Die middagson is warm, maar die bus is koel.

The midday sun is warm, but the bus is cool.

Breakdown of Die middagson is warm, maar die bus is koel.

• wees: to be
• warm: warm
• maar: but
• die bus: the bus
• die middagson: the midday sun
• koel: cool

Questions & Answers about Die middagson is warm, maar die bus is koel.

Why is middagson written as a single word, while in English it’s “afternoon sun”?

In Afrikaans, compound nouns are normally closed as single words. When two nouns combine to form a new concept (in this case middag + son = middagson, “afternoon sun”), you join them into one word without a space or hyphen.

How does the definite article die work in this sentence?

Afrikaans uses only one definite article: die, for all genders and numbers. You say die for singular and plural (e.g. die bus, die busse). Here die marks both die middagson (“the afternoon sun”) and die bus (“the bus”) as definite.

Why don’t the adjectives warm and koel change form (for example, by adding an –e)?

Predicative adjectives in Afrikaans (adjectives following a linking verb like is) stay in their base form. You only add –e when an adjective is attributive and the noun is definite (e.g. die warm middagson, “the warm afternoon sun”). After is, however, you keep warm and koel unchanged.

Why is there a comma before maar? Is it always required?

When two independent clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction such as maar (“but”), standard Afrikaans punctuation places a comma before the conjunction—just like in English. So you write Die middagson is warm, maar die bus is koel to signal the pause between clauses.

What is the word order in each clause?

Afrikaans typically follows Subject – Verb – Complement order. In this sentence each clause is structured the same way:
• Subject: Die middagson / die bus
• Verb: is
• Complement (predicate adjective): warm / koel

How do I pronounce Die middagson is warm, maar die bus is koel?

Approximate guide for English speakers:
• Die: “dee”
• middagson: “MID-akh-son” (the “kh” like the Scottish “loch”)
• is: “iss”
• warm: “varm” (Afrikaans w sounds like English v)
• maar: “mahr”
• bus: “bus” (short u as in “put”)
• koel: “kool” (long oo)

Together:
DEE MID-akh-son iss VARM, mahr dee BUS iss KOOL.

Alternatively, in IPA:
[dɪ ˈmɪdɑχsɔn ɪs vɑrm, mar dɪ bʏs ɪs kul]

What’s the difference between koel and koud?

Both describe temperature, but koel means “cool” (mildly cold, often pleasant), whereas koud means “cold” (uncomfortably or very cold). Saying die bus is koel suggests the bus feels nicely cool rather than freezing.