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Learn Hardcore Afrikaans: Die deur is wyd. - The door is wide.

Hardcore Afrikaans
/Transferring ownership of a used car
/Die deur is wyd.

Die deur is wyd.

Word

Die deur is wyd.

Meaning

The door is wide.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Hardcore Afrikaans

Lesson

Transferring ownership of a used car

Breakdown of Die deur is wyd.

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Questions & Answers about Die deur is wyd.

What does each word in Die deur is wyd do?

Die = the
deur = door
is = is
wyd = wide

So the structure is very close to English: The door is wide.

Why is die used here?

Die is the normal definite article in Afrikaans, meaning the.

A useful thing for English speakers is that Afrikaans does not have different words for the based on gender, like some other European languages do. So you use die for all nouns:

die man = the man
die vrou = the woman
die kind = the child
die deur = the door

Why is the adjective wyd after is instead of before deur?

Because here wyd is being used as a predicate adjective: it comes after the verb is and describes the subject.

This is the same basic pattern as in English:

The door is wide.
Die deur is wyd.

If you put the adjective before the noun, you get a different structure:

die wye deur = the wide door

So:

Die deur is wyd. = the door is wide
Die wye deur = the wide door

Why is it wyd and not wye?

That is because Afrikaans adjectives often change form depending on where they appear.

After is, the adjective usually stays in its basic form:

Die deur is wyd.
Die kamer is groot.
Die boek is interessant.

Before a noun, the adjective often takes -e:

die wye deur
die groot kamer
die interessante boek

So wyd is correct here because it comes after is, not directly before deur.

Does deur only mean door, or can it mean something else too?

It can also mean through in other sentences, which can confuse learners.

For example:

Ek loop deur die park. = I walk through the park.

But in Die deur is wyd, it clearly means door, because:

it comes after the article die
it is the subject of the sentence
the sentence is describing it as wide

So here deur is definitely the noun door.

How do I pronounce Die deur is wyd?

A rough guide for an English speaker is:

Die ≈ dee
deur ≈ a rounded vowel not exactly found in English, something like duhr with rounded lips
is ≈ iss
wyd ≈ roughly vayt / vight, with the w sounding more like an English v

A few helpful pronunciation notes:

Afrikaans w is usually pronounced like an English v
y in Afrikaans is not pronounced like English y in yes
eu in deur has no perfect English equivalent

So the whole sentence is approximately: dee duhr iss vayt

Is the word order in this sentence normal Afrikaans word order?

Yes. This is a very normal simple statement pattern:

subject + verb + adjective

So:

Die deur = subject
is = verb
wyd = description

This is very similar to English, which makes sentences like this easy for beginners.

Could I say 'n deur is wyd instead?

Yes, but it changes the meaning.

Die deur is wyd. = The door is wide.
You mean a specific door.
'n deur is wyd. = A door is wide.
This sounds more general or less specific.

So the original sentence uses die because it is talking about the door, not just a door.

Is wyd related to English wide?

Yes. They are clearly related words, and that is helpful for learners.

Afrikaans wyd
English wide

They do not look identical, but they are close in both form and meaning. Afrikaans has many words that English speakers can recognize like this, even if the spelling is a little different.

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