Hy toets die rem.

Hy means he.

Use hy for a male person as the subject of the sentence:

• Hy toets die rem. = He tests the brake.

Like English he, it is a subject pronoun.
Other common subject pronouns are:

• ek = I
• jy / u = you
• sy = she
• ons = we
• hulle = they

This is the normal Afrikaans main-clause word order:

Subject + verb + object

So:

• Hy = subject
• toets = verb
• die rem = object

This is very similar to English:

• He tests the brake.

Afrikaans often keeps this straightforward order in simple statements.

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

So you get:

• Ek toets = I test
• Hy toets = he tests
• Ons toets = we test

The verb stays toets in all these cases.

This is simpler than English, where you must say:

• I test
• he tests

In Afrikaans, you do not add a special -s ending for he/she/it.

Die is the definite article, meaning the.

So:

• die rem = the brake

A very important point: Afrikaans uses die for all nouns in the singular and plural when you mean the.

Examples:

• die man = the man
• die vrou = the woman
• die rem = the brake
• die remme = the brakes

Unlike languages such as German or Dutch, Afrikaans does not change the according to gender.

In this sentence, rem is a noun and means brake.

You can tell because it comes after die:

• die rem = the brake

Afrikaans also has a related verb:

• rem = to brake / slow down

So context matters:

• Hy toets die rem. = He tests the brake.
• Die motor rem skielik. = The car brakes suddenly.

Rem is singular: brake.

To say the brakes, you usually say:

• die remme

So:

• die rem = the brake
• die remme = the brakes

Example:

• Hy toets die remme. = He tests the brakes.

A rough guide for an English speaker:

• Hy: sounds roughly like hey or a bit like hay, depending on accent
• toets: roughly toots with a different vowel quality; the oe in Afrikaans is like the vowel in book or food, depending on accent and speaker
• die: usually like dee
• rem: roughly like rem in English, but with a clearer short e

A simple approximate pronunciation:

• hay toots dee rem

This is only an approximation, but it is a useful starting point.

Because die means the, while 'n means a/an.

So:

• die rem = the brake
• 'n rem = a brake

Compare:

• Hy toets die rem. = He tests the brake.
• Hy toets 'n rem. = He tests a brake.

If the meaning shown to you is the brake, then die is the correct word.

Yes. Toets can be both a verb and a noun.

As a verb:

• Hy toets die rem. = He tests the brake.

As a noun:

• Die toets is moeilik. = The test is difficult.

This is similar to English, where test can also be both a verb and a noun.

Yes, it is grammatical and natural.

It could be used in contexts such as:

• a mechanic checking a car
• a driving lesson
• someone inspecting equipment

Depending on context, Afrikaans speakers might also say slightly longer versions, such as:

• Hy toets die motor se rem. = He tests the car's brake.
• Hy toets die remme. = He tests the brakes.

But Hy toets die rem. is perfectly normal as a simple sentence.

A common past-tense form in Afrikaans uses het + ge- form of the verb.

So:

• Hy het die rem getoets. = He tested the brake.

Notice the pattern:

• present: Hy toets die rem.
• past: Hy het die rem getoets.

This is one of the most important tense patterns in Afrikaans.

Afrikaans normally uses a double negative with nie ... nie.

So:

• Hy toets nie die rem nie. = He does not test the brake.

This may feel unusual to an English speaker, because English usually uses only one negative marker. But in standard Afrikaans, the two nie words are normal.

Pattern:

• Hy toets die rem.
• Hy toets nie die rem nie.

In a yes/no question, Afrikaans usually puts the verb first.

So:

• Toets hy die rem? = Is he testing the brake? / Does he test the brake?

Compare:

• statement: Hy toets die rem.
• question: Toets hy die rem?

This inversion is very common in Afrikaans and is similar to older or more formal English patterns like Does he test the brake?