1- INDONESIAN ALPHABET:

2- WORD ORDER

1 Basic S + V Saya tidur. I sleep.

2 Direct object S + V + DO Saya membaca buku itu. I read that book.

3 Indirect object S + V + IO + DO Saya memberi dia buku itu. I give him/her the book.

4 Beneficiary S + V + DO + untuk + IO Saya membeli buku untuk dia. I buy a book for him/her.

5 IO pronoun S + V + IO + DO Saya memberi dia buku itu. I give him/her the book.

6 Adjective S + Adj Buku itu besar. The book is big.

7 Adverb S + V + Adv Dia membaca dengan cepat. He/She reads quickly.

8 Direct object + adverb S + V + DO + Adv Saya membaca buku itu dengan cepat. I read the book quickly.

9 Time adverb S + V + Adv(time) Saya bekerja hari ini. I work today.

10 Place adverb S + V + Adv(place) Dia tinggal di sana. He/She lives there.

11 Prepositional phrase S + V + Prep + N Buku itu ada di atas meja. The book is on the table.

12 DO + preposition S + V + DO + Prep + N Saya meletakkan buku itu di atas meja. I put the book on the table.

13 Determiner + noun Det + N Buku ini baru. This book is new.

14 Determiner + adjective + noun Det + Adj + N Buku besar ini baru. This big book is new.

15 Numeral + noun Num + N Dua buku itu baru. Two books are new.

16 Conjunction Clause + Conj + Clause Saya membaca dan dia menulis. I read and he writes.

17 Conjunction + objects S + V + DO + Conj + S + V + DO Saya membaca buku itu dan dia menulis surat. I read the book and he writes a letter.

18 Present passive S + di-Verb Buku itu dibaca. The book is read / is being read.

19 Passive + agent S + di-Verb + oleh + Agent Buku itu dibaca oleh dia. The book is read by him/her.

20 Passive + IO S + di-Verb + IO Buku itu diberikan kepadanya. The book is given to him/her.

21 Passive + IO + agent S + di-Verb + kepada + IO + oleh + Agent Buku itu diberikan kepadanya oleh dia. The book is given to him/her by him/her.

22 Passive + adverb S + di-Verb + Adv Buku itu dibaca hari ini. The book is read today.

23 Passive + preposition S + di-Verb + Prep + N Buku itu diletakkan di atas meja. The book is put on the table.

24 Passive + agent + adverb S + di-Verb + Adv + oleh + Agent Buku itu dibaca hari ini oleh dia. The book is being read by him/her today.

25 Passive + agent + IO + adverb S + di-Verb + IO + Adv + oleh + Agent Buku itu diberikan kepada siswa hari ini oleh guru. The book is given to the student today by the teacher.

26 Perfect passive S + sudah + di-Verb Buku itu sudah dibaca. The book has been read.

27 Perfect passive + agent S + sudah + di-Verb + oleh + Agent Buku itu sudah dibaca oleh dia. The book has been read by him/her.

28 Future passive S + akan + di-Verb Buku itu akan dibaca. The book will be read.

29 Future passive + agent S + akan + di-Verb + oleh + Agent Buku itu akan dibaca oleh dia. The book will be read by him/her.

30 Modal passive S + modal + di-Verb Buku itu harus dibaca. The book must be read.

31 Negative S + tidak + V + ... Saya tidak membaca buku itu. I do not read the book.

32 Negative passive S + tidak + di-Verb + ... Buku itu tidak dibaca oleh dia. The book is not read by him/her.

33 Yes/no question Apakah + S + V + DO? Apakah kamu membaca buku itu? Do you read the book?

34 Passive question Apakah + S + di-Verb? Apakah buku itu dibaca? Is the book being read?

35 Agent question Oleh siapa + passive? Oleh siapa buku itu dibaca? By whom is the book read?

36 IO question Kepada siapa + S + V + DO? Kepada siapa kamu memberi buku itu? To whom do you give the book?

37 Imperative V + DO Baca buku itu! Read the book!

38 Imperative + IO V + IO + DO Berikan dia buku itu! Give him/her the book!

39 Passive imperative V passive + ... Buku itu dibaca! Let the book be read! / Read the book!

40 Infinitive untuk + V / V untuk membaca to read

41 Infinitive + DO untuk + V + DO untuk membaca buku itu to read the book

42 Passive infinitive untuk + di-Verb untuk dibaca to be read

43 Purpose untuk + V Saya makan untuk bermain. I eat to play / in order to play.

44 Relative clause N + yang + clause Buku yang saya baca menarik. The book that I read is interesting.

45 Passive relative N + yang + passive clause Buku yang dibaca oleh dia menarik. The book that is being read by him/her is interesting.

46 Conditional Jika/kalau + clause, clause Jika saya punya waktu, saya membaca. If I have time, I read.

47 Conditional + passive Jika/kalau + passive clause, clause Jika buku itu dibaca, dia belajar. If the book is read, he/she studies.

48 Reported speech S + mengatakan + bahwa + clause Dia mengatakan bahwa dia membaca. He/She says that he/she reads.

49 Reported question S + bertanya + apakah + clause Dia bertanya apakah saya membaca. He/She asks if I read.

50 Reported command/request S + meminta + IO + untuk + V Dia meminta saya untuk membaca. He/She asks me to read.

INDIRECT OBJECT:

Basic indirect object S + V + IO + DO Saya memberi dia buku.

IO with kepada S + V + DO + kepada + IO Saya memberi buku kepada dia.

IO question kepada siapa + S + V + DO? Kepada siapa kamu memberi buku?

Beneficiary S + V + DO + untuk + person Saya membeli buku untuk dia.

Passive IO S + di-Verb + kepada + IO Buku itu diberikan kepada dia.

GENITIVE:

Basic possession N + possessor buku saya my book

Name possession N + Name rumah Ali Ali's house

Possession with -nya N + -nya bukunya his/her book

Belonging to N + milik + possessor buku milik saya my book / book belonging to me

Conversational ownership N + punya + possessor buku punya saya my book / book belonging to me

Noun + noun N + N pintu rumah the house's door

Possessive relative N + yang + N + -nya pria yang mobilnya merah the man whose car is red

Origin N + dari + place/person teman dari Indonesia friend from Indonesia

INDEPENDENT:

mine punya saya / milik saya

yours punya kamu / milik kamu

his punya dia / milik dia

hers punya dia / milik dia

ours punya kami / milik kami

ours (including you) punya kita / milik kita

theirs punya mereka / milik mereka

Use milik for formal

Ini buku saya.

= This is my book.

Buku ini punya saya.

= This book is mine.

Buku ini milik saya.

= This book is mine.

Yang mana milik kamu?

= Which one is yours?

WAS GOING TO:

I was going to eat. Saya akan makan.

I was going to call you. Saya akan menelepon kamu.

She was going to study. Dia akan belajar.

We were going to leave. Kami akan pergi.

was going to akan (for a clearer equal, use tadinya akan) + V intended future action from a past viewpoint

was planning to berencana untuk + V had a plan

was about to hampir + V / sebentar lagi akan + V action was very close to happening

2- NOUNS:

PLURAL:

Whether a noun is singular or plural is usually understood from context.

1. Basic Noun = Singular or Plural

The same noun can mean one or many.

Indonesian English

buku book / books

rumah house / houses

mobil car / cars

anjing dog / dogs

guru teacher / teachers

Examples

Saya membeli buku.

I bought a book.

I bought books.

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

2. Reduplication (The Main Plural Marker)

To clearly show plurality, Indonesian often repeats the noun.

Pattern:

Noun → Noun-Noun

Examples

Singular Plural English

anak anak-anak children

buku buku-buku books

rumah rumah-rumah houses

mobil mobil-mobil cars

guru guru-guru teachers

pohon pohon-pohon trees

burung burung-burung birds

Examples

Anak-anak bermain.

The children are playing.

Buku-buku itu mahal.

Those books are expensive.

CLASSIFERS:

(Classifier) (Used For) (Example) (Translation)

orang People dua orang guru two teachers

ekor Animals tiga ekor kucing three cats

buah General objects dua buah rumah two houses

batang Long objects tiga batang pensil three pencils

lembar Flat objects dua lembar kertas two sheets of paper

helai Thin, flexible items sehelai daun one leaf

butir Eggs, pills, small round objects sebutir telur one egg

biji Seeds, many fruits dua biji mangga two mangoes

pasang Pairs sepasang sepatu one pair of shoes

unit Machines, vehicles dua unit komputer two computers

set Sets satu set meja one set of tables/furniture*

potong Pieces sepotong roti one piece of bread

bungkus Packages sebungkus mi one packet of noodles

botol Bottles sebotol air one bottle of water

kaleng Cans sekaleng minuman one can of drink

kotak Boxes sekotak cokelat one box of chocolates

INDIRECT OBJECT:

Pattern 1: Subject + Verb + Direct Object + kepada + Indirect Object (formal and clear)

Examples:

Saya memberi buku kepada dia. I gave a book to him/her.

