Die kinders hardloop oor die gras, maar die hond bly by die bankie.

In Afrikaans, die is the definite article for all nouns:

• die hond = the dog
• die kinders = the children
• die gras = the grass
• die bankie = the bench / little bench

It does not change for gender or number. So unlike languages such as German, you do not have to learn different forms of the.

For comparison, the indefinite article is ’n = a/an.

The singular form is kind and the plural is kinders.

So:

• kind = child
• kinders = children

Afrikaans often forms plurals with -e or -s, but some nouns take other common plural patterns, and kind → kinders is one you should just learn as a standard plural form.

Also notice that the article stays the same:

• die kind
• die kinders

Yes. Hardloop means to run, and learners should treat it as a normal single verb.

Even though it looks like it contains parts that remind you of other words, in everyday Afrikaans it functions as the standard verb run:

• Ek hardloop = I run
• Die kinders hardloop = The children run

So do not try to translate it piece by piece in this sentence. Just learn hardloop as the usual verb for run.

Because oor suggests movement across or over something.

• oor die gras = across the grass / over the grass
• op die gras = on the grass

So if the children are moving from one place to another across the lawn, oor die gras is natural. If you only wanted to say that they are physically on the grass, op die gras would be the better choice.

Here, bly means stay or remain.

So die hond bly by die bankie means that the dog stays near the bench instead of moving with the children.

A useful thing to know is that bly can also mean live in other contexts:

• Ek bly in Kaapstad = I live in Cape Town

So the exact meaning depends on context.

By usually means by, at, or near.

So by die bankie means the dog is at/near the bench. It does not necessarily mean the dog is touching it; it just places the dog in that area.

This is a very common preposition in Afrikaans:

• by die huis = at the house
• by my vriend = at my friend’s place / with my friend
• by die tafel = by the table

Bankie is a diminutive form, built from bank.

The ending -ie often gives the idea of something small, cute, or simply more specific in everyday usage.

So:

• bank = bench / seat / bank, depending on context
• bankie = little bench / small seat / bench

In this sentence, bankie is best understood as bench. Afrikaans uses diminutives very often, sometimes even when English would not.

Because maar is a coordinating conjunction, like English but.

After maar, Afrikaans keeps normal main-clause word order:

• die hond bly by die bankie

So the subject die hond comes before the verb bly.

This is different from conjunctions such as omdat (because), which push the verb later in the clause.

Very roughly:

• ..., maar die hond bly by die bankie.
• ..., omdat die hond by die bankie bly.

So the word order here is exactly what you should expect after maar.

Because Afrikaans verbs usually do not change form according to the subject in the present tense.

So you get:

• Ek hardloop
• Jy hardloop
• Hy hardloop
• Ons hardloop
• Die kinders hardloop

And likewise:

• Ek bly
• Die hond bly
• Hulle bly

This is one of the simpler parts of Afrikaans grammar compared with English or many other European languages.

Because die gras refers to a specific patch of grass or lawn.

Afrikaans, like English, can use a noun either generically or specifically:

• Gras is groen. = Grass is green.
• Die gras is nat. = The grass is wet.

In your sentence, the children are running across a particular area of grass, so die gras is natural.

Yes. A comma before maar is normal when it joins two full clauses, as it does here:

• Die kinders hardloop oor die gras, maar die hond bly by die bankie.

This works much like English punctuation in The children run across the grass, but the dog stays by the bench.

So the comma is not unusual at all.

A simple learner-friendly guide would be:

• kinders: roughly KIN-ders
• hardloop: roughly HART-loop or HARD-loop depending on accent
• bankie: roughly BUN-kee or BAN-kee, with the last part like key

A few useful pronunciation notes:

• Afrikaans r is usually rolled or tapped more than in standard English.
• The g sound in Afrikaans can be much harsher than English, but there is no g in the words above.
• The ending -ie in diminutives is very common and often sounds like ee.

Exact pronunciation varies by speaker and region, but those approximations will help you get close.