Die hoof lees die reël.

No. In Afrikaans, die is usually pronounced dee.

In this sentence, both instances of die are the definite article the:

• Die hoof = the principal / the head
• die reël = the rule

So even though it is spelled like English die, it does not sound the same.

Because Afrikaans uses die before both definite nouns here:

• Die hoof = the principal
• die reël = the rule

English does the same:

• The principal reads the rule.

So nothing unusual is happening—each noun has its own the.

No. Afrikaans is much simpler here than languages like German or French.

Die does not change for:

• masculine
• feminine
• neuter
• singular
• plural

So die can mean the in all of those cases.

Because Afrikaans verbs usually do not change according to the subject in the present tense.

Compare English:

• I read
• he reads

In Afrikaans, you normally just use the same form:

• ek lees
• hy lees
• die hoof lees

So lees stays lees.

It can do both, depending on context.

Die hoof lees die reël can mean:

• The principal reads the rule (habitually / generally)
• The principal is reading the rule (in some contexts, though Afrikaans often uses another form if it wants to be very explicit)

If you want to strongly emphasize an ongoing action, Afrikaans often uses:

• Die hoof is besig om die reël te lees.

But the simple present is very common and flexible.

Hoof literally relates to head or chief, but in real usage it often means:

• head
• chief
• principal

The exact meaning depends on context. In a school context, die hoof usually means the principal or headmaster/headmistress.

So the word has a wider range than just one English equivalent.

Not really.

Afrikaans hoof is pronounced differently from the English animal-foot word hoof. A rough English-friendly approximation is something like who-uf or hoo-uf, depending on accent.

The important thing for a learner is:

• it is not the same as English hoof
• it usually has a longer vowel sound

The dots are a diaeresis. They show that the vowels are pronounced separately, not blended into one syllable.

So reël is pronounced in two syllables, roughly:

• ree-uhl

The dots help you avoid reading it as one smooth vowel sound.

Here it is a noun, because it comes after die:

• die reël = the rule

But reël can also be a verb in other sentences, meaning arrange or organize.

For example:

• Ek reël dit. = I arrange it.

So context tells you which one it is. In your sentence, it is clearly the noun.

Yes, in this simple main clause it is very similar to English:

• Die hoof = subject
• lees = verb
• die reël = object

So it follows the basic subject–verb–object pattern:

• Die hoof lees die reël.

That makes this sentence quite beginner-friendly.

In a yes/no question, Afrikaans usually puts the verb first:

• Lees die hoof die reël? = Is the principal reading the rule? / Does the principal read the rule?

So compared with the statement:

• Die hoof lees die reël.

the main change is that lees moves to the front.