Guru menjelaskan pelajaran kepada murid-murid. The teacher explained the lesson to the students.

Kami mengirim surat kepada ibu. We sent a letter to mother.

Pattern 2: Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object (common in speech)

Examples:

Saya memberi dia buku. I gave him/her a book.

Dia mengirim saya pesan. He/She sent me a message.

Ibu membelikan kami makanan. Mother bought us food.

GENITIVE:

Possessed Noun + Possessor

buku saya my book

rumah John John's house

mobil ibu mother's car

<h2>3- ADJECTIVES:</h2>

Attributive Noun + Adjective rumah besar big house

Predicate Subject + Adjective Rumah itu besar. The house is big. (for pronouns, we do not use itu)

Very sangat + Adjective sangat baik very good

Too terlalu + Adjective terlalu mahal too expensive

Quite cukup + Adjective cukup bagus quite good

TO BE VERB:

Present Saya senang. I am happy.

Present continuous Saya sedang senang. I am being/feeling happy.

Present perfect Saya sudah senang. I have been happy / I am already happy.

Present perfect continuous Saya sudah merasa senang selama... I have been feeling happy for...

Past Saya senang. I was happy.

Past continuous Saya sedang senang. I was being/feeling happy.

Past perfect Saya sudah senang. I had been happy.

Past perfect continuous Saya sudah merasa senang selama... I had been feeling happy for...

Future Saya akan senang. I will be happy.

Future continuous Saya akan sedang senang. ❌ Usually rephrased

Future perfect Saya akan sudah senang. I will have been happy.

Future perfect continuous Usually rephrased I will have been feeling happy...

Imperative/subjunctive of lenni

Person Hungarian English

én legyek let me be / may I be

te légy / legyél be!

ő legyen let him/her be

mi legyünk let's be

ti legyetek be!

ők legyenek let them be

Formation

legy- + personal ending

Examples:

Légy boldog! = Be happy!

Legyél óvatos! = Be careful!

Legyen csend! = Let there be silence! / Be quiet!

Legyünk türelmesek! = Let's be patient!

Legyetek készen! = Be ready!

Legyenek boldogok! = Let them be happy!

Negative imperative

Use ne:

Positive Negative

légy! ne légy!

legyél! ne legyél!

legyen! ne legyen!

legyünk! ne legyünk!

legyetek! ne legyetek!

legyenek! ne legyenek!

<h2>4- PRONOUNS:</h2>

1. First Person Singular

English Case Indonesian Example Translation

I (Subject) saya / aku Saya datang. I am coming.

me (Object) saya / aku Dia melihat saya. He sees me.

to me (Indirect Object) kepada saya / saya Dia memberi saya buku. He gave me a book.

my buku saya / bukuku Buku saya baru. My book is new.

mine milik saya / punya saya Buku itu milik saya. That book is mine.

2. Second Person Singular (Informal)

English Case Indonesian Example Translation

you kamu Kamu datang. You are coming.

you kamu Saya melihat kamu. I see you.

to you kepada kamu / kamu Saya memberi kamu hadiah. I gave you a gift.

your buku kamu / bukumu Buku kamu bagus. Your book is good.

yours milik kamu / punya kamu Buku itu milik kamu. That book is yours.

3. Second Person Formal

English Case Indonesian Example Translation

you Anda Anda benar. You are right.

you Anda Saya mengenal Anda. I know you.

to you kepada Anda Saya mengirim surat kepada Anda. I sent you a letter.

your buku Anda Buku Anda menarik. Your book is interesting.

yours milik Anda Tas itu milik Anda. That bag is yours.

4. Third Person Singular

English Case Indonesian Example Translation

he/she dia / ia Dia datang. He/She is coming.

him/her dia Saya melihat dia. I see him/her.

to him/her kepada dia / dia Saya memberi dia uang. I gave him/her money.

his/her bukunya / buku dia Bukunya hilang. His/Her book is lost.

his/hers miliknya / punya dia Buku itu miliknya. That book is his/hers.

5. First Person Plural (Exclusive)

Kami = we, excluding the listener.

English Case Indonesian Example Translation

we kami Kami datang. We are coming.

us kami Dia melihat kami. He sees us.

to us kepada kami Dia memberi kami hadiah. He gave us a gift.

our rumah kami Rumah kami besar. Our house is big.

ours milik kami Rumah itu milik kami. That house is ours.

6. First Person Plural (Inclusive)

Kita = we, including the listener.

English Case Indonesian Example Translation

we kita Kita mulai. Let's begin. / We are starting.

us kita Dia mengundang kita. He invited us.

to us kepada kita Dia menjelaskan kepada kita. He explained to us.

our rumah kita Our house.

ours milik kita Rumah itu milik kita. That house is ours.

7. Third Person Plural

English Case Indonesian Example Translation

they mereka Mereka datang. They are coming.

them mereka Saya melihat mereka. I see them.

to them kepada mereka Saya memberi mereka makanan. I gave them food.

their rumah mereka Their house.

theirs milik mereka Rumah itu milik mereka. That house is theirs.

Possessive Suffixes

These are extremely common in Indonesian.

Suffix Meaning Example Translation

-ku my bukuku my book

-mu your bukumu your book

-nya his, her, its, their bukunya his/her/their book

Examples:

Bukuku hilang.

My book is lost.

Bukumu bagus.

Your book is nice.

Bukunya baru.

His/Her/Their book is new.

Reflexive Pronouns

Indonesian uses sendiri ("self") rather than changing the pronoun.

English Indonesian

myself diri saya sendiri

yourself dirimu sendiri / diri Anda sendiri

himself dirinya sendiri

herself dirinya sendiri

ourselves diri kami sendiri

themselves diri mereka sendiri

Examples:

Saya melihat diri saya sendiri.

I saw myself.

Dia menyalahkan dirinya sendiri.

He blamed himself.

Demonstrative Pronouns

Indonesian English

ini this

itu that

ini semua these

itu semua those

Examples:

Ini bagus.

This is good.

Itu mahal.

That is expensive.

<h2>5- VERB TENSES:</h2>

Simple Present Verb Saya makan. I eat / I am eating.

Present Continuous sedang + Verb Saya sedang makan. I am eating.

Simple Past Verb + past time Saya makan kemarin. I ate yesterday.

Past Continuous sedang + past context Kemarin saya sedang makan. I was eating yesterday.

Present Perfect sudah/telah + Verb Saya sudah makan. I have eaten.

Past Perfect sudah/telah + past context Saya sudah makan sebelum dia datang. I had eaten before he came.

Future akan + Verb Saya akan makan. I will eat.

Future Continuous akan sedang + Verb (rare) or context Besok jam lima saya bekerja. I will be working tomorrow at five.

Future Perfect akan sudah + Verb or context Besok saya sudah selesai. I will have finished by tomorrow.

Present Perfect Continuous sudah + Verb + duration Saya sudah belajar dua jam. I have been studying for two hours.

Past Perfect Continuous sudah + Verb + duration + past context Saya sudah belajar sebelum dia datang. I had been studying before he came.

Future Perfect Continuous sudah + Verb + duration + future context Tahun depan saya sudah bekerja lima tahun. By next year, I will have been working for five years.

<h2>6- PASSIVE TENSES:</h2>

Present Simple di-verb

Buku dibaca.

Present Continuous sedang + di-verb

Buku sedang dibaca.

Past Simple di-verb + past time

Buku dibaca kemarin.

Past Continuous sedang + di-verb + past context

Kemarin buku sedang dibaca.

Present Perfect sudah/telah + di-verb

Buku sudah dibaca.

Past Perfect sudah/telah + di-verb + past context

Buku sudah dibaca sebelum ujian.

Future akan + di-verb

Buku akan dibaca.

Future Continuous (rare) akan sedang + di-verb or context

Besok jam dua buku itu dibaca.

Future Perfect akan sudah + di-verb or future context

Besok buku sudah dibaca.

