in God.

A given name, Themba.

The huge suburb/former township called Tembisa was originally
Thembisa, promise

(-thembisa
cause to hope
encourage, enthuse, motivate
assure, promise)


Thembisa/Tembisa was part of the complex world of racial and ethnic segregation created under Apartheid, and far from erased. Also now the largest former township, after Soweto.
For some the move there represented loss, for others, some hope. Tembisa later became an area of focused political action and violent conflict.
SAhistory.org.za hosts a fascinating portal its history:
http://www.saha.org.za/tembisa/establishment_of_tembisa.htm

Konje - by the way, so

konje
by the way, so then, well, then
incidentally

Konje, a marten is also called a konje.

Kodwa - but, however, only

kodwa
but, however, yet, nevertheless

Ngethembe kodwa.
Neverthless, believe me.

Kodwa wabuye wakhumbula udadewabo uBhazebele.
However, he remembered again (returned to the memory of) his sister, Bhazebele.

kodwa
only

Yilokhu kodwa engikufunayo.

It's only this that I want.

Izibonelo

Collection of sentences including some learnt words, from the isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary, and elsewhere.

Umcimbi uzoqala ngehora lesikhombisa kusihlwa.

The function will start at 7 o'clock in the evening.

We went out for dinner the other night.

Sahamba sayokudla isidlo sakusihlwa ngobunye ubusuku.

Buya

-buya
return, come back, go back
return from

or, return to, as in
buyelekhaya
to return home

with root word, -ya, to go

Wabuya e-London engasakwazi ukukhuluma isiZulu.
He returned from London no longer knowing how to speak Zulu.

a related noun
imbuya, izimbuya
amaranth, a highly nutritious wild edible green/spinach
I wonder if it is called that, for the reliable way it returns each spring?

Here is a find, on youtube  Nathi's song Buyelekhaya with lyrics and translations!

The phrase 'Buyelekhaya' also has a deeper meaning and resonance of
returning to one's roots
it is the ceremony when a thwasa who has completed their training
returns home, to strongly connect with, honour and celebrate their ancestors
and establish their own healing practice

vocabulary from isizulu.net
example from the isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary

Vala - to close

-vala

close, shut

isivalo
door

Wayefuna ukuvala amehlo akhe ukuba alale kancane.
She wanted to close her eyes in order to sleep a little.

unjalo

unjalo

he, she, it, is like that; you are like that

Wonke umuntu waseGoli unjalo.
All the people from Johannesburg are like that.

Unjalo phela umsebenzi waphoyisa.
The work of a policeman is indeed like that.

And my favourite:


Wahleka nje uMpungoshe wathi, "Konje unjalo wena Mama."
Mpungose just lauged and said, "By the way, you are like that, Mother."











https://zu.oxforddictionaries.com/humusha/isizulu-isingisi/unjalo

Drum

This was a busy week.https://zu.oxforddictionaries.com/humusha/isingisi-isizulu/drum

On Monday I made a drum.

isigubhu - izigubhu
drum

a lovely sound word, the first two beats are there: gu-bhu

Besigida sishaya nezigubhu.
We were dancing and beating the drums.

isiZulu Oxford Living Dictionary