Ons vernietig die ou dokument.

It follows the same basic subject–verb–object pattern as English:

• Ons = subject = we
• vernietig = verb = destroy
• die ou dokument = object = the old document

So the sentence order is very straightforward for an English speaker.

Because Afrikaans verbs usually do not change form for different persons in the present tense.

So you get:

• Ek vernietig = I destroy
• Jy vernietig = you destroy
• Ons vernietig = we destroy
• Hulle vernietig = they destroy

This is much simpler than English, where you have I destroy but he destroys.

Die is the definite article, so here it means the.

A useful thing to know is that Afrikaans uses die for:

• singular nouns
• plural nouns
• all genders

So:

• die dokument = the document
• die dokumente = the documents

It is also pronounced dee, not like English the.

You use 'n when you mean a or an instead of the.

So:

• die ou dokument = the old document
• 'n ou dokument = an old document

Use die when the thing is specific or already known from context. Use 'n when it is indefinite or not yet identified.

This is a very common question.

Oud is the basic form meaning old, but before a noun Afrikaans often uses the form ou.

Compare:

• Die dokument is oud. = The document is old.
• die ou dokument = the old document

So:

• after is: oud
• before a noun: often ou

This is just a normal adjective pattern for this word, so die ou dokument is exactly what you would expect.

Yes. Depending on context, ou can mean:

• old in age
• former / previous
• long-known / familiar

For example:

• my ou skool can mean my old/former school
• 'n ou vriend can mean an old friend in the sense of a long-time friend

In die ou dokument, the most natural reading is usually the old document, but context could also suggest the old/former document.

Yes, possibly.

The simple present in Afrikaans can often cover both:

• We destroy the old document
• We are destroying the old document

Context usually tells you which meaning is intended.

If you want to be very explicit about an ongoing action, Afrikaans can use a construction like:

• Ons is besig om die ou dokument te vernietig.
• = We are busy destroying the old document.

But in everyday use, Ons vernietig die ou dokument may already be enough.

You would normally say:

Ons vernietig nie die ou dokument nie.

Afrikaans standard negation usually uses two instances of nie:

• one after the verb or verb phrase
• one near the end of the clause

So the pattern is often:

subject + verb + nie + rest + nie

Also, the nie inside vernietig is just part of that word. It is not the negative particle.

It can mean both, depending on its role in the sentence.

• Ons vernietig die ou dokument. = We destroy the old document.
  Here ons is the subject, so it means we.

• Hulle sien ons. = They see us.
  Here ons is the object, so it means us.

So you have to look at where it appears in the sentence.

In a simple main clause like this one, yes, it is very similar:

Ons vernietig die ou dokument.

But Afrikaans has a strong verb-second tendency in main clauses. That means if you move another element to the front, the verb still stays in second position:

• Vandag vernietig ons die ou dokument.
• = Today we destroy the old document.

So you do not say Vandag ons vernietig...

A natural past-tense version is:

Ons het die ou dokument vernietig.

This uses:

• het as the past auxiliary
• the main verb vernietig at the end

So:

• Ons vernietig die ou dokument. = We destroy / are destroying the old document.
• Ons het die ou dokument vernietig. = We destroyed the old document.

The plural is usually:

dokumente

So:

• die ou dokument = the old document
• die ou dokumente = the old documents

A full plural sentence would be:

Ons vernietig die ou dokumente.
= We destroy the old documents.

A rough guide:

• Ons: roughly ons
• die: dee
• ou: a diphthong somewhat like the vowel in go, but not exactly the same
• vernietig: roughly fer-NEE-təch, with the final g as a throaty sound, like the ch in Scottish loch or German Bach
• dokument: roughly do-ku-MENT

The most important pronunciation point for many learners is that die sounds like dee, and the g in vernietig is not an English g.