ont-/her-

The Prefixes Ont- and Her-

Level 4

Ont- often means un- or away, and her- means again. Neither takes ge-: Ek het die les herhaal. (I repeated the lesson.)

How It Works

1. Ont-: undoing and moving away. Ont- often reverses the verb or means away from:

  • sluit (lock) → ontsluit (unlock)
  • koppel (connect) → ontkoppel (disconnect)
  • ontsnap (escape)
  • dek (cover) → ontdek (discover)

Other ont- verbs are everyday words whose parts no longer add up: ontmoet (meet), ontvang (receive), onthou (remember), ontspan (relax), ontwikkel (develop). Learn these as whole words.

2. Her-: again. Her- works like English re-: herhaal (repeat), herskryf (rewrite), herbou (rebuild), heroorweeg (reconsider). A few her- words have their own meaning: herken (recognise), herinner (remind), herstel (repair, recover).

3. No ge-. Both prefixes are unstressed, so the participle has no ge- (see participles without ge-): Ons het hom gister ontmoet. (We met him yesterday.) Die kerk is herbou. (The church has been rebuilt.) Very casual speech sometimes adds ge-, as in geontmoet, but standard Afrikaans does not.

4. Ont- is not on-. On- makes adjectives negative: onmoontlik (impossible). Ont- makes verbs. Spell them carefully: ontsluit, never onsluit.

5. Everyday speech uses weer. Her- appears in set words and in formal writing. To say you do something again in everyday speech, use weer (again): Sê dit asseblief weer. (Please say it again.) Do not attach her- to any verb you like.

Tip: Nouns from these verbs often end in -ing: herhaling (repetition), ontdekking (discovery), ontwikkeling (development).

Examples (6)

  1. Ek het die les twee keer herhaal.

    I repeated the lesson twice.

    Word by Word: I have the lesson two times repeated.

    Herhaal has no ge- in the past.

  2. Ons het hulle by die lughawe ontmoet.

    We met them at the airport.

    Word by Word: We have them at the airport met.

  3. Die hond het deur die hek ontsnap.

    The dog escaped through the gate.

    Word by Word: The dog has through the gate escaped.

  4. Kan jy asseblief die deur ontsluit?

    Can you please unlock the door?

    Word by Word: Can you please the door unlock?

    Sluit means lock, so ontsluit undoes it: unlock.

  5. Ek het jou nie herken nie!

    I didn't recognise you!

    Word by Word: I have you not recognised not!

  6. Ek moet my opstel herskryf.

    I have to rewrite my essay.

    Word by Word: I must my essay rewrite.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding ge- to an ont- or her- verb in the past.

    Ek het die les geherhaal.
    Ek het die les herhaal.

    Her- and ont- are unstressed prefixes, so the participle has no ge-: het herhaal, het ontmoet.

  • Writing on- instead of ont- in a verb.

    Kan jy die deur onsluit?
    Kan jy die deur ontsluit?

    On- makes adjectives negative, as in onmoontlik. The verb meaning unlock is ontsluit, with a t.

  • Adding her- to any verb to mean again.

    Hersê dit asseblief.
    Sê dit asseblief weer.

    Her- only appears in set words such as herhaal and herskryf. For everyday again, use weer.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

ont-/her-Level 4The Prefixes Ont- and Her-

Learn This First

Ont- and her- are inseparable prefixes.

Words in This Pattern

ont-her-