Hy sien homself in die venster.

He sees himself in the window.

Breakdown of Hy sien homself in die venster.

• hy: he
• sien: to see
• in: in
• die venster: the window
• homself: himself

Questions & Answers about Hy sien homself in die venster.

What does homself mean, and why can’t we just say hom here?

hom is the regular object pronoun meaning “him” (someone else). homself is the reflexive pronoun used when the subject and object refer to the same person. So:

• Hy sien hom. means “He sees him” (a different male person).
• Hy sien homself. means “He sees himself.”

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How do you form other reflexive pronouns in Afrikaans?

You take the personal pronoun and add -self. Here’s the full list:

• I see myself: Ek sien myself
• You see yourself: Jy sien jouself
• He sees himself: Hy sien homself
• She sees herself: Sy sien haarself
• We see ourselves: Ons sien onsself
• You (plural) see yourselves: Julle sien julle self or julle sien julleself
• They see themselves: Hulle sien hulleself

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Why is the word order Hy sien homself and not Hy homself sien?

Afrikaans main clauses follow the “verb-second” (V2) rule: the finite (conjugated) verb must come in second position. When the subject comes first, the verb is second, then the object:

1. Hy (subject)
2. sien (verb)
3. homself (object)

If you front a time or place phrase, the verb still stays second:
In die venster sien hy homself.

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Why is there die before venster?

die is the definite article (“the”). Afrikaans has only two articles: ’n (a/an) for indefinite and die (the) for definite. You cannot drop it here.

• “in die venster” = “in the window”
• “in ’n venster” = “in a window”

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Does in always translate as “in”? Can it ever mean “on”?

No, in always means “in” or “inside.” To say “on the window” you use op:

• in the window = in die venster
• on the window = op die venster

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How would you change this sentence to past tense?

Use the perfect construction het + past participle. The past participle of sien is gesien. So:
Hy het homself in die venster gesien.
(“He saw himself in the window.”)

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How do you say “He didn’t see himself in the window”?

Place nie after the verb phrase and again at the end:
Hy het homself nie in die venster gesien nie.

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Is venster gendered, like in German?

No. Afrikaans nouns have no grammatical gender. You always use die for “the,” regardless of the noun.

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How do you pronounce venster and hy?

• venster is pronounced [ˈfɛn.stər] (the “v” sounds like English f, the “e” like in pen, and the “r” is a soft flap).
• hy is pronounced [hɑi], rhyming with English “high.”

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How would you say “She sees herself in the window”?

Replace both the subject and reflexive pronoun with the feminine forms:
Sy sien haarself in die venster.