Present Perfect Continuous duration + sudah + di-verb

Rumah sudah diperbaiki selama dua minggu.

Past Perfect Continuous duration + sudah + di-verb + past context

Rumah sudah diperbaiki selama dua minggu sebelum kami kembali.

Future Perfect Continuous future context + sudah + di-verb + duration

Tahun depan gedung itu sudah dibangun selama lima tahun.

<h2>7- NEGATION:</h2>

Subject + tidak + Verb

Saya makan. Saya tidak makan.

Dia bekerja. Dia tidak bekerja.

Kami belajar. Kami tidak belajar.

Subject + tidak + Adjective

Subject + bukan + Noun

Not Yet:

Subject + belum + Verb

Don't:

Jangan + Verb

Never:

Subject + tidak pernah + Verb

No longer:

Subject + tidak lagi + Verb

Belum Pernah (Have Never Yet):

Buku tidak dibaca. The book is not read.

Buku belum dibaca. The book has not been read yet.

Buku tidak lagi dibaca. The book is no longer read.

<h2>8- QUESTIONS:</h2>

YES/NO QUESTIONS:

There are two ways to make one:

1- Same sentence structure, just add a question mark.

Kamu makan?

2- Apakah + Subject + Verb?

Apakah kamu makan?

QUESTION WORDS:

apa what

siapa who

di mana where

ke mana to where

dari mana from where

kapan when

bagaimana how

mengapa why (formal)

kenapa why (informal)

berapa how much/how many

ORDER OF QUESTION WORDS:

If the question word is the object, it usually stays after the verb.

If the question word is the object of a preposition, it stays after the preposition.

If the question word is the subject, it usually goes at the beginning.

If the question word is emphasized or more formal, it usually goes at the beginning along with adding yang.

If the question word is asking for what is something, it usually goes at the beginning.

<h2>9- ADVERBS:</h2>

Indonesian Transliteration English

di sini di sini here

di situ di situ there

di sana di sana over there

ke sini ke sini to here

ke situ ke situ to there

ke sana ke sana to over there

dari sini dari sini from here

dari situ dari situ from there

dari sana dari sana from over there

di mana di mana where

ke mana ke mana where to

dari mana dari mana from where

di mana-mana di mana-mana everywhere

ke mana-mana ke mana-mana everywhere / to various places

dari mana-mana dari mana-mana from everywhere

di mana pun di mana pun anywhere / wherever

di mana saja di mana saja anywhere

di tempat lain di tempat lain elsewhere

di luar di luar outside

di dalam di dalam inside

di atas di atas above / on top

di bawah di bawah below / underneath

di depan di depan in front

di belakang di belakang behind

di samping di samping beside

di sebelah di sebelah beside / next to

di antara di antara between / among

di sekitar di sekitar around

di dekat di dekat nearby

di jauh di jauh far away

2. Direction / Movement

Indonesian Transliteration English

ke atas ke atas upward

ke bawah ke bawah downward

ke depan ke depan forward

ke belakang ke belakang backward

ke dalam ke dalam inward

ke luar ke luar outward

ke kiri ke kiri to the left

ke kanan ke kanan to the right

ke sana ke sana thereward / to there

ke sini ke sini this way / here

kembali kembali back / again

pulang pulang home / homeward

pergi pergi away

maju maju forward

mundur mundur backward

naik naik upward

turun turun downward

masuk masuk inside / inward

keluar keluar outside / outward

datang datang here / toward the speaker

3. Time Adverbs — Kata Keterangan Waktu

Indonesian Transliteration English

sekarang sekarang now

kini kini now / nowadays

saat ini saat ini currently

tadi tadi earlier

barusan barusan just now

baru saja baru saja just

sebentar lagi sebentar lagi shortly / soon

nanti nanti later

segera segera immediately / soon

lekas lekas soon / quickly

kelak kelak in the future

dahulu dahulu formerly / long ago

dulu dulu before / formerly

sebelumnya sebelumnya previously

sesudahnya sesudahnya afterward

setelah itu setelah itu after that

kemudian kemudian then / afterward

lalu lalu then / afterward

akhirnya akhirnya finally

akhirnya juga akhirnya juga finally / at last

sementara sementara meanwhile

sementara itu sementara itu meanwhile

selama ini selama ini all this time

sampai sekarang sampai sekarang until now

hingga sekarang hingga sekarang until now

sejak itu sejak itu since then

sejak tadi sejak tadi since earlier

setiap hari setiap hari every day

tiap hari tiap hari every day

hari ini hari ini today

kemarin kemarin yesterday

lusa lusa the day after tomorrow

besok besok tomorrow

tadi malam tadi malam last night

malam ini malam ini tonight

besok pagi besok pagi tomorrow morning

sekarang juga sekarang juga right now

sewaktu-waktu sewaktu-waktu at any time

kapan-kapan kapan-kapan sometime

kapan saja kapan saja anytime

kapan pun kapan pun whenever / anytime

4. Frequency Adverbs — Kata Keterangan Frekuensi

Indonesian Transliteration English

selalu selalu always

senantiasa senantiasa always / continually

sering sering often

kerap kerap often

kerap kali kerap kali frequently

acap kali acap kali often

biasanya biasanya usually

umumnya umumnya generally

lazimnya lazimnya ordinarily

pada umumnya pada umumnya generally

kadang-kadang kadang-kadang sometimes

kadang kadang sometimes

sesekali sesekali occasionally

sekali-sekali sekali-sekali once in a while

jarang jarang rarely

hampir tidak pernah hampir tidak pernah hardly ever

tidak pernah tidak pernah never

tak pernah tak pernah never

setiap kali setiap kali every time

tiap kali tiap kali every time

berkali-kali berkali-kali repeatedly

berulang kali berulang kali repeatedly

sekali sekali once

dua kali dua kali twice

beberapa kali beberapa kali several times

sering kali sering kali often

5. Manner Adverbs — Kata Keterangan Cara

Indonesian Transliteration English

dengan baik dengan baik well

dengan buruk dengan buruk badly

dengan cepat dengan cepat quickly

dengan lambat dengan lambat slowly

cepat cepat quickly

lambat lambat slowly

perlahan perlahan slowly

pelan-pelan pelan-pelan slowly / gently

hati-hati hati-hati carefully

dengan hati-hati dengan hati-hati carefully

sembarangan sembarangan carelessly / randomly

diam-diam diam-diam secretly / quietly

terang-terangan terang-terangan openly

sengaja sengaja deliberately

tidak sengaja tidak sengaja accidentally

kebetulan kebetulan accidentally / by chance

bersama-sama bersama-sama together

sendirian sendirian alone

sendiri sendiri alone / by oneself

langsung langsung directly

tidak langsung tidak langsung indirectly

perlahan-lahan perlahan-lahan slowly

mudah mudah easily

dengan mudah dengan mudah easily

sulit sulit with difficulty

dengan susah payah dengan susah payah with great difficulty

benar benar correctly / truly

salah salah incorrectly

tepat tepat precisely / exactly

secara tepat secara tepat precisely

jelas jelas clearly

secara jelas secara jelas clearly

khusus khusus specially

secara khusus secara khusus specifically

6. Degree / Intensity Adverbs — Tingkat / Intensitas

These are extremely important in Indonesian.

Indonesian Transliteration English

sangat sangat very

amat amat very / extremely

amat sangat amat sangat extremely

terlalu terlalu too / excessively

cukup cukup quite / sufficiently

agak agak rather / somewhat

sedikit sedikit slightly / a little

lebih lebih more

paling paling most

kurang kurang less / insufficiently

sangat sekali sangat sekali very much

benar-benar benar-benar really / truly

betul-betul betul-betul really / truly

sungguh sungguh truly / really

sungguh-sungguh sungguh-sungguh seriously / truly

luar biasa luar biasa extraordinarily

begitu begitu so / that much

terlalu banyak terlalu banyak too much / too many

terlalu sedikit terlalu sedikit too little / too few

hampir hampir almost

nyaris nyaris nearly

sama sekali sama sekali at all / completely

sepenuhnya sepenuhnya completely

seluruhnya seluruhnya entirely

total total totally

mutlak mutlak absolutely

cukup banyak cukup banyak quite a lot

sangat banyak sangat banyak very much / very many

sedikit sekali sedikit sekali very little

banyak sekali banyak sekali very much / very many

7. Comparison Adverbs

Indonesian Transliteration English

lebih lebih more

kurang kurang less

paling paling most

sama sama equally / the same

sama-sama sama-sama equally / both

lebih banyak lebih banyak more

lebih sedikit lebih sedikit less

paling banyak paling banyak the most

paling sedikit paling sedikit the least

lebih baik lebih baik better

lebih buruk lebih buruk worse

paling baik paling baik best

paling buruk paling buruk worst

semakin semakin increasingly / more and more

makin makin increasingly / more and more

kurang lebih kurang lebih more or less / approximately

sama sekali sama sekali equally / completely, depending on context

Example

Dia lebih cepat daripada saya.

