Ons gebruik die inbussleutel.

Here, ons means we.

So Ons gebruik die inbussleutel = We use the Allen key / hex key.

A useful thing to know is that ons is a very common Afrikaans word and can also appear in other roles depending on the sentence, but in this sentence it is clearly the subject, so it means we.

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

For example:

• Ek gebruik = I use
• Jy gebruik = you use
• Ons gebruik = we use
• Hulle gebruik = they use

The verb stays gebruik in all of these.

This is one reason many learners find Afrikaans verb grammar simpler than English.

Gebruik means use.

It can be both:

• a verb: om te gebruik = to use
• and in some contexts a noun meaning usage or custom, depending on the sentence

In Ons gebruik die inbussleutel, it is clearly the verb.

Die here means the.

So:

• die inbussleutel = the Allen key / the hex key

A very important Afrikaans point: die is the definite article for basically all nouns, regardless of gender, and also for plural nouns.

Unlike languages such as German or Dutch, Afrikaans does not have different definite articles for masculine, feminine, or neuter nouns.

Examples:

• die tafel = the table
• die man = the man
• die vrou = the woman
• die kinders = the children

Because die means the, while 'n means a / an.

So the sentence as written means:

• Ons gebruik die inbussleutel = We use the Allen key

If you said:

• Ons gebruik 'n inbussleutel

that would mean:

• We use an Allen key / We are using an Allen key

So the difference is the same basic one as the versus a/an in English.

Inbussleutel is the Afrikaans word for an Allen key or hex key.

It is a compound noun:

• inbus = Allen/hex socket type
• sleutel = key

Afrikaans, like Dutch and German, often builds long nouns by joining smaller words together.

So instead of writing them separately, Afrikaans usually writes them as one word:

• inbussleutel

Because Afrikaans commonly forms compound nouns as a single written word.

English often has several possibilities:

• hex key
• Allen key
• socket wrench
  and so on

Afrikaans usually prefers one combined form:

• inbussleutel

This is very normal in Afrikaans. For example:

• huisdeur = house door / front door
• motorfiets = motorcycle
• handskoen = glove

So inbussleutel being one word is exactly what you should expect.

No, this sentence has the basic normal word order:

Subject + Verb + Object

• Ons = subject
• gebruik = verb
• die inbussleutel = object

So it matches English quite closely:

• We use the Allen key

That said, Afrikaans does have a strong verb-second pattern in main clauses. In a simple sentence like this, it looks the same as English. But if you move another element to the front, the verb still stays in second position.

For example:

• Vandag gebruik ons die inbussleutel.
  = Today we use the Allen key.

Notice that gebruik stays near the front.

No.

Afrikaans does not need an extra auxiliary here.

English often uses helper verbs:

• We use...
• We are using...
• Do we use...?

In simple present statements, Afrikaans can just use the main verb directly:

• Ons gebruik die inbussleutel.

There is no extra word corresponding to do in this kind of positive statement.

A rough learner-friendly guide would be:

• ons ≈ ons with a short vowel
• gebruik ≈ khuh-BRAKE / ghuh-BRAKE
• die ≈ dee
• inbussleutel ≈ IN-bus-SLOY-tel

A few notes:

• The g in gebruik is the guttural Afrikaans g, not an English g.
• The eu/ui-like vowel sound in sleutel does not have a perfect English equivalent.
• die in Afrikaans is usually pronounced like dee, not like English die.

So a very rough full pronunciation could be:

ons ghuh-BRAKE dee IN-bus-SLOY-tel

Not perfect, but useful as a starting point.

No. In this sentence, Afrikaans die is pronounced more like dee.

This is a very common beginner mistake because the spelling looks familiar to English speakers.

So:

• Afrikaans die = the
• pronunciation: roughly dee

It is not the English verb die.

Yes. Ons can also mean our, depending on the sentence.

For example:

• ons huis = our house
• ons gebruik die inbussleutel = we use the Allen key

So you have to look at the grammar of the sentence:

• before a noun, ons may mean our
• as the subject of a clause, it usually means we

In your sentence, because ons is followed by the verb gebruik, it means we.

Not necessarily.

Like the English simple present, Ons gebruik die inbussleutel can have a few possible shades of meaning depending on context:

• We use the Allen key (general fact or habit)
• We are using the Allen key (in some contexts, especially informal or practical instructions)

If you want to make the right now meaning clearer, Afrikaans can use additional wording, but often the simple present is enough when the context already makes it obvious.

Yes, and the verb usually stays the same.

For example:

• Ek gebruik die inbussleutel. = I use the Allen key.
• Jy gebruik die inbussleutel. = You use the Allen key.
• Hy gebruik die inbussleutel. = He uses the Allen key.
• Hulle gebruik die inbussleutel. = They use the Allen key.

Notice that gebruik does not change. That is a key pattern in Afrikaans.