Noudat die hittegolf begin het, gebruik ons die gordyn en blindings.

Noudat means now that. It introduces a reason or situation that has just become true and affects what happens next.

So in this sentence, Noudat die hittegolf begin het means Now that the heat wave has started.

Afrikaans very often writes compound nouns as a single word.

• hitte = heat
• golf = wave
• hittegolf = heat wave

This is very common in Afrikaans, much more so than in English.

Because Noudat introduces a subordinate clause. In Afrikaans subordinate clauses, the verb moves to the end, and in a perfect tense construction the participle comes before the auxiliary.

Compare:

• Main clause: Die hittegolf het begin.
• Subordinate clause: ... dat die hittegolf begin het
• Here: Noudat die hittegolf begin het, ...

So begin het is correct because of subordinate clause word order.

The verb begin does not take ge- in the past participle because it starts with the inseparable prefix be-.

So:

• infinitive: begin
• past participle: begin
• perfect: het begin

This is the same pattern you see with many verbs beginning with be-, ver-, ont-, and her-.

Afrikaans is a verb-second language in main clauses. That means the finite verb normally comes in the second position.

Here, the whole first clause Noudat die hittegolf begin het takes the first position. So the verb of the main clause must come next:

• Noudat die hittegolf begin het, gebruik ons die gordyn en blindings.

If there were no opening clause, you would say:

• Ons gebruik die gordyn en blindings.

So the word order changes because something else has been placed first.

Die is the Afrikaans definite article, meaning the.

Unlike English, Afrikaans uses the same article die for:

• singular nouns
• plural nouns
• all grammatical genders

So:

• die hittegolf = the heat wave
• die gordyn = the curtain
• die blindings = the blinds

It does not change form.

Because gordyn is the singular form, while blindings is plural.

• gordyn = curtain
• gordyne = curtains
• blinding = blind
• blindings = blinds

So this sentence is literally referring to the curtain and blinds. If the meaning were the curtains and blinds, you would expect die gordyne en blindings.

Yes. Gebruik is present tense here and means use.

In Afrikaans, the simple present often covers both:

• something happening now
• something done regularly or generally

So gebruik ons can mean we use in the sense of what we do now that the heat wave has started.

The comma separates the introductory subordinate clause from the main clause.

So the structure is:

• subordinate clause: Noudat die hittegolf begin het
• main clause: gebruik ons die gordyn en blindings

This comma is normal and helps show the boundary between the two parts of the sentence.

Yes, that is also possible.

Afrikaans can sometimes use one die for two coordinated nouns, especially when they are closely linked:

• die gordyn en blindings

But it is also possible to repeat the article for clarity or emphasis:

• die gordyn en die blindings

Both patterns can occur.