Dia lebih cepat daripada saya.

“He is faster than me.”

Dia paling cepat.

Dia paling cepat.

“He is the fastest.”

Cuacanya semakin panas.

Cuacanya semakin panas.

“The weather is getting hotter.”

8. Probability / Possibility

Indonesian Transliteration English

mungkin mungkin maybe / possibly

barangkali barangkali perhaps

boleh jadi boleh jadi possibly

bisa jadi bisa jadi it could be

agaknya agaknya apparently / seemingly

tampaknya tampaknya apparently / seemingly

nampaknya nampaknya apparently

kelihatannya kelihatannya apparently / it seems

rupanya rupanya apparently / it turns out

kiranya kiranya presumably / hopefully

kemungkinan kemungkinan probably / possibility

kemungkinan besar kemungkinan besar most likely

mungkin saja mungkin saja quite possibly

barangkali saja barangkali saja perhaps

sepertinya sepertinya it seems / apparently

9. Certainty / Evidentiality

Indonesian Transliteration English

pasti pasti certainly / surely

tentu tentu certainly / of course

tentunya tentunya certainly / naturally

tentu saja tentu saja of course

jelas jelas clearly

jelas sekali jelas sekali very clearly

memang memang indeed / actually

benar-benar benar-benar truly / really

sungguh sungguh truly

rupanya rupanya apparently

ternyata ternyata it turns out / apparently

nyatanya nyatanya in fact

sebenarnya sebenarnya actually / in fact

sesungguhnya sesungguhnya truly / actually

betul-betul betul-betul really

pastinya pastinya certainly

10. Affirmation / Confirmation

Indonesian Transliteration English

ya ya yes

memang memang indeed

benar benar correct / indeed

betul betul correct / indeed

tentu tentu certainly

tentu saja tentu saja of course

pasti pasti certainly

memang begitu memang begitu indeed, that's how it is

benar-benar benar-benar really / truly

11. Negation Adverbs

Indonesian has several important negative words.

Indonesian Transliteration English

tidak tidak not

tak tak not

bukan bukan not / is not

belum belum not yet

jangan jangan don't / must not

belum pernah belum pernah have never yet

tidak pernah tidak pernah never

tak pernah tak pernah never

sama sekali tidak sama sekali tidak not at all

tidak lagi tidak lagi no longer

tak lagi tak lagi no longer

tidak ada tidak ada there is no / there isn't

tanpa tanpa without

jangan sampai jangan sampai don't let / lest

Important distinction

tidak → normally negates verbs, adjectives, and adverbial predicates.

Saya tidak tidur.

Saya tidak tidur.

“I am not sleeping.”

bukan → normally negates nouns/nominal identities.

Dia bukan guru.

Dia bukan guru.

“He is not a teacher.”

belum → “not yet.”

Saya belum makan.

Saya belum makan.

“I haven't eaten yet.”

jangan → negative imperative.

Jangan pergi!

Jangan pergi!

“Don't go!”

