Ons beweer nie dat die instaptyd duidelik is nie.

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

• one nie after the verb or main clause element
• and another nie near the end of the clause

So in:

Ons beweer nie ... nie.

the first nie marks the negation, and the second one closes it off.

This is one of the most important differences from English. English normally uses only one negative word, but standard Afrikaans often uses two.

Because the whole sentence is being negated, and it contains a main clause plus a subordinate clause.

Structure:

• Ons beweer nie = We do not claim
• dat die instaptyd duidelik is nie = that the boarding time is not clear / or more literally, the subordinate clause is also closed with nie

In Afrikaans, the final nie often appears at the end of the clause being negated. Since the sentence includes a dat clause, the second nie ends up at the end of that clause.

So the sentence pattern is normal Afrikaans:

• first nie after the finite verb in the main clause
• second nie at the end of the full negative structure

Dat means that and introduces a subordinate clause.

So:

• Ons beweer = We claim
• dat die instaptyd duidelik is = that the boarding time is clear

This is very similar to English grammar, except that Afrikaans changes the word order inside the subordinate clause.

Because after dat, Afrikaans uses subordinate clause word order, where the finite verb usually moves toward the end.

Compare:

• Main clause: Die instaptyd is duidelik.
• After dat: ... dat die instaptyd duidelik is.

So this is a normal pattern:

• Hy sê die boek is interessant.
• Hy sê dat die boek interessant is.

English does not usually move the verb in this way, but Afrikaans does.

Ons means we.

Yes, it is normally lowercase unless it starts a sentence, as it does here.

Afrikaans personal pronouns are straightforward:

• ek = I
• jy / u = you
• hy = he
• sy = she
• ons = we
• julle = you plural
• hulle = they

Beweer means claim, assert, or maintain. It is usually stronger and more formal than just say.

So:

• sê = say
• beweer = claim / assert

Beweer can sometimes imply that the statement may be disputed or needs proof.

For example:

• Hy sê dit is waar. = He says it is true.
• Hy beweer dit is waar. = He claims it is true.

So in your sentence, beweer is more specific than plain say.

Instaptyd is a compound noun, which is very common in Afrikaans.

It is made up of:

• instap = board / get in
• tyd = time

Together:

• instaptyd = boarding time

Afrikaans often writes compounds as one word, just like Dutch and German often do.

Other examples:

• skoolbus = school bus
• boekwinkel = bookshop
• huiswerk = homework

So instaptyd as one word is completely normal.

Die is the definite article, meaning the.

So:

• die instaptyd = the boarding time

Afrikaans does not distinguish between the for singular and plural in the article itself. Die is used very broadly.

Examples:

• die boek = the book
• die boeke = the books

Here it simply marks instaptyd as a specific known time.

Here duidelik functions as an adjective used after the verb is.

So:

• Die instaptyd is duidelik. = The boarding time is clear.

Afrikaans adjectives often do not change form when they come after the noun with is.

Compare:

• 'n duidelike antwoord = a clear answer
• Die antwoord is duidelik. = The answer is clear

So before a noun, you often see duidelike. After is, you usually get the basic form duidelik.

Yes, in some contexts Afrikaans can omit dat, especially in less formal speech.

For example:

• Ons beweer nie die instaptyd is duidelik nie.

This is also possible and natural.

With dat, the sentence can sound a bit more explicit or formal:

• Ons beweer nie dat die instaptyd duidelik is nie.

Both are understandable, but with dat you clearly mark the subordinate clause.

This is an important question, because the meaning is different.

Ons beweer nie dat die instaptyd duidelik is nie most naturally means:

• We do not claim that the boarding time is clear.

The negation is focused on beweer in the main clause.

If you wanted to say:

• We claim that the boarding time is not clear

you would more naturally say:

• Ons beweer dat die instaptyd nie duidelik is nie.

Notice the difference:

1. Ons beweer nie dat ... duidelik is nie.
   = We do not claim that ...

2. Ons beweer dat ... nie duidelik is nie.
   = We claim that ... is not clear

So the position of nie matters a lot.

Yes. It combines two very common patterns:

1. double negation
2. subordinate clause word order after dat

That means it is a very useful model sentence.

You can build many similar sentences from it:

• Ons dink nie dat dit waar is nie.
• Sy glo nie dat die plan eenvoudig is nie.
• Hulle sê nie dat die proses vinnig is nie.

If you get comfortable with this pattern, you will understand a lot of Afrikaans sentence structure.