Breakdown of Die onderwyser vra dat elke leerling 'n kort verslag oor een uitstalling skryf.
'n
a
skryf
to write
kort
short
dat
that
vra
to ask
een
one
oor
about
die onderwyser
the teacher
elke
each
die leerling
the pupil
die uitstalling
the exhibition
die verslag
the report
Questions & Answers about Die onderwyser vra dat elke leerling 'n kort verslag oor een uitstalling skryf.
Why is the verb skryf placed at the very end of the sentence?
In Afrikaans, subordinate clauses introduced by dat push the finite verb to the end. So in dat elke leerling 'n kort verslag oor een uitstalling skryf, skryf goes to the last position. Main clauses follow verb-second word order, but dependent clauses do not.
What does the preposition oor mean here?
Here oor means about. You use it when talking or writing about a subject: 'n verslag oor 'n boek = a report about a book.
Why are there both 'n and een in the same phrase?
'n (short for een) is the indefinite article meaning a/an. The second een (no apostrophe) is the numeral one, emphasising that each student writes about exactly one exhibition. So 'n kort verslag oor een uitstalling = a short report on one exhibition.
What does elke mean, and why is it used here instead of al?
Elke means each or every, highlighting that every single student must write the report. Al would mean all, which doesn’t stress individual responsibility in the same way.
Why isn’t there te before skryf?
With vra dat you form a finite subordinate clause, so the verb remains in the present tense without te. If you used an infinitive clause, you’d switch to om … te, e.g. Die onderwyser vra elke leerling om 'n kort verslag oor een uitstalling te skryf.
What’s the difference between using dat + finite verb and om … te + infinitive?
Both express a request, but:
- dat
- finite verb (here dat … skryf) is more formal or written.
- om … te
- infinitive (here om … te skryf) is common in everyday speech. The grammar shifts from a dat-clause to a non-finite infinitive construction.
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