Ek kon nie die kanaal vind nie, omdat die afstandbeheer onder die kussing was.

Afrikaans usually uses double negation.

In this clause:

• Ek kon nie ... = the first nie appears after the finite verb kon
• ... vind nie = the second nie closes the negative clause

So the pattern is often:

subject + verb + nie + rest of clause + nie

That is why Ek kon nie die kanaal vind nie means I could not find the channel.

This is one of the most important things for English speakers to get used to, because English normally uses only one negative word.

Kon is the past form of kan.

• kan = can / am able to
• kon = could / was able to

So:

• Ek kan die kanaal vind. = I can find the channel.
• Ek kon die kanaal vind. = I could find the channel.

In your sentence, the speaker is talking about a past situation, so kon is the correct form.

Because kon is a modal verb, and the main verb vind stays in the infinitive form and is placed later in the clause.

Compare:

• Ek vind die kanaal. = I find the channel.
• Ek kon die kanaal vind. = I could find the channel.

With modal verbs such as kan, kon, wil, moet, and sal, Afrikaans often works a lot like Dutch and German: the modal is the finite verb, and the other verb comes later.

So in:

Ek kon nie die kanaal vind nie

• kon = finite/modal verb
• vind = main verb in infinitive form

Because omdat introduces a subordinate clause, and subordinate clauses in Afrikaans usually send the finite verb to the end.

So:

• Main clause: Die afstandbeheer was onder die kussing.
• After omdat: omdat die afstandbeheer onder die kussing was

This is a very common pattern:

• Ek bly tuis, omdat ek moeg is.
• Hy lag, omdat die grap snaaks was.

English speakers often want to say omdat die afstandbeheer was onder die kussing, but standard Afrikaans puts was at the end.

Both can mean because, but they behave differently.

• want introduces a main-clause-type structure
• omdat introduces a subordinate clause, so the verb goes to the end

Compare:

• Ek kon nie die kanaal vind nie, want die afstandbeheer was onder die kussing.
• Ek kon nie die kanaal vind nie, omdat die afstandbeheer onder die kussing was.

Both are natural, but the word order changes:

• after want: die afstandbeheer was onder die kussing
• after omdat: die afstandbeheer onder die kussing was

So a learner often needs to remember: omdat = verb at the end.

Afstandbeheer is a compound noun.

It is made from:

• afstand = distance
• beheer = control

So literally it is something like distance-control, which corresponds to remote control in English.

Afrikaans makes a lot of nouns by combining smaller words into one longer word. English learners may find this unusual at first, but it is very common.

In Afrikaans, die is the definite article for all nouns in the singular and plural.

Unlike languages such as German or Dutch, Afrikaans does not have different forms for masculine, feminine, or neuter nouns.

So:

• die kanaal = the channel
• die kussing = the cushion/pillow
• die afstandbeheer = the remote control

That makes articles much simpler than in many other European languages.

Because onder is a preposition, and Afrikaans prepositions normally come before the noun phrase they govern.

So:

• onder die kussing = under the cushion/pillow
• op die tafel = on the table
• in die kamer = in the room

This is similar to English, where you also say under the cushion, not the cushion under.

It can mean cushion, and in some contexts it can also correspond to pillow, depending on the situation.

In this sentence, if you are imagining a TV remote hidden in sofa furniture, cushion may feel more natural in English. If it is on a bed, pillow may be the better translation.

So the exact English word depends a little on context, even though the Afrikaans word is the same here.

Yes, that is also possible, and learners often notice that nie can shift depending on what is being negated or emphasized.

Both of these are natural:

• Ek kon nie die kanaal vind nie
• Ek kon die kanaal nie vind nie

In everyday learning, the safest thing is to remember the basic idea:

• one nie appears after the finite verb or after the element being negated
• the second nie closes the clause

As a beginner, it is usually best to learn common patterns first rather than trying to master every nuance of nie placement immediately.

It can cover both ideas.

Ek kon nie die kanaal vind nie literally uses could not, but in normal English it is often best translated as:

• I couldn’t find the channel
• I was unable to find the channel

So the Afrikaans sentence is completely natural and idiomatic. It does not sound overly formal just because it uses kon.

You would change kon to kan and usually adjust the rest if the situation is happening now:

• Ek kan nie die kanaal vind nie, omdat die afstandbeheer onder die kussing is.

That means:

I can’t find the channel because the remote is under the cushion.

Notice the two tense changes:

• kon → kan
• was → is