Hierdie gevoel is sterk.

Hierdie means this.

A useful contrast is:

• hierdie = this
• daardie = that
• die = usually the

So:

• hierdie gevoel = this feeling
• daardie gevoel = that feeling
• die gevoel = the feeling

In everyday Afrikaans, hierdie is the normal word for this before a noun.

Because hierdie already does the job of determining the noun.

In English, you also say this feeling, not this the feeling or this a feeling. Afrikaans works the same way here:

• hierdie gevoel = this feeling

So once you use hierdie, you do not add die or 'n before gevoel.

Here, gevoel is a noun, meaning feeling.

That can be confusing because it is related to the verb voel, meaning to feel.

Compare:

• Ek voel sterk. = I feel strong.
• Hierdie gevoel is sterk. = This feeling is strong.

So in your sentence, gevoel is the thing being talked about, not the action.

Yes. Is is the present-tense form of wees, which means to be.

In simple present sentences, Afrikaans uses is very widely:

• Ek is = I am
• Jy is = you are
• Hy is = he is
• Ons is = we are
• Hulle is = they are

So Hierdie gevoel is sterk has the same basic structure as English:

• subject + is
  • adjective

Because this is a simple main clause, and Afrikaans often looks very similar to English in that kind of sentence.

The structure is:

• Hierdie gevoel = subject
• is = verb
• sterk = adjective/complement

So it follows:

• subject + verb + adjective

That is why it feels quite straightforward for an English speaker.

In this sentence, sterk stays sterk because it comes after the verb is.

This is called a predicate adjective:

• Hierdie gevoel is sterk.

After is, Afrikaans adjectives normally do not take extra endings.

If an adjective comes before a noun, Afrikaans sometimes changes its form, but sterk very often stays the same there too:

• 'n sterk gevoel = a strong feeling

So in your sentence, sterk is exactly the form you would expect.

Hierdie can be used for both singular and plural.

Examples:

• hierdie gevoel = this feeling
• hierdie gevoelens = these feelings

So unlike English, where this and these are different, Afrikaans often keeps hierdie for both.

The number is usually clear from the noun:

• gevoel = singular
• gevoelens = plural

A rough English-friendly guide would be:

• Hierdie ≈ HEER-dee
• gevoel ≈ khuh-VOOL or khuh-FOOL
• is ≈ iss
• sterk ≈ sterk

A few pronunciation notes:

• The g in gevoel is the guttural Afrikaans g, not an English g.
• ie in hierdie sounds like ee.
• oe in gevoel sounds like oo in food.
• sterk has a clear r and a short e.

You move the verb to the front:

• Is hierdie gevoel sterk? = Is this feeling strong?

That is very common in Afrikaans yes/no questions.

So:

• statement: Hierdie gevoel is sterk.
• question: Is hierdie gevoel sterk?

Afrikaans normally uses double nie in negatives:

• Hierdie gevoel is nie sterk nie.

So the pattern is:

• subject + is
  • nie
    • adjective + nie

This double negative is one of the most important Afrikaans sentence patterns to learn.

Yes, you can say that, but it shifts the focus a little.

• Hierdie gevoel is sterk. = The feeling is strong.
• Hierdie is 'n sterk gevoel. = This is a strong feeling.

The first sentence talks about the quality of the feeling.
The second identifies this as a strong feeling.

They are close in meaning, but they are not structured in exactly the same way.

No. Afrikaans does not have grammatical gender the way some other European languages do.

So gevoel does not need a masculine, feminine, or neuter article, and sterk does not change for gender either.

That makes sentences like this much simpler for English speakers:

• Hierdie gevoel is sterk.

No gender agreement is needed.