Die medisyne is bitter.

Die is the Afrikaans definite article, meaning the. Unlike English, it does not change for gender, and unlike some other Germanic languages, Afrikaans keeps things simple: die is used very widely.

In this sentence, die medisyne means the medicine: a specific medicine that speaker and listener can identify.

Yes, sometimes.

• Die medisyne is bitter. = The medicine is bitter.
  This sounds specific.
• Medisyne is bitter. = Medicine is bitter.
  This sounds more general.

So die helps make the sentence definite and specific.

Yes, in this simple sentence it is very similar:

• Die medisyne = subject
• is = verb
• bitter = adjective/complement

So the pattern is:

subject + is + adjective

That said, Afrikaans is generally a verb-second language in main clauses, so the finite verb normally stays in the second position.

No. That is one of the nice things about Afrikaans grammar.

The present-tense form is stays the same with different subjects:

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

So you do not have to learn lots of different present-tense forms of to be the way you do in English.

Because it comes after is.

In Afrikaans, adjectives used after a linking verb like is are usually kept in their basic form. This is called the predicative use of the adjective.

So:

• Die medisyne is bitter.

Here, bitter does not need an ending.

Yes, but be careful: adjectives placed before a noun in Afrikaans often behave differently from adjectives used after is.

So the important point for a learner is:

• after is: use the basic form, as in bitter
• before a noun: the adjective may take a different form

In other words, do not assume that the form before a noun will always look exactly the same as the form after is.

You would use the common Afrikaans double nie pattern:

Die medisyne is nie bitter nie.

Afrikaans usually places:

• one nie after the verb or predicate area
• another nie at the end of the clause

This is one of the most important sentence patterns in Afrikaans.

A rough guide for English speakers:

• die: roughly dee
• medisyne: roughly meh-dee-SAY-nuh
• bitter: roughly BIT-ter

A few helpful notes:

• die in Afrikaans is not pronounced like the English verb die
• bitter sounds quite close to English bitter, but with a clear, crisp t
• these English-style spellings are only approximations, but they are useful for getting started

Yes. It is a close cognate and has a very similar meaning. In this sentence it describes taste, just as in English.

So this is one of the easier Afrikaans words for an English speaker to recognize and remember.