Die dierekliniek is naby.

Die means the.

In Afrikaans, die is the definite article used much more broadly than English the in one important way: it does not change for gender. It is also used for both singular and plural nouns in many contexts.

So:

• die dierekliniek = the animal clinic / the veterinary clinic

Unlike in some other languages, you do not need to learn different forms like masculine, feminine, or neuter articles.

Afrikaans very often forms compound nouns by writing them as one word, just like German and often like Dutch.

So:

• diere = animals
• kliniek = clinic
• dierekliniek = literally animal clinic, more naturally veterinary clinic or animal clinic

English sometimes separates these words, but Afrikaans commonly joins them into a single compound noun.

Afrikaans compounds do not always match English word-for-word. Here, diere- comes from diere, the plural of dier (animal), and it functions as the first part of the compound.

So:

• dier = animal
• diere = animals
• dierekliniek = animal clinic / veterinary clinic

This is something learners often just need to get used to: compounds in Afrikaans sometimes use a plural-looking form as the first element.

Afrikaans is is the present-tense form of to be, and it looks just like English is.

A very helpful feature of Afrikaans is that verbs usually do not change depending on the subject the way they do in English.

For example:

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

So in this sentence, is simply means is/are/am, depending on the subject.

This is the normal word order for a simple statement like this.

The structure is:

• Die dierekliniek = subject
• is = verb
• naby = complement

So the sentence follows the common Afrikaans pattern:

subject + verb + complement

That is very similar to English:

• The clinic is nearby.

So Die dierekliniek is naby is completely normal word order.

Naby means near, nearby, or close.

In this sentence:

• Die dierekliniek is naby.
• The veterinary clinic is nearby.

Depending on context, English might translate it as:

• near
• nearby
• close

The exact English wording depends on what sounds most natural in context.

It can behave in more than one way.

In Die dierekliniek is naby, naby is being used after is to describe location, so you can think of it as a predicate adjective or location word: nearby / close.

But naby can also be used with an object, more like near as a preposition:

• Die dierekliniek is naby die skool.
• The veterinary clinic is near the school.

So it is a flexible word, and learners should focus first on how it works in actual sentences.

No. You use die here because the sentence means the clinic, not a clinic.

Compare:

• Die dierekliniek is naby. = The veterinary clinic is nearby.
• 'n Dierekliniek is naby. = A veterinary clinic is nearby.

So:

• die = the
• 'n = a / an

Notice that 'n is written with an apostrophe and is not capitalized unless it starts a sentence.

A rough guide for English speakers is:

• Die ≈ dee
• dierekliniek ≈ DEE-ruh-kli-NEEK
• is ≈ iss
• naby ≈ nah-BYE

A few useful notes:

• ie in Afrikaans often sounds like ee
• the stress in kliniek falls near the end: kli-NEEK
• naby has stress on the second syllable: na-BY

A more careful approximate pronunciation of the full sentence is:

dee DEE-ruh-kli-NEEK iss nah-BYE

Yes. In Afrikaans, a simple yes/no question is often made by putting the verb first.

Statement:

• Die dierekliniek is naby.
• The veterinary clinic is nearby.

Question:

• Is die dierekliniek naby?
• Is the veterinary clinic nearby?

That is very similar to English inversion:

• The clinic is nearby.
• Is the clinic nearby?

Afrikaans usually uses double negation.

So:

• Die dierekliniek is naby. = The veterinary clinic is nearby.
• Die dierekliniek is nie naby nie. = The veterinary clinic is not nearby.

Notice the two nie words:

• one after the verb or main part of the clause
• one at the end of the clause

This is a very important feature of standard Afrikaans.

Yes, but only because it is the first word of the sentence.

Afrikaans does not capitalize ordinary nouns the way German does.

So in the middle of a sentence, you would write:

• die dierekliniek

not:

• Die Dierekliniek

unless it is part of a proper name or at the beginning of a sentence.

Yes. It is short, simple, and natural.

Die dierekliniek is naby is a normal way to say that the veterinary clinic is close by.

Depending on context, a speaker might also say something more specific, such as:

• Die dierekliniek is naby die winkelsentrum. = The veterinary clinic is near the shopping center.
• Daar is 'n dierekliniek naby. = There is a veterinary clinic nearby.

But your original sentence is perfectly correct and natural.