Die hout brand nog.

Here, die is the definite article, so it means the.

A useful thing to know is that Afrikaans does not change the article for gender, so you do not have to learn different words like the for masculine, feminine, or neuter nouns. In many cases, die is simply the normal word for the.

So:

• die hout = the wood

No. In this sentence, die is pronounced roughly like dee.

So although it is spelled the same as the English word die, it does not sound the same here.

That is a very common beginner trap.

Hout means wood.

In this sentence, it is being used as a material or mass noun, just like English wood. So die hout means the wood.

Depending on context, hout can refer to:

• wood as a material
• firewood
• wooden matter in general

So in a sentence about burning, die hout will usually be understood as the wood / the firewood.

Yes. Brand is the verb burn / be burning.

So:

• Die hout brand = The wood burns / is burning

A helpful point: Afrikaans often uses the simple present where English might prefer is burning.

That means brand on its own can already express an ongoing action.

Because Afrikaans often does not need a separate progressive form the way English does.

English often says:

• The wood is burning

Afrikaans can simply say:

• Die hout brand

So the simple present in Afrikaans can cover both:

• a general present meaning
• an action happening right now

Context usually makes it clear.

Here, nog means still.

So Die hout brand nog means that the burning is continuing.

Compare:

• Die hout brand = the wood is burning
• Die hout brand nog = the wood is still burning

Yes. Nog is a very common Afrikaans word with several meanings depending on context.

It can mean:

• still
  
  • Hy slaap nog = He is still sleeping
• more / another
  
  • Ek wil nog koffie hê = I want more coffee
• sometimes something like yet or again, depending on the sentence

So in your sentence, the correct meaning is still, but you should expect to see nog used in other ways too.

Because in a normal Afrikaans main clause, the verb usually comes early, and words like nog often come after it.

So the basic structure here is:

• Die hout = subject
• brand = verb
• nog = adverb

That gives:

• Die hout brand nog

For an English speaker, this word order is quite natural once you get used to Afrikaans sentence structure.

A natural negative version is:

• Die hout brand nie meer nie = The wood is no longer burning

If you want The wood is not burning yet, you can say:

• Die hout brand nog nie

A useful pattern in Afrikaans is that negation often uses nie, and sometimes a second nie appears later in the sentence as well. But in short sentences, you may see only one nie at the end.

Yes. A very common alternative is:

• Die hout is aan die brand

That means The wood is on fire.

There is a small nuance:

• Die hout brand nog focuses on the action of burning
• Die hout is aan die brand focuses on the state of being on fire

In many situations, both are natural.