Ek sit 'n lamp by die bed sodat my suster kan skryf.

In this sentence, sit is being used in a very common Afrikaans way to mean put, set, or place.

So:

• Ek sit 'n lamp by die bed = I put/place a lamp by the bed

Afrikaans often uses everyday verbs like sit, staan, and lê in ways that feel broader than their closest English equivalents. In casual speech, sit can sound very natural for placing something somewhere.

If you wanted a more explicitly formal verb, you might also see:

• plaas = place
• neersit = put down / set down

But sit is very normal here.

'n is the Afrikaans indefinite article, so it means a or an.

• 'n lamp = a lamp

It is usually pronounced very weakly, like a schwa: uh.

A few useful things to know:

• It is written with an apostrophe: 'n
• It is normally not stressed
• Even at the start of a sentence, the 'n itself stays lowercase

For example:

• 'n Lamp is op die tafel.

If a sentence starts with 'n, the following word is the one that gets the capital letter.

Yes. In this sentence, by die bed means by the bed, near the bed, or next to the bed, depending on context.

• by = by / at / near
• die bed = the bed

So:

• 'n lamp by die bed = a lamp by the bed

Afrikaans by is very common for location. It does not always mean exactly touching something; it often just means in that place / close to it.

Because die is the normal definite article in Afrikaans, meaning the.

• die bed = the bed
• die lamp = the lamp
• die suster = the sister

Unlike English, Afrikaans does not change the based on gender or case. It is simply die in ordinary use.

sodat means so that or in order that.

It introduces a purpose clause here:

• Ek sit 'n lamp by die bed sodat my suster kan skryf.
• I put a lamp by the bed so that my sister can write.

So the second part explains the purpose of the first part.

A very important contrast:

• sodat = so that
• omdat = because
• dat = that

So you cannot swap those freely.

Because sodat introduces a subordinate clause, and subordinate clauses in Afrikaans have different word order from main clauses.

In a main clause, you often get something like:

• My suster kan skryf. = My sister can write.

After sodat, the clause becomes subordinate, and the verbal part goes to the end area of the clause:

• sodat my suster kan skryf

That is the normal Afrikaans structure here.

A helpful way to think of it:

• sodat opens a dependent clause
• the subject comes next: my suster
• the verb group comes at the end: kan skryf

Because after a modal verb like kan (can), Afrikaans uses the bare infinitive.

So:

• kan skryf = can write
• wil skryf = want to write
• moet skryf = must write

Not:

• kan te skryf ❌

This is similar to English:

• can write ✅
• can to write ❌

So kan skryf is exactly what you want.

Yes. Here my is the possessive adjective my.

• my suster = my sister

Afrikaans uses my before a noun, just like English:

• my boek = my book
• my lamp = my lamp

A beginner point that can be confusing: my in Afrikaans can also be the object form me, depending on the sentence. But here, because it comes directly before a noun, it clearly means my.

Because my suster is the subject of the subordinate clause, not an indirect object.

In this sentence:

• my suster kan skryf = my sister can write

So my suster is the person doing the writing.

If you said vir my suster, that would mean something more like for my sister or mark her as an object, which would change the structure and meaning.

So:

• sodat my suster kan skryf = so that my sister can write
• not: so that for my sister can write

Usually, sodat is the better choice here because the purpose clause has its own subject: my suster.

• sodat my suster kan skryf = so that my sister can write

By contrast, om ... te is very common when the subject of both actions is the same:

• Ek sit 'n lamp by die bed om te lees.
• I put a lamp by the bed to read.

That sounds like I am the one who will read.

But in your sentence, the writer is my sister, not I, so sodat fits very naturally.

It is literally can write.

• kan = can
• skryf = write

skryf is the infinitive/basic dictionary form of the verb to write. Afrikaans infinitives usually look the same as the plain verb form, unlike English, which often uses to write.

So:

• ek skryf = I write / I am writing
• kan skryf = can write
• wil skryf = want to write

Yes, depending on context.

Afrikaans present tense often covers both:

• simple present: I put
• present continuous: I am putting

So Ek sit 'n lamp by die bed can mean either, depending on the situation.

If you are describing what is happening right now, English may prefer:

• I am putting a lamp by the bed

If you are stating an action more generally, English may prefer:

• I put a lamp by the bed

Afrikaans often leaves that distinction to context.