Questions & Answers about Ons wag 'n kort tyd.
Why is there an apostrophe in 'n?
In Afrikaans, 'n is the indefinite article, similar to "a" or "an" in English. The apostrophe indicates that the first letter ("e") is dropped, so you'd see 'n instead of een.
What does Ons mean?
Ons means "we" or "us" in Afrikaans. It is used as a subject pronoun when talking about a group that includes the speaker.
How is wag used here?
Wag means "wait." It's in the present tense here, indicating a current action or a general statement of fact, such as "We are waiting."
Why do we say 'n kort tyd instead of just kort tyd?
'n is the indefinite article before kort tyd. It translates loosely to "a short time." If you omit 'n, you would lose the nuance of an unspecified short time, and kort tyd on its own might imply a more general or descriptive statement rather than referring to a span of time being waited.
Is tyd always used to mean "time," or can it have other translations?