12. Addition Adverbs

Indonesian Transliteration English

juga juga also / too

pula pula also / too

pun pun also / even

bahkan bahkan even

terlebih lagi terlebih lagi furthermore

selain itu selain itu besides / furthermore

di samping itu di samping itu in addition

lagi pula lagi pula moreover / besides

tambahan pula tambahan pula furthermore

sama-sama sama-sama both / equally

sekaligus sekaligus at the same time / simultaneously

13. Restriction / Limitation

Indonesian Transliteration English

hanya hanya only

cuma cuma only / just

saja saja only / just

sekadar sekadar merely

sekedar sekedar merely

semata-mata semata-mata solely / purely

belaka belaka merely / nothing but

terutama terutama especially / primarily

khususnya khususnya especially / particularly

setidaknya setidaknya at least

sekurang-kurangnya sekurang-kurangnya at least

paling tidak paling tidak at least

maksimal maksimal at most / maximum

paling banyak paling banyak at most

14. Focus / Emphasis Adverbs

Indonesian Transliteration English

memang memang indeed / actually

justru justru precisely / instead

malah malah instead / even

bahkan bahkan even

terutama terutama especially

khususnya khususnya particularly

terutama sekali terutama sekali especially

benar-benar benar-benar really

sungguh-sungguh sungguh-sungguh truly / seriously

sendiri sendiri itself / personally

sekalipun sekalipun even though / even

sekali pun sekali pun even

apalagi apalagi especially / let alone

terlebih terlebih especially / moreover

setidaknya setidaknya at least

15. Approximation

Indonesian Transliteration English

sekitar sekitar approximately / around

kira-kira kira-kira approximately / roughly

kurang lebih kurang lebih approximately

kurang-lebih kurang-lebih approximately

sekitar itu sekitar itu around that

hampir hampir almost

nyaris nyaris nearly

kurang dari kurang dari less than

lebih dari lebih dari more than

sekurang-kurangnya sekurang-kurangnya at least

setidaknya setidaknya at least

paling banyak paling banyak at most

16. Result / Consequence

Indonesian Transliteration English

sehingga sehingga so / therefore

akibatnya akibatnya consequently

karenanya karenanya therefore

oleh karena itu oleh karena itu therefore

oleh sebab itu oleh sebab itu therefore

dengan demikian dengan demikian thus

maka maka therefore / then

alhasil alhasil as a result

akibatnya akibatnya as a result

hasilnya hasilnya the result is

17. Contrast / Concession

Indonesian Transliteration English

tetapi tetapi but

namun namun however

akan tetapi akan tetapi however

meskipun demikian meskipun demikian nevertheless

walaupun demikian walaupun demikian nevertheless

bagaimanapun bagaimanapun nevertheless / anyway

tetap tetap still

tetap saja tetap saja nevertheless / still

toh toh anyway / after all

sekalipun demikian sekalipun demikian even so

meski begitu meski begitu even so

walau begitu walau begitu even so

18. Alternative / Otherwise

Indonesian Transliteration English

kalau tidak kalau tidak otherwise / if not

jika tidak jika tidak otherwise

jika tidak demikian jika tidak demikian otherwise

kalau begitu kalau begitu in that case / then

jika demikian jika demikian if so

sebaliknya sebaliknya conversely / on the contrary

malah malah instead

justru justru instead / precisely

sebagai gantinya sebagai gantinya instead

kalau begitu kalau begitu then / in that case

19. Sequence / Order

Indonesian Transliteration English

pertama pertama first

pertama-tama pertama-tama firstly / first of all

mula-mula mula-mula initially

awalnya awalnya initially

kemudian kemudian then

lalu lalu then

setelah itu setelah itu after that

selanjutnya selanjutnya next / subsequently

berikutnya berikutnya next

sebelumnya sebelumnya previously

sesudahnya sesudahnya afterward

akhirnya akhirnya finally

terakhir terakhir lastly

pada akhirnya pada akhirnya ultimately

akhirnya juga akhirnya juga finally / at last

20. Already / Still / Yet

Indonesian Transliteration English

sudah sudah already

telah telah already / has/have

masih masih still

belum belum not yet

lagi lagi again / still / more

kembali kembali again / back

sekali lagi sekali lagi once again

lagi-lagi lagi-lagi once again / yet again

sudah lagi sudah lagi already again

masih saja masih saja still / continues to

belum juga belum juga still not / not yet

sudah tidak sudah tidak no longer

21. Repetition / Again

Indonesian Transliteration English

lagi lagi again

kembali kembali again / back

sekali lagi sekali lagi once again

lagi-lagi lagi-lagi yet again

berulang kali berulang kali repeatedly

berkali-kali berkali-kali many times

terus terus continuously / keep

terus-menerus terus-menerus continuously

berulang-ulang berulang-ulang repeatedly

22. Continuation / Persistence

Indonesian Transliteration English

masih masih still

terus terus continuously

terus-menerus terus-menerus continuously

selalu selalu always

tetap tetap still / remain

tetap saja tetap saja still / nevertheless

senantiasa senantiasa continually

berkelanjutan berkelanjutan continuously / ongoing

23. Manner Question Adverbs

Indonesian Transliteration English

bagaimana bagaimana how

betapa betapa how / how greatly

dengan bagaimana dengan bagaimana in what way

seperti apa seperti apa what kind / how

bagaimana pun bagaimana pun however / no matter how

bagaimanapun bagaimanapun however / anyway

dengan cara apa dengan cara apa in what way

24. Interrogative Adverbs

Indonesian Transliteration English

kapan kapan when

di mana di mana where

ke mana ke mana where to

dari mana dari mana from where

bagaimana bagaimana how

mengapa mengapa why

kenapa kenapa why

berapa berapa how many / how much

seberapa seberapa how much / to what extent

sejauh mana sejauh mana to what extent

sampai kapan sampai kapan until when

sejak kapan sejak kapan since when

kapan saja kapan saja whenever

di mana saja di mana saja wherever

bagaimana pun bagaimana pun however

25. Indefinite Adverbs

Indonesian Transliteration English

di suatu tempat di suatu tempat somewhere

di suatu tempat lain di suatu tempat lain somewhere else

di mana-mana di mana-mana everywhere

ke mana-mana ke mana-mana everywhere / anywhere

suatu saat suatu saat sometime

suatu hari suatu hari one day / someday

kapan-kapan kapan-kapan sometime

entah kapan entah kapan who knows when

entah di mana entah di mana somewhere / who knows where

entah bagaimana entah bagaimana somehow / who knows how

dengan cara tertentu dengan cara tertentu somehow / in a certain way

bagaimanapun bagaimanapun somehow / anyway

26. Free-Choice Adverbs

These use pun, saja, or related structures.

Indonesian Transliteration English

di mana pun di mana pun wherever

kapan pun kapan pun whenever

siapa pun siapa pun whoever

apa pun apa pun whatever

bagaimana pun bagaimana pun however

ke mana pun ke mana pun wherever / wherever to

dari mana pun dari mana pun from wherever

berapa pun berapa pun however many / however much

apa saja apa saja anything / whatever

siapa saja siapa saja anyone / whoever

kapan saja kapan saja anytime

di mana saja di mana saja anywhere

bagaimana saja bagaimana saja however / in whatever way

27. Negative Indefinite Adverbs

Indonesian Transliteration English

tidak pernah tidak pernah never

tidak pernah sama sekali tidak pernah sama sekali never at all

tidak di mana-mana tidak di mana-mana not everywhere

tidak ke mana-mana tidak ke mana-mana nowhere / not going anywhere

tidak sama sekali tidak sama sekali not at all

sama sekali tidak sama sekali tidak not at all

dengan cara apa pun tidak dengan cara apa pun tidak in no way

28. Purpose / Function

Indonesian Transliteration English

untuk itu untuk itu for that purpose

agar agar so that

supaya supaya so that

dengan sengaja dengan sengaja deliberately

demi itu demi itu for that purpose

khusus untuk itu khusus untuk itu specifically for that

dengan demikian dengan demikian thereby / thus

29. Especially / Mainly

Indonesian Transliteration English

terutama terutama especially / mainly

khususnya khususnya especially

terutama sekali terutama sekali especially

khusus khusus specially

paling utama paling utama primarily

pada khususnya pada khususnya particularly

sebagian besar sebagian besar mostly

umumnya umumnya generally

terutama terutama chiefly

30. Together / Separately

Indonesian Transliteration English

bersama bersama together

bersama-sama bersama-sama together

bersamaan bersamaan simultaneously

sekaligus sekaligus simultaneously / at once

serentak serentak simultaneously

berbarengan berbarengan simultaneously

masing-masing masing-masing respectively / individually

sendiri-sendiri sendiri-sendiri separately

secara terpisah secara terpisah separately

terpisah terpisah separately

31. Direct / Indirect

Indonesian Transliteration English

langsung langsung directly

secara langsung secara langsung directly

tidak langsung tidak langsung indirectly

secara tidak langsung secara tidak langsung indirectly

segera segera immediately

secara langsung pula secara langsung pula directly as well

32. Reality / Actuality

Indonesian Transliteration English

sebenarnya sebenarnya actually

sesungguhnya sesungguhnya truly / actually

memang memang indeed / actually

pada kenyataannya pada kenyataannya in reality

kenyataannya kenyataannya in fact

nyatanya nyatanya in fact

ternyata ternyata it turns out

rupanya rupanya apparently

secara nyata secara nyata actually / tangibly

benar-benar benar-benar really

33. Explanation / Specification

Indonesian Transliteration English

yaitu yaitu namely

yakni yakni namely

bahwa bahwa that

misalnya misalnya for example

contohnya contohnya for example

khususnya khususnya particularly

terutama terutama especially

dengan kata lain dengan kata lain in other words

artinya artinya meaning / in other words

tepatnya tepatnya precisely

lebih tepatnya lebih tepatnya more precisely

singkatnya singkatnya in short

secara khusus secara khusus specifically

34. Discourse / Sentence-Level Adverbs

These are very common in natural Indonesian.

Indonesian Transliteration English

sebenarnya sebenarnya actually

memang memang indeed

namun namun however

tetapi tetapi but

jadi jadi so / therefore

lalu lalu then

kemudian kemudian then

bahkan bahkan even

juga juga also

selain itu selain itu besides

sebaliknya sebaliknya conversely

bagaimanapun bagaimanapun anyway

sementara itu sementara itu meanwhile

akhirnya akhirnya finally

singkatnya singkatnya in short

intinya intinya essentially / the point is

pada dasarnya pada dasarnya basically

pada prinsipnya pada prinsipnya in principle

secara umum secara umum generally

khususnya khususnya particularly

35. Basic Indonesian Adverb Formation

Indonesian has several productive ways of creating adverbial meanings.

secara + adjective/noun

Formation Example English

secara + adjective secara perlahan slowly

secara + adjective secara langsung directly

secara + adjective secara umum generally

secara + adjective secara khusus specifically

secara + adjective secara jelas clearly

secara + adjective secara resmi officially

secara + adjective secara alami naturally

secara + adjective secara keseluruhan overall

Reduplication

Reduplication is particularly important.

Base Reduplicated Meaning

pelan pelan-pelan slowly / gently

hati hati-hati carefully

diam diam-diam secretly

terus terus-menerus continuously

ulang berulang-ulang repeatedly

sama sama-sama equally / together

masing masing-masing respectively

kadang kadang-kadang sometimes

kali berkali-kali repeatedly / many times

tiba tiba-tiba suddenly

mula mula-mula initially

lagi lagi-lagi once again

<h2>10- CONJUNCTIONS:</h2>

Indonesian Transliteration English

dan dan and

atau atau or

tetapi tetapi but

namun namun but / however

melainkan melainkan but rather

sedangkan sedangkan whereas / while

serta serta and / as well as

lalu lalu then / and then

kemudian kemudian then / afterward

bahkan bahkan even

juga juga also

Examples

Saya makan dan minum.

Saya makan dan minum.

“I eat and drink.”

Kamu mau teh atau kopi?

Kamu mau teh atau kopi?

“Do you want tea or coffee?”

Dia kaya, tetapi dia tidak bahagia.

Dia kaya, tetapi dia tidak bahagia.

“He is rich, but he isn't happy.”

Dia bukan guru, melainkan dokter.

Dia bukan guru, melainkan dokter.

“He isn't a teacher, but rather a doctor.”

2. Subordinating Conjunctions — Konjungsi Subordinatif

These connect a subordinate clause to a main clause.

A. Time — Waktu

Indonesian English

ketika when

saat when / while

sewaktu when / while

tatkala when / while

manakala when / whenever

sementara while / meanwhile

selagi while / as long as

selama while / during / as long as

sambil while

sebelum before

sesudah after

setelah after

seusai after / once

sehabis after

sejak since

semenjak since

sedari since

hingga until

sampai until

begitu as soon as / once

segera setelah immediately after

setelah itu after that

sebelum itu before that

sejak saat itu since that time

Examples

Ketika saya datang, dia sedang tidur.

“When I arrived, he was sleeping.”

Sebelum saya pergi, saya makan.

“Before I leave, I eat.”

Setelah dia datang, kami mulai.

“After he arrived, we started.”

Saya akan menunggu sampai dia datang.

“I will wait until he comes.”

