Breakdown of Hy klim oor die muur in die tuin.
Questions & Answers about Hy klim oor die muur in die tuin.
Pronunciation in IPA: /ɦɛi klɪm uːr diː myːr ɪn diː tœy̯n/
Rough English approximation:
• Hy: hay (like English hay)
• klim: klim (like “clip” with m)
• oor: oar (long oo as in “boar”)
• die: dee
• muur: muhr (front-rounded vowel, like French lune)
• in: in
• tuin: tuyn (start like French peur, glide to ee)
• uu in muur = /yː/, a long front-rounded vowel (similar to French u in lune).
• ui in tuin = /œy̯/, a diphthong starting like French peur and gliding to ee.
Use the auxiliary het plus the past participle geklim:
Hy het geklim oor die muur in die tuin.
• het = past-tense form of hê (to have)
• geklim = ge- + stem + -m
• oor means “over” or “across” (movement across an obstacle).
• op means “on” or “onto” (movement onto a surface).
Thus Hy klim oor die muur = he goes over the wall, while Hy klim op die muur = he climbs onto the top of the wall.
• die is the only definite article in Afrikaans, used for all nouns regardless of gender or number.
• It remains die in plural: die muur, die mure; die tuin, die tuine.
• The indefinite article is ’n, pronounced roughly uhn.
• ’n muur = a wall
• ’n tuin = a garden
Always include the apostrophe; even at the start of a sentence it stays ’n.
• Default order = Subject–Verb–Object/Adverbial: Hy (S) klim (V) oor die muur (PP).
• Afrikaans is a V2 language. If you front In die tuin, the verb remains second and the subject follows:
In die tuin klim hy oor die muur.
• oor die muur = movement over the wall.
• in die tuin = location inside the garden (context may imply movement).
• To stress movement into/toward the garden:
Hy klim oor die muur na die tuin toe.
Invert the subject and finite verb (V2):
Klim hy oor die muur in die tuin?
In writing you add a question mark; in speech your intonation rises at the end.
Use double nie around the verb phrase and its complements:
Hy klim nie oor die muur in die tuin nie.
• First nie follows the verb (or object).
• Second nie comes at the end of the clause.
Afrikaans uses periphrastic constructions rather than a special continuous tense:
- besig om
- infinitive:
Hy is besig om oor die muur in die tuin te klim.
- infinitive:
- aan die
- verb-noun (colloquial):
Hy is aan die klim oor die muur in die tuin.
- verb-noun (colloquial):