Sy skryf 'n gedig.

she

Breakdown of Sy skryf 'n gedig.

• 'n: a
• skryf: to write
• die gedig: the poem

Questions & Answers about Sy skryf 'n gedig.

Does sy mean she or her here?

Here it means she, because it is the subject of the sentence.

Afrikaans sy can mean:

• she as a subject pronoun
• her as a possessive word, depending on context

In Sy skryf 'n gedig, it clearly means she, because it comes before the verb skryf and is doing the action.

One small spelling note: sy is only capitalized here because it is the first word of the sentence.

Why is the verb skryf not changed for she?

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

In English, you say:

• I write
• she writes

In Afrikaans, it stays the same:

• Ek skryf
• Sy skryf

This is one of the nice simplifications in Afrikaans grammar: no extra -s for he/she/it in the present tense.

Does skryf mean writes or is writing?