Breakdown of Ek laat hulle hul werk klaar skryf.
ek
I
die werk
the work
hul
their
laat
to let
klaar skryf
to finish writing
hulle
them
Questions & Answers about Ek laat hulle hul werk klaar skryf.
Why does the sentence use hulle first but then hul later?
In Afrikaans, hulle means they or them, while hul is often used as a possessive pronoun meaning their. Here, hulle is the object pronoun (the people you let do something), and hul is the possessive pronoun referring to their work.
What does laat do in this sentence?
The verb laat can mean to let, to allow, or sometimes to have (someone) do something. In this example, it indicates that the speaker is allowing or causing someone else (them) to complete their work.
Why is klaar placed before skryf?
In Afrikaans, klaar can be used in conjunction with another verb to indicate that an action is finished or completed. Placing klaar before skryf emphasizes that the writing should be finished, not just started.
Could hul werk be replaced with something like hulle se werk?
Yes, you can sometimes say hulle se werk, but it's generally more concise and considered more formally correct to use the possessive pronoun hul—it avoids an extra word and flows better in Afrikaans.
Why don't we see a direct translation for to before the verb skryf?
Afrikaans often omits the equivalent of to (as in to write) when one verb follows another, especially with verbs like laat or help. Instead, you go directly from the first verb to the second. This is a feature of Afrikaans sentence structure.
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