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Questions & Answers about Die venster is nat.
Why is the article die used in Die venster is nat and what does it mean?
Die is the definite article in Afrikaans, equivalent to “the” in English. It’s used for all nouns—singular or plural—and there’s no gender distinction (unlike “le”/“la” in French).
Why is the adjective nat placed after the verb is instead of before the noun?
When you describe the subject’s state, you use a predicative adjective, which in Afrikaans (like in English) follows the linking verb: “The window is wet.” If you want an attributive adjective (directly before the noun), you’d say die nat venster (“the wet window”).
Does nat change its form according to number or gender?
No. In predicative position it never changes. Even attributive adjectives only take an -e ending before a definite noun if they are multisyllabic. Since nat is one syllable, it stays nat.
How do you form the plural of venster, and how would you say “The windows are wet”?
Add -s for the plural. “The windows are wet” becomes Die vensters is nat.
Is is used the same way as “is” in English? What about continuous tenses like “is getting wet”?
Yes, is is the simple present “to be.” Afrikaans has no separate continuous tense. To express “is getting wet,” you’d say Die venster is besig om nat te word (literally “The window is busy to become wet”).
How do you pronounce venster and nat?
Venster: “FEN-stər” (the “v” sounds like /f/, first “e” like in “bet,” and a reduced vowel /ə/ at the end).
Nat: “naht” (a short “a” as in “father,” ending with a crisp “t”).
Can you use a demonstrative instead of die to say “That window is wet”?
Yes. Use daardie for “that”: Daardie venster is nat.
What’s the difference between nat and natterig?
Nat simply means “wet” or “damp.” Natterig is more emphatic—“soaking” or “very wet.” You could also say Die venster is baie nat (“baie” = “very”).