Die roerstok is in die verfpan.

to be

Breakdown of Die roerstok is in die verfpan.

• in: in
• die verfpan: paint tray
• die roerstok: stirring stick

Questions & Answers about Die roerstok is in die verfpan.

What does die mean, and why is it used twice?

Die means the in Afrikaans.

It appears twice because there are two nouns in the sentence:

• die roerstok = the stirring stick
• die verfpan = the paint tray / paint pan

Afrikaans uses die as the definite article for singular and plural nouns, so unlike some other languages, you do not have to learn different forms for the based on gender.

Is roerstok one word? How is it built?

Yes, roerstok is one word. Afrikaans very often forms compound nouns by joining smaller words together.

Here:

• roer = stir
• stok = stick

So roerstok literally means stir-stick, or more naturally in English, stirring stick.

This is very normal in Afrikaans. English sometimes writes similar ideas as two words, but Afrikaans often prefers one combined word.

What exactly does verfpan mean?