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Learn Hardcore Afrikaans: Die waglys is lank. - The waiting list is long.

Hardcore Afrikaans
/Using a public library
/Die waglys is lank.

Die waglys is lank.

Die waglys is lank.

The waiting list is long.

Breakdown of Die waglys is lank.

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Questions & Answers about Die waglys is lank.

Why does the sentence start with die? Does Afrikaans have the and a/an like English?

Yes. Die is the definite article in Afrikaans, and it usually means the.

So in Die waglys is lank, die waglys means the waiting list.

Afrikaans also has an indefinite article: ’n, which means a/an.

die waglys = the waiting list
’n waglys = a waiting list

A useful difference from English is that die does not change for gender or number:

die boek = the book
die boeke = the books

So Afrikaans articles are simpler than English in some ways.

What does waglys literally mean?

Waglys is a compound noun:

wag = wait
lys = list

So waglys literally means something like wait-list, which matches English waiting list.

Compounds are very common in Afrikaans, just as they are in Dutch and German. Instead of writing separate words, Afrikaans often joins them into one word.

Other examples of this pattern:

huisdeur = house door / front door
handsak = hand bag
skoolbus = school bus

So if you see a long Afrikaans noun, it is often useful to try breaking it into smaller parts.

Why is it is? Is that the same as English is?

Yes. Is in Afrikaans is the present-tense form of the verb to be, and it looks exactly like English is.

In this sentence:

Die waglys = the subject
is = the verb
lank = the description

So the structure is very close to English:

The waiting list is long.
Die waglys is lank.

Afrikaans verbs are much simpler than English verbs because they usually do not change according to the subject in the present tense.

For example:

Ek is = I am
Jy is = you are
Hy is = he is
Ons is = we are

So is is used much more broadly than in English.

Why is lank at the end of the sentence?

Because lank is the adjective describing the subject, and after the verb is, Afrikaans normally places that adjective in the same position English does:

Die waglys is lank.
The waiting list is long.

This is a very normal pattern:

Die kamer is groot. = The room is big.
Die kos is warm. = The food is warm.
Die kind is moeg. = The child is tired.

So lank is not specially “moved” to the end; it is simply where predicate adjectives normally go.

Why is it lank and not something like lange?

In this sentence, lank comes after is, so it is being used as a predicate adjective. In that position, Afrikaans adjectives are usually uninflected, meaning they stay in their basic form.

So:

Die waglys is lank.

That is different from an adjective placed before a noun, where Afrikaans often adds -e:

’n lang waglys = a long waiting list
die lang waglys = the long waiting list

Notice the difference:

lang before the noun
lank after is

This is a common pattern with some adjectives in Afrikaans, especially those where the form changes slightly between attributive and predicate use.

Why does lank become lang before a noun?

This is one of those adjective patterns learners need to get used to.

When the adjective stands on its own after the verb, you get:

Die waglys is lank.

When it comes directly before the noun, you usually get the attributive form:

’n lang waglys
die lang waglys

So lank → lang before the noun.

This kind of change happens with several adjectives in Afrikaans. The exact spelling change is partly historical and partly sound-based, so it is best learned through exposure and examples.

A good rule for this word is simply:

after is: lank
before a noun: lang

Is the word order always the same as in English here?

In a simple statement like this, yes, it is very similar:

Die waglys = subject
is = verb
lank = complement/adjective

So:

Die waglys is lank.
The waiting list is long.

However, Afrikaans word order can change more noticeably in other sentence types, especially when another element comes first or in subordinate clauses.

For example:

Vandag is die waglys lank. = Today the waiting list is long.
Ek weet dat die waglys lank is. = I know that the waiting list is long.

So this sentence looks very English-like, but not every Afrikaans sentence will.

How do you pronounce waglys?

A rough guide for English speakers is:

wag: sounds a bit like vakh or wakh, depending on accent and how you hear the g
lys: sounds roughly like lace, but with the Afrikaans ui/uy-like sound? Actually here it is y, which in Afrikaans is pronounced like ei/ay in many contexts, so lys is close to lace with a slightly different vowel quality.

A simpler learner-friendly approximation is:

waglys ≈ vakh-lace or wakh-lace

A few pronunciation notes:

w in Afrikaans is usually pronounced like English v
g is not a hard English g; it is usually a throaty sound
y in lys is not pronounced like English y

If you want a practical pronunciation target, saying something close to vahkh-lace will usually be understood.

How do you pronounce die here? Is it like English die?

No. In Afrikaans, die is usually pronounced roughly like dee, not like the English verb die.

So:

die = dee

This is very important because English speakers often misread it at first.

Examples:

die man = the man
die vrou = the woman
die kinders = the children

So in Die waglys is lank, the first word sounds like dee.

Can lank only mean physical length, or can it also describe time or size in a broader way?

Lank often means long, but the exact nuance depends on context.

It can refer to:

physical length
duration
something being extensive

In Die waglys is lank, it does not usually mean the list is physically long on paper. It normally means the waiting list has many people on it, or that the wait is substantial.

So the idea is similar to English, where the waiting list is long also usually means there are many people waiting.

Other uses:

’n lang pad = a long road
’n lang tyd = a long time

How would I make this sentence plural?

If you want to say The waiting lists are long, you would say:

Die waglyste is lank.

Here:

waglys → waglyste = waiting lists
is stays is

That last part is important: Afrikaans does not change the present-tense verb the way English does.

Compare:

Die waglys is lank. = The waiting list is long.
Die waglyste is lank. = The waiting lists are long.

Notice that die still stays the same in the plural.

Could I also say ’n waglys is lank?

Yes, grammatically you can, but the meaning changes slightly.

Die waglys is lank. = The waiting list is long.
This refers to a specific waiting list.
’n waglys is lank. = A waiting list is long.
This sounds more general, less specific, or dependent on context.

In normal conversation, if you are talking about one known waiting list, die is the natural choice.

So the original sentence sounds like you and the listener both know which waiting list is being discussed.

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