Diminutive -ie
boek → boekie · huis → huisie · short vowel doubles: kop → koppie, vis → vissie, brug → bruggie
How It Works
Choosing -ie
Use -ie when the noun ends in one of these sounds:
- f: skyf → skyfie (slice)
- g: brug → bruggie. Final ng is a different sound and takes -etjie: ring → ringetjie.
- k: boek → boekie, sak → sakkie
- p: kop → koppie, lamp → lampie
- s: huis → huisie, vis → vissie
Spelling
- Short vowel: double the consonant, as in koppie, vissie, sakkie and bruggie.
- Long vowel written double: write it single, as in skaap → skapie and oog → ogie.
- Vowels and diphthongs written as oe, ui or y stay as they are: boekie, huisie, skyfie.
A wrong single letter can give a different word: kopie means copy, and visie means vision.
Pronunciation
The ending sounds like ee in see, and the stress stays on the noun: BOE-kie.
Other endings
After d or t the ending is -jie. After a vowel, and after many words ending in l, n or r, it is -tjie. Every diminutive forms its plural with -s: boekies, koppies. See Plural of Diminutives.
Not always small
Some diminutives have a meaning of their own: 'n koppie koffie is a cup of coffee, and a koppie is also a small hill. See What Diminutives Really Do.
Examples (6)
- Die kind lees 'n boekie.
The child is reading a little book.
Word by Word: The child reads a little-book.
- Daar swem 'n vissie in die dam.
A little fish is swimming in the pond.
Word by Word: There swims a little-fish in the pond.
- Wil jy 'n koppie tee hê?
Would you like a cup of tea?
Word by Word: Want you a cup tea have?
Koppie comes from kop and is the everyday word for a cup.
- Ons loop oor 'n bruggie.
We are walking over a little bridge.
Word by Word: We walk over a little-bridge.
- Hulle woon in 'n klein huisie op die plaas.
They live in a small little house on the farm.
Word by Word: They live in a small little-house on the farm.
- Die skapie drink water.
The little sheep is drinking water.
Word by Word: The little-sheep drinks water.
Skaap has a long aa, which is written as one a before -ie.
Common Mistakes
Using -jie after k.
Die kind lees 'n boekjie.Die kind lees 'n boekie.-jie is only used after d or t. After k the ending is -ie.
Forgetting to double the p after a short vowel.
Wil jy 'n kopie tee hê?Wil jy 'n koppie tee hê?Kop has a short o, so the p doubles: koppie. Kopie means copy.
Forgetting to double the s after a short vowel.
Die kat eet 'n visie.Die kat eet 'n vissie.Vis has a short i, so the s doubles: vissie. Visie means vision.
How It Connects
Learn This First
The diminutive -ie follows the same doubling rules as the plural -e.
Related Patterns
- Diminutive -jie
Nouns ending in d or t take -jie instead.
Level 2 - Diminutive -tjie
Nouns ending in a vowel, and many ending in l, n or r, take -tjie.
Level 2 - Plural of Diminutives
Every diminutive, including those in -ie, forms its plural with -s.
Level 2 - What Diminutives Really Do
Diminutives also show affection or have their own meanings, like koppie.
Level 3 - Long Vowels: One Letter or Two
This spelling rule explains skapie and koppie.
Level 1
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Diminutive -ie in Bubblegum
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