As ek ’n boek leen, probeer ek dit dieselfde week terug te gee.

Here as can be understood as if or when, depending on context.

In this sentence, the speaker is describing a usual habit, so English often uses when naturally, but if is also possible. Afrikaans as is commonly used for this kind of general condition or repeated situation.

Because as introduces a subordinate clause.

In Afrikaans subordinate clauses, the finite verb usually goes to the end. So:

• ek leen ’n boek = I borrow a book
• As ek ’n boek leen = when/if I borrow a book

That end position for leen is completely normal after a conjunction like as.

This is because the sentence starts with the as-clause, and that whole clause takes the first position in the sentence.

Afrikaans follows a verb-second pattern in main clauses. That means the finite verb comes second, even if the subject is not first.

So after As ek ’n boek leen, the main clause begins like this:

• probeer ek ...

If the sentence started directly with the subject, then you would say:

• Ek probeer dit dieselfde week terug te gee.

It can mean either, depending on context.

In this sentence, leen means borrow.

Afrikaans often lets context show the difference:

• Ek leen ’n boek by die biblioteek. = I borrow a book from the library.
• Ek leen vir hom ’n boek. = I lend him a book.

So yes, this is a word learners often find tricky.

’n is the Afrikaans indefinite article, equivalent to English a or an.

It is usually pronounced like a very weak uh sound, not like the English letter N.

A few useful points:

• It is written with an apostrophe: ’n
• It is normally unstressed
• Even at the beginning of a sentence, it usually stays lowercase: ’n Boek ...

So in ’n boek, it simply means a book.

Dit refers back to ’n boek.

So once boek has already been mentioned, Afrikaans uses dit for it:

• ’n boek → dit

This is the direct object of terug te gee, meaning the thing being returned.

Dieselfde means the same.

So dieselfde week means the same week.

It is written as one word in standard Afrikaans. Learners sometimes expect something like die selfde, but the normal written form is dieselfde.

Examples:

• dieselfde dag = the same day
• dieselfde boek = the same book
• dieselfde week = the same week

Afrikaans often uses time expressions without a preposition where English might use in, during, or something similar.

So dieselfde week is natural Afrikaans for in the same week or that same week.

This is similar to other time expressions such as:

• vandag = today
• hierdie week = this week
• volgende maand = next month

So the sentence does not need an extra word before dieselfde week.

Because the verb here is teruggee, which means give back / return.

In this sentence, it appears in an infinitive structure after probeer, and Afrikaans uses te before the infinitive verb. With a separable verb like teruggee, the parts split around te:

• basic form: teruggee
• infinitive with te: terug te gee

So terug te gee is the correct form here.

Its dictionary form is one word: teruggee.

But in actual sentences, separable verbs often split apart.

For example:

• Ek gee dit terug.
• Ek wil dit teruggee.
• Ek probeer dit terug te gee.

So the spelling depends on the grammatical structure, not just on the meaning.

Yes. That is also possible.

Afrikaans often allows om before an infinitive phrase, and with probeer, both patterns can occur:

• Ek probeer dit dieselfde week terug te gee.
• Ek probeer om dit dieselfde week terug te gee.

The version without om is very natural and common, so the original sentence sounds perfectly normal.

Because the first part is a subordinate clause, and Afrikaans normally separates it from the main clause with a comma.

So:

• As ek ’n boek leen, probeer ek dit dieselfde week terug te gee.

That comma helps mark the boundary between the as-clause and the main statement.