Die strafrekord is beskikbaar.

Afrikaans, like Dutch and German, very often forms compound nouns as a single word.

So:

• straf = punishment / penal / criminal
• rekord = record

Together, strafrekord means criminal record.

This is very normal in Afrikaans. English often writes these as two words, but Afrikaans commonly joins them into one.

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

A useful point: Afrikaans uses die for:

• singular nouns: die boek = the book
• plural nouns: die boeke = the books

So unlike English, Afrikaans does not change the article for number.

In Afrikaans, is is the present tense of to be, and it does not change depending on the subject.

So you get:

• Ek is = I am
• Jy is = you are
• Hy is = he is
• Die strafrekord is = the criminal record is

This is simpler than English, where am / is / are all differ.

Because it is the adjective/complement after the verb is.

The sentence structure is:

• Die strafrekord = subject
• is = verb
• beskikbaar = complement

This is the normal word order for a basic Afrikaans statement: subject + verb + rest.

So Die strafrekord is beskikbaar is directly parallel to English The criminal record is available.

Here, beskikbaar is used after is, so it is a predicate adjective. In that position, Afrikaans adjectives usually do not take an extra ending.

Compare:

• Die strafrekord is beskikbaar. = The criminal record is available.
• ’n Beskikbare dokument = an available document

In the second example, the adjective comes before the noun, so it may take an -e ending: beskikbare.

So the short version is:

• after is: usually no ending
• before a noun: often an -e ending

A rough English-friendly pronunciation would be:

buh-SKIKE-baar

More roughly:

• be- = a weak buh
• skik = sounds a bit like skick
• baar = like bar but longer

The g sound in Afrikaans is usually much harsher than in English, but in beskikbaar there is no g to worry about.

A rough guide is:

STRAHF-reh-KORD

A few helpful notes:

• straf has a broad a, not like the a in cat
• rekord is related to English record, but the vowels and stress are a bit different
• Afrikaans r is usually rolled or tapped more than in most English accents

You do not need perfect pronunciation right away; being clear and consistent matters more at first.

It usually means criminal record in a general sense.

Depending on context, English might use slightly different phrases such as:

• criminal record
• police record
• record of convictions

But strafrekord is the normal straightforward term.

As always, exact meaning can depend on context, especially in legal or administrative language.

You would normally use the double negative pattern that Afrikaans is known for:

Die strafrekord is nie beskikbaar nie.

This means The criminal record is not available.

Notice the two nie words:

• one after the verb phrase area
• one at the end of the clause

That is standard Afrikaans negation.

Not with the same meaning.

• is beskikbaar = is available
• word beskikbaar = becomes available / is becoming available

So:

• Die strafrekord is beskikbaar. = The criminal record is available.
• Die strafrekord word môre beskikbaar. = The criminal record becomes available tomorrow.

If you want to describe a current state, is beskikbaar is the correct choice.

It is fairly neutral and works well in formal, administrative, or informational contexts.

Because the words are a bit official:

• strafrekord is a legal/administrative term
• beskikbaar is common in formal notices, systems, reports, and customer-service language

So this sentence would sound natural in contexts like:

• a government website
• a police or legal office
• a database message
• an administrative report

It is not unusually stiff, but it is definitely more official than casual everyday small talk.