Die komitee bespreek die skuld.

Because die is the Afrikaans definite article, meaning the. It is used before both nouns here:

• die komitee = the committee
• die skuld = the debt / the blame / the guilt (depending on context)

Unlike English, Afrikaans uses the same article die for all genders and for both singular and plural nouns.

No. Afrikaans does not have grammatical gender in the same way that languages like German do. You do not need to learn different forms like the for different noun genders. Die works for all of them.

Examples:

• die man = the man
• die vrou = the woman
• die kind = the child
• die boeke = the books

In Afrikaans, verbs usually do not change form depending on the subject in the present tense. That is much simpler than English.

So you get:

• Ek bespreek = I discuss
• Jy bespreek = you discuss
• Hy bespreek = he discusses
• Die komitee bespreek = the committee discusses

English adds -s in he discusses, but Afrikaans keeps bespreek the same.

The sentence follows the normal main-clause word order:

Subject + Verb + Object

So:

• Die komitee = subject
• bespreek = verb
• die skuld = object

This is very similar to ordinary English word order in a simple statement.

It is singular. Die komitee means the committee as one group.

Even though a committee contains several people, Afrikaans treats komitee as a singular noun in sentences like this.

If you wanted the plural, it would usually be komitees.

Skuld can have more than one meaning depending on context. Common meanings include:

• debt
• guilt
• blame
• fault

So die skuld could mean:

• the debt
• the blame
• the guilt

The broader context tells you which sense is intended.

Yes, sometimes. Afrikaans can use skuld without an article when speaking more generally, depending on the context.

For example:

• Hy het skuld. = He is guilty / He has blame.
• Sy het skuld gemaak. = She got into debt.

But in die skuld, the article makes it sound more specific: the debt, the blame, or the guilt.

A rough English-friendly guide is:

• die ≈ dee
• komitee ≈ ko-mi-TEE
• bespreek ≈ beh-SPRAYK
• skuld ≈ something like skult with a rounded vowel

A few pronunciation notes:

• ee in komitee is a long ee sound.
• spreek has a long vowel, roughly like sprake without the final a.
• skuld can be a bit tricky because the vowel is not exactly the same as in English.

Because Afrikaans does not capitalize all nouns. Only the first word of the sentence and proper names are capitalized.

So you write:

• Die komitee bespreek die skuld.

not with capitals on komitee and skuld.

This is more like English than German.

Afrikaans usually uses double negation with nie ... nie.

So:

• Die komitee bespreek die skuld. = The committee discusses the debt/blame.
• Die komitee bespreek nie die skuld nie. = The committee does not discuss the debt/blame.

This nie ... nie pattern is one of the most important features of Afrikaans grammar.

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

• Bespreek die komitee die skuld? = Does the committee discuss the debt/blame?

So the statement:

• Die komitee bespreek die skuld.

becomes the question:

• Bespreek die komitee die skuld?

Its main meaning is discuss, but depending on context it can also mean talk over, review, or go over.

Examples:

• Ons bespreek die plan. = We discuss the plan.
• Hulle bespreek die probleem. = They discuss the problem.

So in your sentence, bespreek is a very natural verb for a committee talking about an issue.

Like the English simple present, the Afrikaans present tense can describe:

• something happening now
• something habitual or repeated
• a general fact

So Die komitee bespreek die skuld could mean:

• the committee is discussing the matter now, or
• the committee discusses the matter as part of its normal work

The context usually makes the time meaning clear.