Die toesigkamera werk.

Die is the definite article, so it means the.

• die toesigkamera = the surveillance camera
• 'n toesigkamera = a surveillance camera

So this sentence is talking about a specific camera: The surveillance camera works / is working.

Afrikaans often forms compound nouns by writing them as a single word.

Here:

• toesig = supervision / surveillance
• kamera = camera

Together, they become:

• toesigkamera = surveillance camera

This is very common in Afrikaans, and often more common than in English, where similar ideas may be written as two words.

It can mean either, depending on context.

In simple sentences like this, Afrikaans present tense often covers both:

• Die toesigkamera werk. = The surveillance camera works.
• Die toesigkamera werk. = The surveillance camera is working.

English usually chooses between works and is working, but Afrikaans often just uses the simple present.

Because Afrikaans verbs usually do not change according to the subject in the present tense.

Compare:

• Ek werk = I work
• Jy werk = you work
• Hy werk = he works
• Die toesigkamera werk = the surveillance camera works

Unlike English, Afrikaans does not add an -s for he/she/it in the present tense.

Yes, but this sentence uses the most basic Afrikaans main-clause order:

• Die toesigkamera = subject
• werk = verb

So the structure is:

• Subject + Verb

Also, Afrikaans main clauses generally keep the finite verb in second position. Since the subject comes first here, the verb naturally comes second.

A rough English-friendly guide is:

TOO-sikh-ka-me-ra

A few helpful notes:

• toe sounds roughly like too
• sig has a guttural g sound, not a hard English g
• kamera is similar to camera, but with clearer syllables: ka-me-ra

The exact pronunciation depends a bit on accent, but that rough guide will help you get close.

A rough guide is:

verk or vairk, depending on accent

Notes:

• The w in Afrikaans is usually pronounced more like an English v
• The r is rolled or tapped more than in most English accents
• The e is not exactly the same as English work, so don’t try to copy the English vowel too closely

So werk does not sound exactly like English work, even though the meaning is similar.

No. Afrikaans does not use grammatical gender the way some other languages do.

So:

• die can be used with nouns regardless of natural gender
• toesigkamera is not masculine or feminine in a grammatical sense

This is much simpler than languages that have separate articles for masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns.

You know it is singular because the noun itself is singular.

• toesigkamera = singular
• toesigkameras = plural

So:

• Die toesigkamera werk. = The surveillance camera works.
• Die toesigkameras werk. = The surveillance cameras work.

Notice that die can be used for both singular and plural definite nouns. The noun form tells you which one it is.

Yes, if the context already makes it clear which camera you mean.

• Die toesigkamera werk. is more specific.
• Die kamera werk. is more general.

So if everyone already knows you are talking about the surveillance camera, shortening it to die kamera would be natural.

No. In Afrikaans, just like in English, werk can also mean function, operate, or be working.

So with a machine or device:

• Die toesigkamera werk. = The surveillance camera is working / functioning.

You can also use werk for other things:

• Die foon werk nie. = The phone isn’t working.
• Die rekenaar werk. = The computer works / is working.

In standard Afrikaans, negation usually uses nie ... nie.

So:

• Die toesigkamera werk nie. is often heard in speech, but the full standard form is:
• Die toesigkamera werk nie nie.

However, because that looks strange here, it is important to explain what is happening:

With a simple verb like werk, standard written Afrikaans normally uses:

• Die toesigkamera werk nie.
  or, in fuller two-part negation structure depending on the sentence environment, the second nie appears at the end.

A clearer everyday example of the normal pattern is:

• Die kamera werk nie vandag nie. = The camera isn’t working today.

So the big point is: Afrikaans commonly uses double negation with nie ... nie.

Usually yes, that is the most natural meaning.

In context, werk here normally means:

• the camera is functioning
• the camera is operating
• the camera is on and doing its job

It would not usually mean that the camera is working in the sense of doing a job in any human-like way. For objects and machines, werk is commonly understood as functioning.