Die verhuisdoos is vol.

to be

Breakdown of Die verhuisdoos is vol.

• vol: full
• die verhuisdoos: moving box

Questions & Answers about Die verhuisdoos is vol.

What does verhuisdoos break down into?

Verhuisdoos is a compound noun:

• verhuis = move / moving house
• doos = box

So verhuisdoos is literally a moving box or packing box.

Afrikaans often joins nouns into one word, just like English sometimes does with words like toothbrush or bedroom.

Why is it die and not de or something different for gender?

Afrikaans uses die as the definite article for all nouns, whether they would be masculine, feminine, or neuter in other languages.

So:

• die doos = the box
• die man = the man
• die vrou = the woman

Unlike languages such as German or Dutch, Afrikaans does not keep a full gender article system here. That makes it simpler for English speakers.

Why is the sentence order Die verhuisdoos is vol and not Die verhuisdoos vol is?

In a normal main clause, Afrikaans usually follows the same basic order as English:

• subject + verb + rest

So:

• Die verhuisdoos = subject
• is = verb
• vol = complement

That gives:

• Die verhuisdoos is vol.

Putting vol before is would sound wrong in a standard main sentence.