Ons bly op beginnersvlak slegs indien agterwaartse passe moeilik is.

We remain at beginner level only if backward steps are difficult.

Breakdown of Ons bly op beginnersvlak slegs indien agterwaartse passe moeilik is.

• ons: we
• wees: to be
• bly: to stay
• moeilik: difficult

Questions & Answers about Ons bly op beginnersvlak slegs indien agterwaartse passe moeilik is.

What does bly mean here? Is it stay or remain?

Here bly means stay or remain, and both are good translations in English depending on context.

In this sentence, Ons bly op beginnersvlak ... means:

• We stay at beginner level ...
• or We remain at beginner level ...

Afrikaans bly is very common for the idea of continuing in a state or place.

Examples:

• Ek bly by die huis. — I stay at home.
• Dit bly moeilik. — It remains difficult.

So in your sentence, bly is about continuing at the same level.

Why is it op beginnersvlak? Why op and not something like in or by?

Afrikaans often uses op where English might use at.

So:

• op beginnersvlak = at beginner level

This is a normal Afrikaans preposition choice. You should not translate prepositions too literally word-for-word from English.

Compare:

• op skool — at school
• op universiteit — at university
• op beginnersvlak — at beginner level

So although op often means on, here it is the natural Afrikaans way to express at a certain level.