Learning a new language always involves making a few mistakes along the way.

Afrikaans is relatively easy for English speakers to pick up.

However, it has a few unique grammar rules you’ll need to learn.

You can save yourself a lot of time by knowing what to watch out for.

Here are the most common Afrikaans beginner mistakes and how you can easily avoid them.

Translating the present continuous tense literally

In English, we use words like “am”, “is”, or “are” plus a verb ending in “-ing” to show an ongoing action.

Beginners often try to translate this sentence structure directly into Afrikaans.

They’ll say things like ek is loop to mean “I am walking”.

This is completely incorrect.

Afrikaans doesn’t have a separate present continuous tense.

You simply use the present tense verb on its own to express the same idea.

Forgetting the second half of the double negative

The Afrikaans double negative is one of the most famous features of the language.

You usually must use the word nie (not) twice to make a sentence negative.

Beginners often remember the first nie but forget to put the second one at the end of the sentence.

The first nie goes right after the verb or the object.

The second nie must always be placed at the very end of the sentence.

If the sentence is very short and only contains a subject and a verb, you only need one nie.

Messing up the word order

Afrikaans word order can feel strange to native English speakers.

The most common mistake is putting verbs in the wrong place during past tense sentences.

Afrikaans follows a strict word order rule called STOMPI.

This acronym stands for Subject, Verb 1, Time, Object, Manner, Place, Verb 2, Infinitive.

When you use the past tense, the helping verb (het) takes the Verb 1 spot.

The main action verb then moves all the way to the end of the sentence in the Verb 2 spot.

Trying to conjugate verbs for different pronouns

In many European languages, the verb changes depending on who is doing the action.

You don’t need to do this in Afrikaans at all.

The verb stays exactly the same regardless of the pronoun you use.

Beginners sometimes overcomplicate this and try to add extra endings to words.

Just learn the base verb and use it for everyone.

Pronouncing the letter G like in English

Pronunciation is another area where English speakers frequently stumble.

The Afrikaans letter “g” isn’t pronounced like the hard “g” in the English word “go”.

It’s a guttural sound made in the back of the throat.

It sounds very similar to the “ch” in the Scottish word “loch” or the German name “Bach”.

There are a few regional variations for this sound across South Africa.

In the Western Cape, the “g” is often pronounced much softer than in the northern parts of the country.

Regardless of where you go, you should avoid pronouncing it like an English “g”.