Die deposito is betaal.

Die is the Afrikaans definite article, equivalent to English the.

A useful thing for English speakers to know is that Afrikaans does not change the article for gender. So:

• die deposito = the deposit
• die man = the man
• die vrou = the woman

It is also used for plural nouns in many cases, so it is a very common and flexible word.

Yes. Deposito is a noun meaning deposit.

It is clearly related to the English word, so it is easy to recognize. The extra -o ending is normal in some Afrikaans loanwords and noun forms.

So in this sentence:

• die deposito = the deposit

Here, is betaal shows that the deposit is in a completed, paid state.

In Afrikaans, this often works like a passive or result construction:

• Die deposito is betaal. = The deposit has been paid / The deposit is paid.

This is different from an active sentence such as:

• Hy het die deposito betaal. = He paid the deposit.

So in your sentence, the focus is on the deposit and its status, not on who paid it.

This is an important distinction in Afrikaans passive-style constructions:

• word betaal = is being paid / gets paid
• is betaal = has been paid / is paid

So:

• Die deposito word betaal. suggests the payment is happening.
• Die deposito is betaal. suggests the payment is already completed.

In your sentence, is tells you the result is already in place.

Because betaal belongs to a group of Afrikaans verbs that do not take ge- in the past participle.

A very common rule is:

• verbs beginning with prefixes like be-, ge-, her-, er-, ont-, and ver- usually do not add another ge-

So:

• betaal → past participle betaal, not gebetaal

That is why you get:

• Die deposito is betaal
• Hy het die deposito betaal

not is gebetaal or het gebetaal

It is originally a verb form from betaal = to pay, but in this sentence it functions like a past participle after is.

So for a learner, the simplest way to think of it is:

• betaal here means paid

That is why the whole sentence feels similar to English:

• The deposit is paid
• The deposit has been paid

Depending on the grammar explanation you use, you may see it described as:

• part of a passive construction
• a past participle
• a resultative/adjectival use

For learning purposes, paid is the key idea.

It can correspond to either in English, depending on context.

Afrikaans often uses this kind of structure to express a completed result. So English may translate it as:

• The deposit is paid
• The deposit has been paid

If the context is about current status, English may prefer is paid.
If the context is about a completed action, English may prefer has been paid.

So the exact English wording depends on the situation, even though the Afrikaans sentence stays the same.

You have two main options.

1. Use an active sentence

• Jan het die deposito betaal.
• Jan paid the deposit.

2. Keep the passive/result idea and add the agent

• Die deposito is deur Jan betaal.
• The deposit was paid by Jan / has been paid by Jan.

The active version is usually more direct and common when the person matters.

Afrikaans normally uses a double negative:

• Die deposito is nie betaal nie.

That means:

• The deposit is not paid
• The deposit has not been paid

The pattern is:

• nie after the finite verb or later in the clause
• another nie at the end

So this is a very useful structure to learn early.

You invert the word order so that the verb comes first:

• Is die deposito betaal?

This means:

• Is the deposit paid?
• Has the deposit been paid?

That verb-first pattern is very common in Afrikaans yes/no questions.

Yes, if you want to place it in the past.

• Die deposito was betaal.

This can mean something like:

• The deposit was paid
• The deposit had been paid

Again, the exact English translation depends on context.

So:

• is betaal = present relevance / current result
• was betaal = past reference

This sentence shows the normal Afrikaans main-clause pattern:

• Die deposito = subject
• is = finite verb
• betaal = participle/completion element

So the basic order is:

Subject + finite verb + rest

That is very normal in Afrikaans main clauses. If you move something else to the front, the verb still stays in second position. For example:

• Nou is die deposito betaal. = Now the deposit has been paid.

That verb-second pattern is a major feature of Afrikaans grammar.