Die bordspel is op die tafel.

Because die is the Afrikaans definite article, meaning the.

So in this sentence:

• die bordspel = the board game
• die tafel = the table

Afrikaans uses die for the with both nouns here. Unlike some languages, Afrikaans does not change the for masculine, feminine, or neuter nouns.

No. Afrikaans does not have grammatical gender in the way German does.

That means:

• die tafel = the table
• die man = the man
• die vrou = the woman

The article die stays the same. This is one reason Afrikaans grammar is often simpler for learners.

Bordspel is a compound noun:

• bord = board
• spel = game

So bordspel literally means board game.

Afrikaans, like Dutch and German, very often joins words together into one compound noun. So instead of writing board game as two words, Afrikaans writes bordspel as one word.

Yes, in this simple statement the word order is very similar to English:

• Die bordspel = subject
• is = verb
• op die tafel = prepositional phrase

So the structure is:

Subject + verb + location

That makes it quite straightforward for English speakers:

• The board game is on the table
• Die bordspel is op die tafel

Yes. Is in Afrikaans is the present-tense form of to be used here, and it looks exactly like English is.

In this sentence:

• Die bordspel is op die tafel = The board game is on the table

This similarity is very common between English and Afrikaans, because the languages are related.

In this sentence, op means on.

So:

• op die tafel = on the table

In other contexts, op can also have related meanings depending on the expression, but for a beginner it is best to learn it first as on or onto, depending on context.

Here it clearly indicates location: the board game is resting on the table.

No. In Afrikaans, die is usually pronounced roughly like dee, not like the English verb die.

So:

• Afrikaans die ≈ dee

That is a very common beginner mistake, because the spelling looks familiar to English speakers.

The g in Afrikaans is not usually pronounced like the English g in go.

In standard Afrikaans, it is a harsher throat sound, somewhat like the ch in Scottish loch or German Bach. In bordspel, that sound comes at the end of the word.

So bordspel ends with a sound that may feel unfamiliar to English speakers.

If you cannot produce it perfectly at first, that is normal. Being understood matters more than sounding perfect immediately.

Because Afrikaans and English are related languages, but they do not always spell words the same way.

• English: table
• Afrikaans: tafel

Many Afrikaans words look a bit like English words, but with simpler or different spelling. Tafel is also related to Dutch tafel and German Tafel.

Yes, you can, but it changes the emphasis.

• Die bordspel is op die tafel.
  Neutral statement: The board game is on the table.

• Op die tafel is die bordspel.
  More marked or literary, with focus on the location.

For everyday speech, the original sentence is the most natural basic form.

No. In Afrikaans, common nouns are not capitalized unless they begin the sentence.

So in your sentence:

• Die is capitalized only because it is the first word.
• bordspel and tafel stay lowercase.

This is different from German, where all nouns are capitalized.

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

So:

• Die bordspel is op die tafel. = The board game is on the table.
• Die bordspel is nie op die tafel nie. = The board game is not on the table.

This double nie pattern is one of the most important features of Afrikaans grammar.