Ons bespreek die reaksie.

Ons means we.

It is the normal first-person plural subject pronoun in Afrikaans:

• Ek = I
• jy/u = you
• hy/sy = he/she
• ons = we
• julle = you all
• hulle = they

So Ons bespreek die reaksie follows the pattern subject + verb + object = We discuss the reaction.

Afrikaans verbs usually do not change form according to the subject the way English verbs sometimes do.

So you get:

• Ek bespreek = I discuss
• Jy bespreek = you discuss
• Ons bespreek = we discuss
• Hulle bespreek = they discuss

This is much simpler than English, where you have I discuss but he discusses. In Afrikaans, the verb usually stays the same.

Bespreek means discuss.

It is a common verb used when talking about a topic, issue, problem, plan, or response:

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

Be aware that in some contexts bespreek can also mean book/reserve, depending on the object:

• Ek bespreek 'n tafel. = I book a table.

But in your sentence, with die reaksie, the meaning is clearly discuss.

Die is the Afrikaans definite article, meaning the.

So:

• die reaksie = the reaction

A useful thing to remember is that Afrikaans uses die for:

• singular nouns
• plural nouns
• all grammatical genders

So unlike languages such as German or Dutch, you do not have to learn different forms of the for masculine, feminine, or neuter nouns.

Examples:

• die man = the man
• die vrou = the woman
• die kind = the child
• die reaksies = the reactions

In standard Afrikaans, die here means the, not this.

If you want to say this, Afrikaans usually uses:

• hierdie = this
• daardie = that

So:

• die reaksie = the reaction
• hierdie reaksie = this reaction
• daardie reaksie = that reaction

This is the normal main-clause word order in Afrikaans:

subject + finite verb + object

So:

• Ons = subject
• bespreek = verb
• die reaksie = object

This is very similar to normal English word order:

• We discuss the reaction.

Afrikaans word order becomes more interesting in subordinate clauses and with extra verbs, but in a simple sentence like this, the structure is straightforward.

Reaksie is a noun meaning reaction.

It is clearly related to the English word reaction, so it is a helpful cognate for English speakers.

A few useful points:

• singular: reaksie = reaction
• plural: reaksies = reactions

Example:

• Die reaksie is sterk. = The reaction is strong.
• Die reaksies is verskillend. = The reactions are different.

A rough English-friendly guide is:

ons buh-SPREEK dee ree-AK-see

A few pronunciation notes:

• ons sounds roughly like ons in English, but shorter and cleaner
• bespreek has stress on the second part: -spreek
• die is usually pronounced like dee
• reaksie is pronounced roughly ree-AK-see

If you want to sound more natural, keep the vowels fairly pure and avoid strong English-style diphthongs.

Yes, it is in the simple present form.

Ons bespreek die reaksie most naturally means:

• We discuss the reaction
• We are discussing the reaction
  depending on context

In Afrikaans, the simple present can cover both:

• a general/habitual meaning
• a current action

If you want to make the ongoing sense extra clear, Afrikaans often uses:

• Ons is besig om die reaksie te bespreek. = We are busy discussing the reaction.

Usually, no—not if you mean the reaction.

In your sentence, die shows that you are talking about a specific reaction:

• Ons bespreek die reaksie. = We discuss the reaction.

If you remove die, the sentence sounds incomplete or unnatural in most normal contexts, because countable singular nouns in Afrikaans generally need an article or some other determiner.

Compare:

• Ons bespreek 'n reaksie. = We discuss a reaction.
• Ons bespreek die reaksie. = We discuss the reaction.

No, not in the way many European languages do.

In this sentence, you do not need to worry about masculine, feminine, or neuter forms. Die stays die, and the verb does not change because of gender.

That makes Afrikaans easier for English speakers than languages where the article and adjective change depending on the noun’s gender.