Die skofleier etiketteer die wegneemhouer.

Because die is the Afrikaans definite article, meaning the.

In Die skofleier etiketteer die wegneemhouer:

• die skofleier = the shift leader
• die wegneemhouer = the takeout container

A very important point for English speakers: Afrikaans uses die for all genders and also for plural nouns. So there is no separate the for masculine, feminine, neuter, or plural.

If you wanted a/an instead, you would use 'n:

• 'n skofleier = a shift leader
• 'n wegneemhouer = a takeout container

It has the basic subject–verb–object pattern, just like English.

• Die skofleier = the subject
• etiketteer = the verb
• die wegneemhouer = the object

So the structure is:

The shift leader + labels + the takeout container

That makes this a very straightforward main clause for a beginner.

Yes. Afrikaans uses compound words very often, and it usually writes them as one word.

• skofleier = skof

  • leier
  • skof = shift
  • leier = leader

• wegneemhouer = wegneem

  • houer
  • wegneem = take away / take out
  • houer = container

So Afrikaans is doing something similar to English, but more consistently. English might write shift leader as two words, while Afrikaans joins it into skofleier.

Because standard Afrikaans spelling normally joins compound nouns into a single word.

This is one of the things English speakers often have to get used to. English is less consistent about compounds:

• takeout container
• take-out container
• take out container

Afrikaans is much more likely to prefer one closed form:

• wegneemhouer

So if two or more elements form one noun idea, Afrikaans often writes them together.

It is the present tense.

In context, it can often be understood as:

• labels
• sometimes, depending on context, is labeling

Afrikaans does not always separate simple present and present progressive in the same way English does. If you want to make the ongoing action very explicit, Afrikaans often uses a construction like:

• Die skofleier is besig om die wegneemhouer te etiketteer.
  = The shift leader is busy labeling the takeout container.

But in a simple sentence like this, etiketteer is just the normal present-tense verb form.

Because Afrikaans verbs usually do not conjugate much for person or number in the present tense.

So you get:

• Ek etiketteer
• Jy etiketteer
• Hy/Sy etiketteer
• Ons etiketteer
• Hulle etiketteer

That is much simpler than English, where you have I label but he labels. In Afrikaans, the verb usually stays the same.

Yes. This is normal word order for a main clause: subject + verb + object.

• Die skofleier
• etiketteer
• die wegneemhouer

Afrikaans also follows the verb-second pattern in main clauses. In this sentence, that happens naturally because the subject comes first. If something else comes first, the verb still stays in second position:

• Vandag etiketteer die skofleier die wegneemhouer.
  = Today the shift leader labels the takeout container.

That is a useful pattern to notice early.

Here are rough English-friendly approximations:

• die ≈ dee
• skofleier ≈ SKOFF-lay-uhr
• etiketteer ≈ eh-tih-keh-TEER
• wegneemhouer ≈ VEKH-neem-hoh-uhr

A few pronunciation tips:

• Afrikaans w often sounds more like English v
• Afrikaans g is usually a guttural sound, like the ch in Scottish loch or German Bach
• ei in leier is roughly like ay in say, though not exactly the same
• r can vary by accent

So the trickiest word for many English speakers is usually wegneemhouer, especially because of the w and g sounds at the start.

Sometimes, yes, but the meaning may shift slightly.

• etiketteer specifically means to label
• merk more generally means to mark

So if you really mean put a label on, etiketteer is the more precise choice. If you only mean mark in a broader sense, merk might work in some contexts.

That makes etiketteer a good, exact verb for this sentence.

Because Afrikaans does not capitalize common nouns the way German does.

So you write:

• die skofleier
• die wegneemhouer

not with capitals, unless the word starts the sentence.

Afrikaans capitalization is closer to English in this respect: you capitalize the first word of the sentence and proper names, but not ordinary nouns.