Ek eet net vleis.

I only eat meat.

Breakdown of Ek eet net vleis.

• ek: I
• eet: to eat
• die vleis: the meat
• net: only

Questions & Answers about Ek eet net vleis.

What does net mean in this sentence? Is it like the English “not”?

net means “only” or “just,” not “not.” In Afrikaans, nie is used for negation. So Ek eet net vleis = “I only eat meat,” not “I don’t eat meat.”

Why isn’t there an article before vleis? Why not die vleis or “some meat”?

vleis (“meat”) is a mass noun in Afrikaans and is used without an article when speaking generally. Saying die vleis would mean “the meat” (a specific batch). If you wanted “some meat,” you could say ‘n bietjie vleis or ‘n paar stukke vleis.

Is vleis plural because it ends in -s?

No. vleis is a mass (uncountable) noun and is treated as singular, even though it ends in -s. There is no separate plural form for “meat.”

What is the word order in Ek eet net vleis?

Afrikaans follows Subject–Verb–(Adverb)–Object:
• Ek (Subject)
• eet (Verb)
• net (Adverb: “only”)
• vleis (Object)

Can I use slegs instead of net for “only”?

Yes. slegs also means “only” and is a bit more formal. You can say Ek eet slegs vleis, though in everyday speech net is more common.

How do I say “I don’t eat meat” instead of “I only eat meat”?

Use the double nie for negation:
Ek eet nie vleis nie – “I don’t eat meat.”

How would I express “I only eat meat on Sundays”?

You can position net to limit the time phrase or the object:
• Ek eet vleis net op Sondae. (“I eat meat only on Sundays.”)
• Ek eet net vleis op Sondae. (Emphasises that meat, and nothing else, is what you eat on Sundays.)

What happens if I say Ek eet net vleis nie?

That turns the sentence negative. Ek eet net vleis nie means “I don’t eat only meat,” implying you eat meat and other things as well.

How do I pronounce vleis?

vleis is pronounced [flɛis], very much like English “flies” but with an Afrikaans v that sounds like an English f, and the vowel as in “day.”