Ons behoort elke brandblusser te inspekteer.

In this sentence, behoort means ought to / should, not belong.

Afrikaans behoort can sometimes relate to the idea of belonging, but in a structure like:

• behoort ... te + infinitive

it usually expresses duty, expectation, or what is proper.

So:

• Ons behoort elke brandblusser te inspekteer. = We ought to inspect every fire extinguisher.

It sounds a little more formal or rule-based than everyday moet in some contexts.

The te is used because behoort is followed by an infinitive construction.

So the pattern is:

• behoort te + verb

Examples:

• Ek behoort harder te werk. = I ought to work harder.
• Ons behoort dit te doen. = We ought to do it.

This is similar to English to in phrases like ought to inspect, although the grammar is not exactly identical in every case.

Because elke means each / every, and in Afrikaans it is followed by a singular noun.

So:

• elke brandblusser = each/every fire extinguisher

Not:

• elke brandblussers

This is similar to English:

• every extinguisher is correct
• every extinguishers is not

If you wanted a plural idea in a different way, you might use something like al die brandblussers = all the fire extinguishers.

Here, ons means we.

Afrikaans ons can also mean us, depending on the sentence.

Examples:

• Ons inspekteer dit. = We inspect it.
• Hulle sien ons. = They see us.

So ons can be either a subject or an object, unlike English, which separates we and us.

Because after behoort, Afrikaans normally uses just te + infinitive, not om te.

So:

• Ons behoort elke brandblusser te inspekteer. is correct.

Om te is used in other types of constructions, often where English would say to in a more general infinitive phrase.

For example:

• Dit is belangrik om elke brandblusser te inspekteer. = It is important to inspect every fire extinguisher.

So:

• after behoort → usually te inspekteer
• in many other infinitive clauses → often om ... te inspekteer

Yes. Inspekteer is a standard Afrikaans verb and is clearly related to English inspect.

That is very common in Afrikaans: many formal or technical words look similar to English because both languages have borrowed from similar sources.

Examples of similar-looking formal verbs:

• inspekteer = inspect
• organiseer = organize
• kontroleer = check/control

So if you know the English word, inspekteer is fairly easy to recognize.

Brandblusser is a compound noun, which is very common in Afrikaans.

It can be understood as:

• brand = fire
• blus = extinguish / put out
• -er / -ser as part of the noun form meaning something like a device or agent

So brandblusser means fire extinguisher.

Afrikaans often combines words into one compound:

• brandweer = fire brigade
• toiletpapier = toilet paper
• handskoen = glove

This is a very useful habit to notice when learning vocabulary.

The sentence follows normal Afrikaans main-clause word order:

• Ons = subject
• behoort = finite verb
• elke brandblusser = object
• te inspekteer = infinitive phrase

So the order is quite straightforward and neutral. Nothing special is being strongly emphasized just by word order.

Afrikaans main clauses usually place the finite verb in the second position:

• Ons behoort ...
• Vandag behoort ons ...
• Môre behoort ons ...

If another element came first, the verb would still stay second:

• Vandag behoort ons elke brandblusser te inspekteer.

Yes, you could, but the tone changes slightly.

• Ons behoort elke brandblusser te inspekteer. = We ought to inspect every fire extinguisher.

  • sounds like duty, recommendation, proper procedure

• Ons moet elke brandblusser inspekteer. = We must have to inspect every fire extinguisher.

  • stronger, more direct, more obligatory

Also notice that with moet, you do not use te:

• Ons moet inspekteer
• not Ons moet te inspekteer

So the grammar changes with the verb you choose.

Afrikaans normally uses double negation.

So the negative version would be:

• Ons behoort nie elke brandblusser te inspekteer nie.

This has:

• nie after the finite verb phrase area
• another nie at the end of the clause

This double nie pattern is one of the most important features of standard Afrikaans negation.

A rough English-friendly guide would be something like:

• be-HOORT

But a few details matter:

• the g/h sound in Afrikaans is often a harsher throat sound than English h
• oo in hoort is a long vowel sound
• the final t is pronounced

A very rough approximation for learners might be:

• buh-HOORT

But listening to native audio is best, especially for the Afrikaans r and throat sounds.

Yes. In many contexts, elke can be translated as either each or every.

So:

• elke brandblusser can mean each fire extinguisher or every fire extinguisher

The exact best English translation depends on context, but the Afrikaans form stays the same.

If the sentence is about procedure or inspection rules, English often prefers every:

• We should inspect every fire extinguisher.

But grammatically, each is also possible.

It sounds natural, but somewhat formal or procedural because of the vocabulary and the verb behoort.

Why?

• behoort is a bit more formal than some everyday alternatives
• inspekteer is a technical/professional word
• brandblusser belongs to a safety or workplace context

So this sounds very suitable for:

• safety instructions
• workplace policy
• maintenance procedures
• official recommendations

In casual speech, people might choose simpler or more direct wording depending on context.