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Learn Hardcore Afrikaans: Daai staproete is lank. - That hiking trail is long.

Hardcore Afrikaans
/Going on a day hike with friends
/Daai staproete is lank.

Daai staproete is lank.

Daai staproete is lank.

That hiking trail is long.

Breakdown of Daai staproete is lank.

that (informal)

Questions & Answers about Daai staproete is lank.

What does daai mean here, and is it singular or plural?

Daai means that or those. Unlike English, Afrikaans commonly uses the same form for both singular and plural.

So:

daai man = that man
daai mense = those people

In this sentence, it is most likely singular because staproete is singular: that hiking route/trail.

Also, daai is a very common spoken/informal form of daardie.

Is staproete singular even though it ends in -e?

Yes. Staproete is singular.

That can confuse English speakers, because endings can look plural at first glance. But here the base noun is roete, which is already singular and means route.

So:

roete = route
roetes = routes
staproete = hiking route / walking trail
staproetes = hiking routes / walking trails

So in this sentence, staproete is singular.

Why is staproete written as one word?

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Because Afrikaans usually writes compound nouns as one word.

Here:

stap = walk
roete = route

Together:

staproete = walking route / hiking trail

This is very normal in Afrikaans. English often uses two words where Afrikaans prefers one compound word.

Why is the verb is used? Does it change for singular and plural?

Is is the present-tense form used with wees in sentences like this, and it does not change the way English am / is / are does.

For example:

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

So whether the subject is singular or plural, is stays the same.

Why is it lank and not lang?

This is a very common learner question.

In Afrikaans, some adjectives have one form when they come after the noun with is, and another form when they come before the noun.

For this word:

Die staproete is lank. = The hiking trail is long.
'n lang staproete = a long hiking trail

So:

after is: lank
before a noun: lang

This is standard Afrikaans usage.

Why is there no word for the before staproete?

Because daai already fills that determiner slot, just like English that does.

Compare:

Die staproete is lank. = The hiking trail is long.
Daai staproete is lank. = That hiking trail is long.

So you do not add die after daai.

Can I also say daardie staproete is lank?

Yes. Daardie staproete is lank is perfectly correct.

The difference is mainly register:

daai = common, everyday, informal
daardie = more formal or more careful style

In normal speech, many speakers use daai very often.

Is the word order anything special here?

Not really. In this simple main clause, the word order is very similar to English:

Daai = that
staproete = hiking route
is = is
lank = long

So the pattern is:

demonstrative + noun + is + adjective

That makes this sentence quite beginner-friendly in terms of structure.

How do you pronounce daai, staproete, and lank?

A rough English-friendly guide:

daai: roughly like dye
staproete: roughly STAHP-roo-tuh
lank: roughly lahngk

A few helpful notes:

aa is a long vowel
oe sounds like oo in food
the r may sound stronger than in many English accents

These are only approximate English-style guides, but they are good enough to get started.

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