3. Cause / Reason — Sebab

Indonesian English

karena because

sebab because

lantaran because / due to

oleh karena because of / therefore

dikarenakan because of

disebabkan oleh caused by / due to

gara-gara because of / due to

berhubung since / because

mengingat considering / given that

sebab itu for that reason

Examples

Saya tinggal di rumah karena hujan.

“I stay at home because it is raining.”

Dia terlambat sebab jalan macet.

“He was late because the road was congested.”

Pertandingan dibatalkan lantaran hujan.

“The match was canceled because of the rain.”

4. Result / Consequence — Akibat / Hasil

Indonesian English

sehingga so that / therefore

sampai so ... that

sampai-sampai to the point that / so ... that

maka therefore / then

akibatnya consequently

karenanya therefore

oleh karena itu therefore

oleh sebab itu therefore

dengan demikian thus

alhasil as a result

hasilnya the result is

Example

Dia sakit sehingga dia tidak masuk kerja.

“He was sick, so he didn't go to work.”

Dia sangat lelah sampai-sampai dia tertidur.

“He was so tired that he fell asleep.”

5. Purpose — Tujuan

Indonesian English

agar so that

supaya so that

biar so that / let

untuk for / to

untuk agar in order that

guna in order to / for

demi for the sake of

supaya dapat so that ... can

agar dapat so that ... can

supaya bisa so that ... can

agar bisa so that ... can

dengan tujuan agar with the aim that

dengan maksud agar with the intention that

Examples

Saya belajar agar saya lulus.

“I study so that I pass.”

Dia bekerja keras supaya keluarganya bahagia.

“He works hard so that his family will be happy.”

Saya datang untuk membantu.

“I came to help.”

6. Conditional — Syarat

Indonesian English

jika if

kalau if

bila if

apabila if

manakala if / when

jikalau if

sekiranya if / in case

seandainya if / supposing

andaikan if / suppose

andai if / suppose

bilamana whenever / if

asal provided that

asalkan provided that / as long as

dengan syarat on condition that

dengan catatan provided that / with the proviso that

kalau-kalau in case

jika tidak if not

kalau tidak if not

Examples

Jika hujan, saya akan tinggal di rumah.

“If it rains, I will stay at home.”

Kalau kamu mau, kita bisa pergi.

“If you want, we can go.”

Asalkan kamu bekerja keras, kamu akan berhasil.

“As long as you work hard, you will succeed.”

Seandainya saya kaya, saya akan membeli rumah.

“If I were rich, I would buy a house.”

7. Concessive — Pertentangan / Konsesif

Indonesian English

meskipun although / even though

meski although / even though

walaupun although / even though

walau although / even though

kendati although

kendatipun although / even though

sekalipun even though / even if

biarpun although / even though

sungguhpun although / even though

betapapun however / no matter how

bagaimanapun however / no matter how

meskipun demikian nevertheless / even so

walaupun demikian nevertheless

sekalipun demikian even so

meski begitu even so

walau begitu even so

kendati demikian nevertheless

Examples

Meskipun hujan, saya pergi.

“Although it is raining, I am going.”

Walaupun dia lelah, dia terus bekerja.

“Although he is tired, he continues working.”

Sekalipun sulit, saya akan mencobanya.

“Even if it is difficult, I will try it.”

8. Comparison — Perbandingan

Indonesian English

seperti like / as

sebagaimana as / just as

sebagaimana halnya just as / as is the case with

daripada than / rather than

seolah-olah as if

seakan-akan as if / seemingly

seakan as if

ibarat like / as though

laksana like / as

bak like / as

bagaikan like / as

sebagaimana as

sama seperti just like

berbeda dengan different from

Examples

Dia berlari seperti angin.

“He runs like the wind.”

Dia berbicara seolah-olah dia tahu semuanya.

“He speaks as if he knows everything.”

Saya lebih suka teh daripada kopi.

“I prefer tea to coffee.”

9. Manner — Cara

Indonesian English

dengan with / by

dengan cara by means of / in the way that

sebagaimana as / in the way that

seperti as / like

tanpa without

sambil while

seraya while / as

sembari while

dengan demikian in this way / thus

seolah-olah as if

seakan-akan as if

Example

Dia pergi tanpa berkata apa-apa.

“He left without saying anything.”

Dia membaca sambil makan.

“He reads while eating.”

10. Complement / Content Conjunctions

These introduce a clause functioning as the content of a verb.

Indonesian English

bahwa that

kalau that / whether

jika whether / if

apakah whether

agar that / so that

supaya that / so that

seolah-olah as if

seakan-akan as if

Example

Saya tahu bahwa dia datang.

“I know that he came.”

Dia mengatakan bahwa dia sakit.

“He said that he was sick.”

Saya tidak tahu apakah dia datang.

“I don't know whether he came.”

11. Reported Speech / Quotation

Indonesian English

bahwa that

katanya he/she said / reportedly

menurut according to

menurutnya according to him/her

sebagaimana dikatakan as stated

seperti yang dikatakan as was said

Example

Dia berkata bahwa dia akan datang.

“He said that he would come.”

12. Alternative / Choice

Indonesian English

atau or

ataupun or / or else

maupun or / as well as

baik ... maupun ... both ... and ...

entah ... entah ... whether ... or ...

apakah ... atau ... whether ... or ...

apakah ... maupun ... whether ... or ...

dan/atau and/or

atau bahkan or even

kalau tidak otherwise / if not

jika tidak otherwise

Example

Kamu bisa minum teh atau kopi.

“You can drink tea or coffee.”

Baik dia maupun saya setuju.

“Both he and I agree.”

Entah dia datang, entah dia tidak datang.

“Whether he comes or not.”

13. Correlative Conjunctions — Konjungsi Korelatif

These occur as pairs.

Indonesian English

baik ... maupun ... both ... and ...

tidak hanya ... tetapi juga ... not only ... but also ...

bukan hanya ... melainkan juga ... not only ... but also ...

bukan saja ... tetapi juga ... not only ... but also ...

jangankan ... , ... let alone ...

entah ... entah ... whether ... or ...

apakah ... atau ... whether ... or ...

sedemikian ... sehingga ... so ... that ...

demikian ... sehingga ... so ... that ...

begitu ... sehingga ... so ... that ...

semakin ... semakin ... the more ... the more ...

makin ... makin ... the more ... the more ...

kian ... kian ... the more ... the more ...

baik ... ataupun ... whether/both ... or/as well ...

bukan ... melainkan ... not ... but rather ...

antara ... dan ... between ... and ...

Examples

Dia tidak hanya pintar, tetapi juga rajin.

“He is not only intelligent but also diligent.”

Semakin banyak kamu belajar, semakin banyak yang kamu tahu.

“The more you study, the more you know.”

Bukan dia, melainkan saya.

“Not him, but rather me.”

14. Addition

Indonesian English

dan and

serta and / as well as

juga also

pula also

bahkan even

selain besides

selain itu besides / in addition

di samping itu in addition

lagi pula moreover

tambahan pula furthermore

terlebih lagi furthermore

apalagi especially / moreover

belum lagi not to mention

ditambah lagi in addition

15. Contrast / Opposition

Indonesian English

tetapi but

namun however

akan tetapi however

sedangkan whereas

sementara whereas / while

melainkan but rather

sebaliknya conversely / on the contrary

padahal whereas / even though / despite the fact

justru instead / precisely

malah instead / even

meskipun although

walaupun although

kendati although

sekalipun even though

Particularly important: padahal

Dia bilang dia sakit, padahal dia sehat.

“He said he was sick, whereas in fact he was healthy.”

16. Explanation / Elaboration

Indonesian English

yaitu namely / that is

yakni namely / that is

bahwa that

karena because

sebab because

misalnya for example

contohnya for example

seperti such as / like

antara lain among others / including

dengan kata lain in other words

artinya meaning / that is

singkatnya in short

tepatnya more precisely

khususnya particularly

terutama especially

17. Cause → Result Linking

These are particularly useful for complex sentences.

Cause Result

karena sehingga

sebab maka

lantaran akibatnya

berhubung karenanya

oleh karena oleh karena itu

mengingat dengan demikian

disebabkan oleh alhasil

Example:

Karena hujan deras, jalan banjir sehingga kami terlambat.

“Because of heavy rain, the road flooded, so we were late.”

18. Temporal Correlative Conjunctions

Indonesian English

sejak ... sampai ... from/since ... until ...

sebelum ... setelah ... before ... after ...

ketika ... maka ... when ... then ...

setelah ... kemudian ... after ... then ...

selama ... as long as / while

begitu ... langsung ... as soon as ... immediately ...

tidak lama setelah ... shortly after ...

segera setelah ... immediately after ...

setiap kali ... every time ...

kapan pun ... whenever ...

