Die lugdiens hoef nie die vlugnommer te vra nie.

to ask for

Breakdown of Die lugdiens hoef nie die vlugnommer te vra nie.

• hoef nie ... te ... nie: need not; do not have to
• die lugdiens: airline
• die vlugnommer: flight number

Questions & Answers about Die lugdiens hoef nie die vlugnommer te vra nie.

Why are there two nie words in this sentence?

Afrikaans usually uses double negation. That means a negative sentence often has:

• one nie after the finite verb or the first important verbal element, and
• another nie at the end of the clause.

So in Die lugdiens hoef nie die vlugnommer te vra nie, the pattern is:

• hoef nie ...
• ... nie at the end

This is one of the most noticeable features of Afrikaans for English speakers.

A rough structure is:

subject + verb + nie + rest of sentence + nie

So:

• Die lugdiens = the airline
• hoef nie = does not need to
• die vlugnommer te vra = ask for the flight number
• final nie = closes the negation

What does hoef mean here?

Hoef means need to or have to, but it is very commonly used in negative sentences to mean do not need to.

So:

• Ek hoef nie te gaan nie = I do not need to go
• Die lugdiens hoef nie ... nie = The airline does not need to ...

For an English speaker, it may help to think of hoef as behaving a bit like a modal verb in this kind of sentence.

Why is there a before ?