wie
/vi/
The Afrikaans word for the English interrogative pronoun "who" is wie.
It functions as both the subject and the object of a sentence.
Meaning: who? (interrogative pronoun) (pron)
Which one should you use?
Unlike English, which distinguishes between 'who' (subject) and 'whom' (object), the Afrikaans wie is used for both the subject and the object of a sentence.
How does it change in a sentence?
When wie is used as an object of a preposition, it is often preceded by the preposition, such as vir wie (for whom) or met wie (with whom).
How do you pronounce it?
/vi/
Did you know?
- While wie is the standard word for 'who', Afrikaans speakers often use wie is dit to answer the door, even if they already know who is there.
- In informal South African slang, questions starting with wie might be delivered with a specific rising intonation that changes the word from a standard question to a term of surprise.
- The word wie is a direct descendant of the Dutch word wie, reflecting the language's roots as a daughter language of 17th-century Dutch.
Examples in context
- Vir wie werk jy?Who are you working for?This sentence shows how to use wie with a preposition.Tatoeba #5507174 by CJuser01, translation #1017396 by CM
- Wie wil eerste wees?Who wants to go first?This sentence shows how to use wie as a subject.Tatoeba #2364374 by siener, translation #1804042 by Spamster
- Wie is hierdie dame?Who is this lady?This sentence shows how to use wie to identify a person.Tatoeba #5549083 by CJuser01, translation #782798 by Manfredo
- Wie is die persoon wat verantwoordelik is vir die projek?Who is the person responsible for the project?
- Watter persoon is die aangewese kandidaat vir die pos?Which person is the designated candidate for the position?
- Wie/watter persoon gaan die leiding neem in die verrassing vir sy verjaardag?Who is going to take the lead in the surprise for his birthday?
- Wie is die man daar?Who is the man over there?
- Wie is die mense daar?Who are the people over there?
- Wie het die boek gesteel?Who stole the book?
- Watter persoon dink jy het die regte antwoord?Which person do you think has the correct answer?
- Wie kan my sê waar die naaste apteek is?Who can tell me where the nearest pharmacy is?
- 26 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Marelize and Stefan are talking about a new neighbor.
- MarelizeWie is die nuwe buurman?Who is the new neighbor?
- StefanDit is meneer Smit.It is Mr. Smit.
- MarelizeWie het vir hom vertel van ons?Who told him about us?
- StefanEk dink dit was die agente.I think it was the agents.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “who” translations and entries wie, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries wie, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
