Diefstal veroorsaak probleme.

Because diefstal is being used in a general, abstract sense: theft as a concept.

Afrikaans often leaves out the article when talking about something in general, especially with abstract nouns. So:

• Diefstal veroorsaak probleme. = Theft causes problems.
• Die diefstal veroorsaak probleme. = The theft causes problems.

The second sentence refers to a specific theft, while the original sentence talks about theft in general.

Veroorsaak means cause or to cause.

In this sentence, it is the main verb in the present tense:

• Diefstal = subject
• veroorsaak = verb
• probleme = object

One helpful thing in Afrikaans is that verbs usually do not change form depending on the subject the way they do in English. So you get:

• Ek veroorsaak
• Jy veroorsaak
• Hy veroorsaak
• Diefstal veroorsaak

The verb stays veroorsaak.

Yes. This is the normal subject–verb–object pattern for a simple main clause:

• Diefstal = subject
• veroorsaak = verb
• probleme = object

So the structure is completely straightforward.

A useful comparison:

• Diefstal veroorsaak probleme.
• Misdaad veroorsaak probleme.

This same basic pattern is very common in Afrikaans main clauses.

The singular is probleem and the plural is probleme.

So:

• probleem = problem
• probleme = problems

This is a common Afrikaans plural pattern for some words that end in -em. The plural often ends in -e:

• probleem → probleme
• sisteem → sisteme

In the sentence, probleme is plural because the meaning is problems, not just one problem.

You would add the appropriate article:

• Die diefstal veroorsaak ’n probleem. = The theft causes a problem.
• Die diefstal veroorsaak probleme. = The theft causes problems.

So the original sentence is more general:

• Diefstal veroorsaak probleme. = Theft causes problems.

Adding die makes it specific:

• Die diefstal = the theft

A rough pronunciation guide is:

DEEF-stahl

More specifically:

• dief sounds roughly like deef
• stal sounds a bit like stahl

So diefstal is said as one word: DEEF-stahl.

As with many Afrikaans words, the pronunciation is fairly phonetic compared with English spelling.

In most cases, diefstal is the noun theft.

It refers to the act or crime of stealing, so in context it can sometimes feel close to English stealing, but the most direct translation is usually theft.

Examples:

• Diefstal is ’n misdaad. = Theft is a crime.
• Hy is van diefstal beskuldig. = He was accused of theft.

If you want the verb to steal, Afrikaans uses steel:

• Hy steel geld. = He steals money.

So:

• diefstal = theft (noun)
• steel = steal (verb)

No. Afrikaans does not have grammatical gender in the way that languages like German or Dutch do.

That means nouns like diefstal and probleme do not change because they are masculine, feminine, or neuter. This makes Afrikaans simpler for English speakers in that respect.

In this sentence, you do not need to worry about gender agreement at all.

Yes. In a normal main clause, the verb comes early, as in:

• Diefstal veroorsaak probleme.

But in a subordinate clause, Afrikaans usually sends the verb to the end:

• Ek weet dat diefstal probleme veroorsaak.
  = I know that theft causes problems.

So this sentence shows normal main-clause word order, but learners should know that subordinate clauses work differently.

Because Diefstal is just a normal noun here, not a proper noun.

Afrikaans does not capitalize all nouns the way German does. It only capitalizes words when normal capitalization rules require it, such as at the beginning of a sentence.

So:

• Diefstal veroorsaak probleme.

Only Diefstal is capitalized because it starts the sentence. If the same word appeared later, it would usually be lowercase:

• Ek dink diefstal veroorsaak probleme.