Diminutive -tjie

Level 2

The ending -tjie makes a word mean little after a vowel sound, and after l, n or r when the vowel before them is long: stoel → stoeltjie (little chair), seun → seuntjie (little boy).

How It Works

1. After a vowel or a diphthong. Add -tjie straight to the word:

  • koei → koeitjie (little cow)
  • trui → truitjie (little jersey)
  • leeu → leeutjie (little lion)
  • knie → knietjie (little knee)
  • kafee → kafeetjie (little café)

Words that already end in -ie also take -tjie: rusie → rusietjie (little quarrel), mandjie → mandjietjie (tiny basket).

2. After l, n or r with a long sound before it. When a long vowel or a diphthong comes before the l, n or r, add -tjie:

  • stoel → stoeltjie (little chair), skoen → skoentjie (little shoe)
  • seun → seuntjie (little boy), deur → deurtjie (little door)
  • traan → traantjie (little tear), vloer → vloertjie (little floor)

3. After l, n or r in an unstressed syllable. The same ending is used when the last syllable is not stressed:

  • tafel → tafeltjie (little table), sleutel → sleuteltjie (little key)
  • venster → venstertjie (little window), dogter → dogtertjie (little girl)

4. Compare a short vowel. After a short, stressed vowel + l, m, n or r, the consonant doubles and the ending is -etjie instead: bal → balletjie, man → mannetjie. A quick check is the plural: stoel → stoele keeps one l, so it takes -tjie; bal → balle doubles the l, so it takes -etjie.

5. The apostrophe. Words ending in a single stressed a, or in a single i, o or u, write an apostrophe before -tjie: ma → ma'tjie, foto → foto'tjie, skadu → skadu'tjie. An unstressed a takes no apostrophe: oupa → oupatjie.

Sound tip: the letters tj in -tjie sound much like k, so stoeltjie sounds close to stoelkie.

Tip: some -tjie words are simply everyday words. Seuntjie usually just means little boy.

Examples (6)

  1. Die seuntjie speel met sy hond.

    The little boy is playing with his dog.

    Word by Word: The boy-little plays with his dog.

    Seun ends in n after the long sound eu, so it takes -tjie.

  2. Die kind sit op 'n klein stoeltjie.

    The child is sitting on a little chair.

    Word by Word: The child sits on a small chair-little.

    Stoel has the long vowel oe before l, so the ending is -tjie.

  3. Ons eet by 'n tafeltjie in die hoek.

    We are eating at a little table in the corner.

    Word by Word: We eat at a table-little in the corner.

    The last syllable of tafel is unstressed, so it takes -tjie.

  4. Die koeitjie staan by sy ma.

    The little cow is standing next to its mother.

    Word by Word: The cow-little stands by its mother.

    Koei ends in a diphthong, so -tjie is added straight on.

  5. Sy dra 'n warm truitjie.

    She is wearing a warm little jersey.

    Word by Word: She wears a warm jersey-little.

  6. Kyk na hierdie foto'tjie van ons hond.

    Look at this little photo of our dog.

    Word by Word: Look at this photo-little of our dog.

    Foto ends in a single o, so an apostrophe comes before -tjie.

Common Mistakes

  • Using -etjie after a long vowel.

    Die kind sit op 'n klein stoeletjie.
    Die kind sit op 'n klein stoeltjie.

    The oe in stoel is a long vowel, so the ending is -tjie. The ending -etjie only follows a short, stressed vowel, as in bal → balletjie.

  • Using -tjie after a short vowel.

    Hy speel met 'n baltjie.
    Hy speel met 'n balletjie.

    Bal has a short, stressed a, so the l doubles and the ending is -etjie.

  • Leaving out the apostrophe after a single o.

    Ek het 'n fototjie van jou.
    Ek het 'n foto'tjie van jou.

    Words that end in a single i, o or u, or a single stressed a, write an apostrophe before -tjie.

How It Connects

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Diminutive -tjieLevel 2

Learn This First

The diminutive -tjie is used after vowels and some consonants, as an alternative to -ie.

Words in This Pattern

-tjie