19. “No Matter / Whoever / Whatever” Conjunction Structures

Indonesian English

siapa pun whoever

apa pun whatever

kapan pun whenever

di mana pun wherever

ke mana pun wherever

dari mana pun from wherever

bagaimana pun however

berapa pun however much/many

seberapa pun however much

bagaimanapun juga however / nevertheless

siapa saja whoever / anyone

apa saja whatever / anything

di mana saja wherever / anywhere

kapan saja whenever / anytime

Examples:

Siapa pun yang datang boleh masuk.

“Whoever comes may enter.”

Apa pun yang terjadi, saya akan tetap di sini.

“Whatever happens, I will stay here.”

Bagaimanapun juga, kita harus pergi.

“Nevertheless, we have to go.”

20. Formal / Literary Conjunctions

These are more formal, literary, or less common in everyday speech.

Indonesian English

tatkala when

manakala when / whenever

bilamana when / if

kendati although

kendatipun although

sungguhpun although

sekalipun even though

seraya while

sembari while

lantaran because

nian very / exceedingly — not normally a conjunction

tatkala when

sedari since

semenjak since

seusai after

sehabis after

andai if

andaikan if / suppose

sekiranya if

bahwasanya that / indeed that

manakala when / if

21. Common Spoken Conjunctions

Indonesian English

kalau if / when

kalo if / when — informal spelling

tapi but

terus then / and then

lalu then

jadi so

soalnya because / the reason is

karena because

sebab because

biar so that / let

supaya so that

kayak like / as — colloquial

seperti like / as

makanya that's why

lagipula besides / moreover

toh anyway / after all

padahal whereas / even though

malah instead / even

justru instead / precisely

kalo and tapi are informal spoken/written forms of kalau and tetapi.

<h2>11- PREPOSITIONS:</h2>

# Indonesian Transliteration English

1 di di in / at / on

2 ke ke to / toward

3 dari dari from

4 pada pada at / on / upon

5 kepada kepada to / toward

6 untuk untuk for

7 bagi bagi for

8 dengan dengan with / by

9 tanpa tanpa without

10 tentang tentang about

11 mengenai mengenai concerning / about

12 akan akan about / regarding / future

13 terhadap terhadap toward / against / regarding

14 oleh oleh by

15 dalam dalam in / within

16 antara antara between / among

17 atas atas above / on / over

18 bawah bawah under / below

19 depan depan in front of

20 belakang belakang behind

21 samping samping beside

22 dekat dekat near

23 sekitar sekitar around

24 sekeliling sekeliling around / surrounding

25 sepanjang sepanjang along / throughout

26 selama selama during / for

27 sejak sejak since

28 semenjak semenjak since

29 hingga hingga until / up to

30 sampai sampai until / to

31 demi demi for the sake of

32 lewat lewat via / through / past

33 melalui melalui through / via

34 menurut menurut according to

35 sebagai sebagai as

36 seperti seperti like / such as

37 daripada daripada than / rather than

38 berkat berkat thanks to

39 gara-gara gara-gara because of / due to

40 lantaran lantaran because of

41 akibat akibat as a result of

42 berdasarkan berdasarkan based on

43 sesuai sesuai according to / in accordance with

44 bersama bersama together with

45 beserta beserta along with

46 terhadap terhadap toward / against

47 guna guna for / for the purpose of

48 via via via

49 versus versus versus / against

50 per per per / each

2. Place and Location

di — in / at / on

di rumah

di rumah

“at home”

di Jakarta

di Jakarta

“in Jakarta”

di meja

di meja

“on the table”

di + place is normally written separately.

ke — to / toward

ke sekolah

ke sekolah

“to school”

ke Jakarta

ke Jakarta

“to Jakarta”

ke rumah

ke rumah

“home / to the house”

dari — from

dari rumah

dari rumah

“from home”

dari Jakarta

dari Jakarta

“from Jakarta”

antara — between / among

antara dua kota

antara dua kota

“between two cities”

antara mereka

antara mereka

“among them”

dekat — near

dekat sekolah

dekat sekolah

“near the school”

di dekat rumah

di dekat rumah

“near the house”

sekitar — around

sekitar rumah

sekitar rumah

“around the house”

di sekitar kota

di sekitar kota

“around the city”

3. Position Prepositions

Indonesian English

di atas on / above

di bawah under / below

di depan in front of

di belakang behind

di samping beside

di sebelah next to

di antara between / among

di dalam inside / in

di luar outside

di sekitar around

di sekeliling around / surrounding

di tengah in the middle of

di ujung at the end of

di bagian in the part of

di sisi on the side of

di dekat near

di seberang across from / opposite

di sepanjang along

di balik behind / beyond

di antara between

Examples

Buku itu di atas meja.

Buku itu di atas meja.

“The book is on the table.”

Mobil itu di depan rumah.

Mobil itu di depan rumah.

“The car is in front of the house.”

Dia berdiri di belakang saya.

Dia berdiri di belakang saya.

“He is standing behind me.”

4. Direction and Destination

Indonesian English

ke to

menuju toward

menuju ke toward

mengarah ke toward / directed toward

sampai ke as far as / up to

hingga ke up to

ke arah toward

ke dalam into

ke luar out of / outside

ke atas upward / onto

ke bawah downward / under

ke depan forward / to the front

ke belakang backward / to the back

ke samping to the side

ke sebelah to the side of

ke tengah into the middle

ke seberang across / to the opposite side

Example

Dia berjalan ke arah sekolah.

Dia berjalan ke arah sekolah.

“He walked toward the school.”

5. Source / Origin

Indonesian English

dari from

berasal dari originate from

datang dari come from

keluar dari come/go out of

jauh dari far from

dekat dari near/from near

sejak dari since/from

mulai dari starting from

terpisah dari separated from

Example

Saya berasal dari Indonesia.

Saya berasal dari Indonesia.

“I come from Indonesia.”

6. Recipient / Direction Toward a Person

Indonesian English

kepada to

pada to / toward

terhadap toward

untuk for

bagi for

kepada

Usually used with people or institutions as recipients.

Saya memberikan buku kepada dia.

Saya memberikan buku kepada dia.

“I give the book to him.”

pada

Often used with people in certain fixed constructions.

Menurut saya

Menurut saya

“In my opinion.”

Pada saya

Pada saya

“To me / in my view.”

7. Beneficiary / Purpose

Indonesian English

untuk for

bagi for

demi for the sake of

guna for / for the purpose of

buat for — informal

demi kepentingan for the sake of

untuk keperluan for the purpose of

bagi kepentingan for the benefit of

Examples

Ini untuk kamu.

Ini untuk kamu.

“This is for you.”

Dia melakukan itu demi keluarganya.

Dia melakukan itu demi keluarganya.

“He did that for the sake of his family.”

8. Instrument / Means

dengan — with / by

Saya menulis dengan pena.

Saya menulis dengan pena.

“I write with a pen.”

It can indicate:

instrument → with

manner → with

accompaniment → with

means → by

Examples

Dia datang dengan mobil.

“He came by car.”

Saya pergi dengan teman saya.

“I went with my friend.”

melalui — through / via

Saya mengirim surat melalui pos.

“I sent the letter through the mail.”

lewat — via / through

Kami pergi lewat jalan itu.

“We went via that road.”

via — via

Kami mengirimnya via email.

“We sent it via email.”

9. Absence

tanpa — without

Dia pergi tanpa saya.

Dia pergi tanpa saya.

“He went without me.”

Dia pergi tanpa berkata apa-apa.

Dia pergi tanpa berkata apa-apa.

“He left without saying anything.”

10. Topic / Reference

Indonesian English

tentang about

mengenai concerning / about

perihal regarding

ihwal concerning / regarding

soal about / concerning

terkait concerning / related to

berkenaan dengan concerning

sehubungan dengan in connection with

menyangkut concerning

mengenai regarding

Examples

Kami berbicara tentang politik.

“We talked about politics.”

Saya membaca buku mengenai sejarah.

“I read a book about history.”

Informasi terkait masalah ini penting.

“Information concerning this issue is important.”

11. Reference / Relation

Indonesian English

terhadap toward / regarding

kepada toward / to

mengenai concerning

tentang about

terkait related to

berkenaan dengan concerning

sehubungan dengan in relation to

dalam hal in terms of / regarding

dalam konteks in the context of

dalam kaitannya dengan in relation to

Example

Sikapnya terhadap saya berubah.

