Ons werk saam in die samelewing.

A simple breakdown is:

• Ons = we
• werk = work
• saam = together
• in = in
• die = the
• samelewing = society

So the structure is basically:

We + work + together + in + the society

In natural English, that often comes out as We work together in society.

Because Afrikaans verbs usually do not change much for different subjects in the present tense.

So you get:

• Ek werk = I work
• Jy werk = you work
• Ons werk = we work
• Hulle werk = they work

This is much simpler than English, where you have forms like I work but he works.

Afrikaans does not use is/are with a normal main verb the way English sometimes does.

In English, you can say:

• We work
• We are working

In Afrikaans, the simple present werk can often cover both ideas, depending on context. So:

• Ons werk can mean we work or we are working

That is why Ons is werk is not correct here.

Saam means together.

In a normal main clause, Afrikaans usually puts the finite verb early in the sentence, and words like saam often come after it:

• Ons werk saam

That is the most neutral word order here.

You can move things around for emphasis, but werk saam is the standard, natural pattern in this sentence.

Yes. Saamwerk is a real Afrikaans verb meaning work together or cooperate.

A very useful thing to know is that it behaves like a separable verb:

• Main clause: Ons werk saam
• Infinitive: Ons wil saamwerk
• Past participle: Ons het saamgewerk

So in this sentence, werk saam is exactly what you would expect.

That is just a difference between the two languages.

Afrikaans often keeps the article die in places where English may leave out the. So:

• in die samelewing is the normal Afrikaans expression

Also, die is the general definite article in Afrikaans. It does not change for gender, and it is also used for plural nouns.

Samelewing means society.

It is related to the idea of people living together as a social whole. That can help you remember it, but the main thing is simply:

• samelewing = society

So in die samelewing means in society or within society.

Yes.

The Afrikaans simple present often does both jobs:

• general / habitual: We work together in society
• current / ongoing: We are working together in society

Context tells you which one is meant.

So if you see Ons werk saam, do not assume it is only a habitual action. It can also describe something happening right now.

Yes, if you want to emphasize a different part of the sentence.

For example:

• Ons werk saam in die samelewing
• In die samelewing werk ons saam

Both are correct.

The second version puts more focus on in society. Notice that the verb werk still stays in second position, which is a very important Afrikaans word-order rule in main clauses.

Roughly:

• ons ≈ ons with a short rounded o
• werk ≈ verk because Afrikaans w sounds more like English v
• saam ≈ sahm with a long aa

These are only rough guides, but one very important point is this:

• Afrikaans w is usually not like English w
• In werk, say something closer to v than to w