Ons wag ses weke.

Ons means we. The verb in this sentence is wag = wait.

Afrikaans does not use a separate verb like to be in this kind of sentence. So:

• Ons wag = We wait / We are waiting

Unlike English, Afrikaans often uses the simple present where English might use either wait or are waiting.

Wag is the basic present-tense form of the verb to wait.

Afrikaans verbs are much simpler than English verbs because they do not change for different persons:

• ek wag = I wait
• jy wag = you wait
• hy/sy wag = he/she waits
• ons wag = we wait
• julle wag = you all wait
• hulle wag = they wait

So wag stays the same.

In Afrikaans, a duration of time often comes directly after the verb without a preposition.

So:

• Ons wag ses weke = We wait six weeks / We wait for six weeks

English often uses for, but Afrikaans usually does not here.

That is different from wag vir, which is used when you are waiting for someone or something:

• Ons wag vir die bus = We are waiting for the bus
• Ek wag vir jou = I am waiting for you

But with a time duration, you normally just say:

• Ons wag ses weke

It literally means six weeks:

• ses = six
• weke = weeks

Here it shows the length of time.

So ses weke tells us how long the waiting lasts.

Because the noun is plural.

• een week = one week
• ses weke = six weeks

Many Afrikaans nouns form the plural with -e, and week becomes weke.

It can depend on context.

Grammatically, it is in the present tense, but Afrikaans often uses the present tense for a future idea if the meaning is clear.

So it could mean:

• We are waiting six weeks
• We wait six weeks
• sometimes even We will wait six weeks

If you want to make the future more explicit, you could say:

• Ons sal ses weke wag = We will wait six weeks

Yes. In a normal main clause, Afrikaans usually keeps the finite verb in second position.

So:

• Ons = subject
• wag = verb
• ses weke = time expression / duration

That gives:

• Ons wag ses weke

This is standard Afrikaans word order for a simple statement.

No, not by itself in this sentence.

Here ses weke means a duration: for six weeks or six weeks long.

If you want in six weeks in the sense of after six weeks / six weeks from now, Afrikaans would normally use a preposition, for example:

• oor ses weke = in six weeks
• binne ses weke = within six weeks

So:

• Ons wag ses weke = We wait for six weeks
• Ons kom oor ses weke terug = We come back in six weeks

Afrikaans normally uses double negation:

• Ons wag nie ses weke nie.

That means We do not wait six weeks.

The pattern is usually:

• first nie after the verb or later in the clause
• second nie at the end

So this is a very useful sentence to remember.

A rough guide for an English speaker:

• wag: the w sounds like English v, so it begins roughly like vahkh or vugh, with a guttural final sound
• weke: roughly VAY-kuh

A few helpful points:

• Afrikaans w is usually pronounced like English v
• the g in wag is the well-known Afrikaans guttural sound, made at the back of the throat
• weke has two syllables: we-ke

Normally, no, not for this meaning.

With wag, vir is usually used before the person or thing you are waiting for:

• Ons wag vir die trein = We are waiting for the train

But when you want to say how long you wait, you normally do not use vir:

• Ons wag ses weke

So a learner should strongly prefer Ons wag ses weke for the idea of duration.