My oupa sit graag buite en vertel stories wat my neef en nig altyd laat lag.

Graag often corresponds to English like to or enjoy when it is used with a verb.

So sit graag buite means likes to sit outside or enjoys sitting outside. Literally, graag is closer to gladly, but in everyday Afrikaans it is very commonly used to express liking an action.

Yes, sit literally means sit, but Afrikaans often uses posture verbs very naturally in places where English might be less literal.

So my oupa sit graag buite really does mean he enjoys being seated outside. English might sometimes say my grandpa likes being outside or likes to sit outside, but Afrikaans is perfectly happy to keep the posture verb.

Here wat introduces a relative clause: stories wat my neef en nig altyd laat lag.

In English, that would usually be stories that make my cousin(s) always laugh or more naturally stories that always make my cousin(s) laugh. In Afrikaans, wat can often cover what English expresses with that, which, or who, depending on context.

Because wat starts a subordinate clause, and Afrikaans usually pushes the verb toward the end in subordinate clauses.

Compare the idea as a main clause: Die stories laat my neef en nig altyd lag.

Inside the relative clause, it becomes: stories wat my neef en nig altyd laat lag

So the structure after wat is not the same as normal main-clause word order.

Laat is a causative verb. It often means make, let, or cause to, depending on context.

So iets laat iemand lag means something makes someone laugh. In this sentence, the stories are the thing causing the laughter.

After laat, Afrikaans uses the bare infinitive, not te + infinitive.

So you say:

• laat lag
• laat huil
• laat werk

not:

• laat te lag

This is similar to English make someone laugh, not make someone to laugh.

Because my neef en nig is the person or people affected by laat.

The pattern is often: iets laat iemand lag

So in this sentence:

• stories = the thing causing the action
• my neef en nig = the ones who laugh
• lag = the action itself

That is why my neef en nig sits between the relative pronoun and the verb cluster.

One possessive can apply to both nouns if the same person owns or is related to both.

So my neef en nig means my nephew and niece or my male cousin and female cousin, depending on the translation already provided. You could repeat my, but normally you do not need to:

• my neef en nig = the usual, natural form
• my neef en my nig = possible, but more marked or emphatic

These family words do not always match one single English word perfectly.

Neef can mean male cousin or nephew, depending on context. Nig is the female counterpart and often corresponds to female cousin, and in some usage can also match niece. So learners usually rely on context or the provided translation to know which English meaning is intended.

Yes. The singular is storie, and the plural is stories.

That is very normal in Afrikaans. Many borrowed words take -s in the plural. So:

• storie → stories

There is also verhaal / verhale, but storie / stories is very common in everyday language.

Altyd means always, and here it comes before the final verb group in the relative clause: wat my neef en nig altyd laat lag.

That placement is natural in Afrikaans subordinate-clause word order. English also often puts always before make here: stories that always make them laugh. So although the whole clause structure is different from English, the position of altyd is quite natural once you know the verb goes toward the end.

Yes, you could. Hou daarvan om ... te ... is another way to express liking an action.

But sit graag buite is shorter, very idiomatic, and very common. Afrikaans often prefers graag with verbs when English would use like to:

• Ek lees graag. = I like to read.
• Hy kuier graag. = He likes visiting/socializing.
• My oupa sit graag buite. = My grandpa likes sitting outside.