Learn how to talk about your family, friends and other important people in natural, everyday Afrikaans.

In Episode 9 of the beginner series, you’ll learn how to introduce someone, explain who they are, say where they live, talk about the things they enjoy and describe some of the things you do together.

You’ll practise useful Afrikaans phrases such as:

• Dis my suster, Lisa. — This is my sister, Lisa.

• Sy bly in Pretoria. — She lives in Pretoria.

• Ek het twee kinders. — I have two children.

• My pa hou van rugby. — My dad likes rugby.

• My vriendin lees graag. — My friend enjoys reading.

• Ons kom goed oor die weg. — We get along well.

• Ons is baie na aan mekaar. — We’re very close.

• Ons gaan gereeld saam stap. — We often go for walks together.

• Het jy broers of susters? — Do you have brothers or sisters?

• Wat doen julle graag saam? — What do you enjoy doing together?

You’ll also learn everyday family words such as ma, pa, broer, suster, kinders, ouma and oupa, as well as useful ways to talk about a partner or friend.

Throughout the episode, you’ll answer questions, change familiar sentence patterns to make them your own, and practise having a simple conversation about someone who is important to you.

At the end, you’ll put everything together and describe one person in your life in Afrikaans.

This is an interactive beginner lesson, so speak along and answer the questions during the pauses. You can talk about your real family, a partner, a friend or anyone else who matters to you — and if you’d rather keep things private, you can simply invent someone for the practice.

Presented by Nerika from Lexorial.

Visit lexorial.com for more Afrikaans learning resources.