Breakdown of Wat ook al in die wolkberging is, enkripteer ons.
Questions & Answers about Wat ook al in die wolkberging is, enkripteer ons.
What does wat ook al mean here?
Why is is at the end of Wat ook al in die wolkberging is?
Because that part is a subordinate clause.
In Afrikaans, a subordinate clause often sends the finite verb to the end. So in:
the verb is comes last.
This is similar to other Afrikaans subordinate structures, for example:
So the word order is normal for Afrikaans subordinate clauses.
Why does the main clause say enkripteer ons instead of ons enkripteer?
This is because Afrikaans is a verb-second (V2) language in main clauses.
The sentence starts with the subordinate clause:
That whole clause takes the first position. After that, the conjugated verb of the main clause must come next:
- enkripteer
and then the subject:
- ons
So:
- Wat ook al in die wolkberging is, enkripteer ons.
If you put the main clause first, you would get the more straightforward order:
- Ons enkripteer wat ook al in die wolkberging is.
Both mean the same thing.
Does ons mean we or us here?
What exactly is wolkberging?
Wolkberging means cloud storage.
It is a compound noun:
- wolk = cloud
- berging = storage
Afrikaans forms compounds very freely, just like Dutch and German. English often writes similar ideas as two words, but Afrikaans commonly joins them into one word.
So:
- die wolkberging = the cloud storage
Why is there die in in die wolkberging?
Is enkripteer a normal Afrikaans verb?
Yes. Enkripteer is the Afrikaans verb meaning to encrypt.
It is clearly related to English encrypt, and modern technical Afrikaans often uses forms like this.
In the present tense with ons, the verb stays the same:
- ons enkripteer = we encrypt
Afrikaans verbs are usually much simpler than English verbs because they do not change much for person:
- ek enkripteer
- jy enkripteer
- ons enkripteer
So there is no separate encrypts-type ending here.
Why is there a comma in the sentence?
The comma separates the fronted subordinate clause from the main clause:
This is very natural in Afrikaans and helps show the structure clearly.
It is similar to English punctuation in sentences like:
- Whatever is in the cloud storage, we encrypt.
So the comma marks a pause and also makes the grammar easier to see.
Could this sentence be said in a more straightforward way?
Yes. A simpler word order would be:
This is often easier for learners to understand because it starts with the subject ons.
The original sentence:
- Wat ook al in die wolkberging is, enkripteer ons.
puts focus on whatever is in the cloud storage. The fronting gives that part extra prominence.
So the difference is mostly about emphasis and style, not basic meaning.
What is a literal word-for-word breakdown of the sentence?
A rough breakdown is:
- Wat = what
- ook al = ever / whatever
- in die wolkberging = in the cloud storage
- is = is
- enkripteer = encrypt
- ons = we
So very literally, the structure is something like:
- What-ever in the cloud storage is, encrypt we.
That sounds unnatural in English, but it helps show how the Afrikaans grammar is built.
Natural English would be:
- Whatever is in the cloud storage, we encrypt.
Is wat ook al always followed by this kind of word order?
Very often, yes. When wat ook al introduces a clause, that clause behaves like a subordinate clause, so the verb usually goes to the end.
For example:
- Wat ook al jy doen, doen dit goed. = Whatever you do, do it well.
- Wat ook al daar gebeur het, ons weet nie. = Whatever happened there, we do not know.
So in your sentence:
the end position of is fits that same pattern.
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