Hierdie deel is klein.

Hierdie means this or these.

In Hierdie deel is klein, it means this.

A useful thing to know is that Afrikaans does not change this word for singular and plural the way English does:

• hierdie deel = this part
• hierdie dele = these parts

So hierdie works for both this and these; the noun tells you whether it is singular or plural.

Yes, this sentence follows the normal basic word order and is very similar to English:

• Hierdie deel = subject
• is = verb
• klein = adjective/complement

So it works like:

• This part is small

Afrikaans often uses the same simple order as English in basic statements: subject + verb + complement.

Because hierdie already points to a specific noun.

Compare:

• ’n deel = a part
• die deel = the part
• hierdie deel = this part

In English, this part also does not use the or a, and Afrikaans works the same way here.

Deel usually means part, portion, or section, depending on context.

For example:

• ’n deel van die boek = a part of the book
• die eerste deel = the first part / volume
• hierdie deel = this part

So in your sentence, deel is just the noun meaning part.

Yes. Is is the present-tense form of the verb wees (to be) and it is used much like English is.

Examples:

• Ek is moeg. = I am tired.
• Jy is hier. = You are here.
• Hierdie deel is klein. = This part is small.

A helpful difference from English is that Afrikaans does not change the present form the same way English does:

• ek is
• jy is
• hy/sy is
• ons is
• julle is
• hulle is

So is is used with all persons in the present tense.

Because it is the adjective describing the subject after the verb is.

In a sentence like this, Afrikaans puts the describing word after is, just like English:

• Hierdie deel is klein.
• This part is small.

So klein is in the normal place for a predicate adjective.

In this sentence, klein comes after the verb is, so it stays in its basic form.

Compare:

• Die deel is klein. = The part is small.
• ’n klein deel = a small part

Afrikaans adjectives often behave differently depending on whether they come:

1. before a noun: sometimes they can take an extra ending
2. after a linking verb like is: they usually stay in the basic form

Here, because the adjective is after is, klein is correct.

A rough guide for English speakers is:

• hier sounds a bit like hear
• die in this word is pronounced like dee, not like English die

So hierdie sounds roughly like HEER-dee.

The r may sound different from English depending on the speaker’s accent.

A rough pronunciation guide:

• deel ≈ deal (with a clear long ee sound)
• klein ≈ somewhere between klane and cline, depending on accent

A few notes:

• ee in deel is a long vowel.
• ei in klein is a diphthong, somewhat like the vowel sound in English day or line, depending on how you approximate it.

Pronunciation varies a bit by speaker, but those approximations will help you get close.

No. Afrikaans does not use grammatical gender the way many other languages do.

That means nouns like deel do not change for masculine, feminine, or neuter, and words like hierdie do not need to agree with gender.

So you do not have to think about things like:

• masculine this
• feminine this
• neuter this

You can simply use hierdie.

Yes, you can.

• Hierdie deel is klein. = This part is small.
• Die deel is klein. = The part is small.

The difference is that hierdie points to something more directly, like English this, while die just means the.

So use:

• hierdie when you mean this specific one here
• die when you mean the in a more general or previously mentioned sense

Afrikaans usually uses double negation.

So:

• Hierdie deel is klein. = This part is small.
• Hierdie deel is nie klein nie. = This part is not small.

Notice the two nie words:

1. one after the verb phrase
2. one at the end of the clause

This is a very important Afrikaans pattern.

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

• Is hierdie deel klein? = Is this part small?

So the statement:

• Hierdie deel is klein.

becomes:

• Is hierdie deel klein?

That word order change is very common in Afrikaans questions.