5 Common Afrikaans Grammar Mistakes And How To Avoid Them

Mastering Afrikaans grammar can be challenging, especially if you're learning the language as a second language. Many learners make similar mistakes, but with a few adjustments, you can easily correct these errors and improve your Afrikaans fluency. Here are five common Afrikaans grammar mistakes and tips on how to avoid them.

1. Mixing Up "het" and "is" for the Past Tense

In Afrikaans, many learners confuse the use of "het" and "is" in the past tense. The verb “het” is often used with a past participle to indicate completed actions, but when dealing with movement or a change of state, “is” is used.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Use "het" for actions: "Ek het geskryf" (I wrote).
• Use "is" for movement or state changes: "Ek is gebore" (I was born).

2. Confusion with "Jy" and "Jou"

"Jy" (you) and "jou" (your) are often mixed up by Afrikaans learners. While "jy" refers to the subject (you), "jou" refers to the possessive (your).

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• "Jy" is the subject: "Jy is moeg" (You are tired).
• "Jou" is the possessive: "Dit is jou boek" (That is your book).

3. Incorrect Word Order in Questions

Word order in Afrikaans questions can confuse learners, as it's different from English. Many learners directly translate English word order, resulting in incorrect sentences.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• In Afrikaans, the verb comes first in questions: "Het jy geslaap?" (Did you sleep?) instead of "Jy het geslaap?".
• Practice forming questions by placing the verb at the start to get used to the sentence structure.

4. Using "nie" Incorrectly in Negative Sentences

Afrikaans uses double negatives, which can confuse learners from languages that don’t. One common error is omitting the second "nie" in a sentence.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Remember the rule: Every negative sentence in Afrikaans must have two "nies."
• Example: "Ek weet nie waar hy is nie" (I don’t know where he is).

5. Confusing Word Order in Subordinate Clauses

In Afrikaans subordinate clauses, learners often struggle with word order. When using conjunctions like "omdat" (because) or "dat" (that), the verb should move to the end of the sentence.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Keep in mind that after a conjunction, the verb goes to the end.
• Example: "Ek dink dat hy kom" (I think that he is coming), not "Ek dink dat hy kom is."

Improving your Afrikaans grammar can take time, but by avoiding these common mistakes, you can boost your language skills. Focus on understanding sentence structure, word order, and the double negative rule, and you'll be speaking Afrikaans with greater accuracy in no time!