Is is the present-tense form of the Afrikaans verb wees, meaning to be.
One very learner-friendly feature of Afrikaans is that verbs usually do not change according to the subject. So you say:
That is why is appears here without any extra ending changes.
Because nuut comes after the verb is and is being used as a predicate adjective.
In Afrikaans, adjectives often have:
So:
That contrast, nuut vs nuwe, is very common in Afrikaans.
The sentence follows the normal main-clause pattern:
subject + verb + complement
Here that is:
This is very similar to English word order in The position is new.
For a yes/no question, Afrikaans usually puts the finite verb first:
That is the direct equivalent of Is the position new?
Afrikaans normally uses double negation with nie ... nie.
A simple way to think of it is:
This double-nie pattern is one of the most important grammar features in Afrikaans.
Nuut can be tricky for English speakers because the uu sound does not match a common English vowel exactly.
A rough guide:
So it is not exactly like English newt, even though that may be a helpful first approximation. The vowel quality is different.