His attitude toward me changed.

12. Time Prepositions

Indonesian English

pada at / on

di in / on

sejak since

semenjak since

sedari since

selama during / for

sepanjang throughout

hingga until

sampai until

sebelum before

sesudah after

setelah after

menjelang approaching / before

sekitar around

sejak ... since ...

mulai starting from

dari from

antara between

Examples

Saya bekerja pada hari Senin.

“I work on Monday.”

Dia tinggal di sini selama dua tahun.

“He lived here for two years.”

Saya menunggu sampai pukul lima.

“I waited until five o'clock.”

Kami datang sebelum makan malam.

“We came before dinner.”

13. pada vs di

This is particularly important.

di

Usually location:

di rumah

“at home”

di sekolah

“at school”

pada

Often used with:

time

abstract reference

people in certain constructions

certain fixed expressions

pada hari Senin

“on Monday”

pada tahun 2020

“in 2020”

pada saya

“to me / in my view”

14. Duration

Indonesian English

selama for / during

sepanjang throughout

selama ... for ...

sepanjang ... throughout ...

hingga until

sampai until

sejak since

semenjak since

dari ... sampai ... from ... until ...

sejak ... hingga ... since ... until ...

Example

Saya tinggal di sana selama tiga tahun.

“I lived there for three years.”

Dia bekerja sepanjang hari.

“He worked all day.”

15. Limit / Endpoint

Indonesian English

sampai until / up to

hingga until / up to

sampai ke up to

hingga ke up to

sampai dengan up to / until

hingga dengan up to — formal/less common

sebatas limited to / as far as

sepanjang along / throughout

sampai dengan

Very common in formal Indonesian.

Dari Senin sampai dengan Jumat.

“From Monday through Friday.”

16. Comparison

Indonesian English

daripada than / rather than

seperti like / as

sebagai as

sebagaimana as

dibandingkan dengan compared with

dibanding dengan compared with

berbeda dengan different from

sama dengan the same as

serupa dengan similar to

mirip dengan similar to

Examples

Dia lebih tinggi daripada saya.

“He is taller than me.”

Ini sama dengan yang saya punya.

“This is the same as what I have.”

17. According To / Basis

Indonesian English

menurut according to

berdasarkan based on

sesuai according to / in accordance with

sesuai dengan in accordance with

berdasarkan pada based on

menurut pendapat according to the opinion

menurut saya in my opinion

berdasarkan data based on the data

Examples

Menurut saya, ini benar.

“In my opinion, this is correct.”

Berdasarkan data tersebut, hasilnya berbeda.

“Based on that data, the result is different.”

18. Cause / Reason Prepositions

Indonesian English

karena because of

lantaran because of

gara-gara because of / due to

berkat thanks to

akibat as a result of

disebabkan oleh caused by

oleh karena because of

karena adanya because of the existence of

berhubung dengan due to / in connection with

sehubungan dengan in connection with

Examples

Pertandingan dibatalkan karena hujan.

“The match was canceled because of rain.”

Dia berhasil berkat kerja kerasnya.

“He succeeded thanks to his hard work.”

Dia terlambat gara-gara kemacetan.

“He was late because of the traffic jam.”

19. Agent in Passive Sentences

oleh — by

Buku itu ditulis oleh dia.

Buku itu ditulis oleh dia.

“The book was written by him.”

Rumah itu dibangun oleh pemerintah.

“The house was built by the government.”

Important

Indonesian often omits oleh when the agent is a pronoun or when the agent is obvious:

Buku itu saya baca.

“I read the book.”

So oleh is especially common with third-person agents and formal passive constructions.

20. Association / Accompaniment

Indonesian English

dengan with

bersama with / together with

beserta along with

bersama-sama dengan together with

berikut along with / including

termasuk including

tanpa without

Examples

Saya pergi bersama dia.

“I went with him.”

Dia datang beserta keluarganya.

“He came along with his family.”

21. Inclusion / Exclusion

Indonesian English

termasuk including

bersama together with

beserta along with

selain besides / apart from

kecuali except

tanpa without

di luar outside / excluding

selain daripada apart from / other than

terkecuali except

kecuali untuk except for

Examples

Semua orang datang kecuali dia.

“Everyone came except him.”

Harga itu sudah termasuk pajak.

“The price already includes tax.”

22. Exception

Indonesian English

kecuali except

terkecuali except

selain besides / except

selain daripada other than

kecuali untuk except for

dengan pengecualian with the exception of

di luar outside / excluding

23. Opposition / Against

Indonesian English

terhadap against / toward

melawan against

versus versus

berhadapan dengan facing / against

bertentangan dengan contrary to

berlawanan dengan contrary to

melawan against

Example

Mereka berjuang melawan ketidakadilan.

“They fought against injustice.”

24. Relationship / Connection

Indonesian English

dengan with

terhadap toward / regarding

mengenai concerning

terkait dengan related to

berhubungan dengan related to

berkenaan dengan concerning

sehubungan dengan in connection with

berkaitan dengan related to

dalam kaitannya dengan in relation to

dalam hubungannya dengan in relation to

25. Purpose / Function

Indonesian English

untuk for

bagi for

demi for the sake of

guna for / in order to

buat for

dalam rangka in the context of / as part of

dalam upaya in an effort to

dengan tujuan with the aim of

untuk keperluan for the purpose of

demi kepentingan for the sake of

Example

Kami bekerja untuk keluarga kami.

“We work for our family.”

Pemerintah melakukan program itu dalam rangka meningkatkan pendidikan.

“The government carried out the program in order to improve education.”

26. Formal Prepositions / Prepositional Expressions

Indonesian English

berdasarkan based on

berdasarkan pada based on

berkenaan dengan concerning

berhubungan dengan related to

berkaitan dengan related to

sehubungan dengan in connection with

sejalan dengan in line with

sesuai dengan in accordance with

bertentangan dengan contrary to

berlawanan dengan contrary to

dibandingkan dengan compared with

terkait dengan related to

dalam hal in terms of

dalam konteks in the context of

dalam rangka in the framework/context of

dalam upaya in an effort to

dalam kaitannya dengan in relation to

dalam hubungannya dengan in relation to

atas dasar on the basis of

atas nama on behalf of / in the name of

atas on behalf of / concerning, in certain formal uses

seputar around / concerning

perihal regarding

ihwal concerning

menyangkut concerning

27. atas — Several Meanings

atas is especially versatile.

Phrase English

di atas meja on the table

di atas kepala above the head

atas nama on behalf of / in the name of

atas dasar on the basis of

atas permintaan at the request of

atas persetujuan with the approval of

atas perhatian for your attention

atas keberhasilan for the success of / regarding the success of

Example

Dia berbicara atas nama kelompoknya.

“He spoke on behalf of his group.”

28. dalam — In / Within / In Terms Of

Phrase English

dalam rumah in the house

di dalam rumah inside the house

dalam waktu satu jam within one hour

dalam hal ini in this matter

dalam konteks ini in this context

dalam rangka in the context of / as part of

dalam upaya in an effort

dalam kaitannya dengan in relation to

dalam bentuk in the form of

dalam bahasa Indonesia in Indonesian

29. luar / di luar

Phrase English

di luar rumah outside the house

di luar negeri abroad

di luar kota outside the city

di luar konteks out of context

di luar kemampuan beyond one's ability

di luar dugaan beyond expectation

di luar itu apart from that

30. samping / di samping

Phrase English

di samping rumah beside the house

di samping saya beside me

di samping itu besides / in addition

di samping sebagai besides being

So di samping can be spatial “beside” or connective “besides/in addition.”

31. seberang

Indonesian English

di seberang jalan across the road

di seberang sungai across the river

ke seberang to the other side

dari seberang from across

32. balik

Indonesian English

di balik pintu behind the door

di balik layar behind the scenes

di balik itu behind that

di balik keputusan itu behind that decision

33. tengah

Indonesian English

di tengah kota in the middle of the city

di tengah jalan in the middle of the road

di tengah-tengah mereka among/in the midst of them

di tengah situasi amid the situation

34. ujung

Indonesian English

di ujung jalan at the end of the road

di ujung meja at the end of the table

ke ujung kota to the edge/end of the city

sampai ujung all the way to the end

35. sepanjang

sepanjang means “along” spatially or “throughout” temporally.

Example English

sepanjang jalan along the road

sepanjang sungai along the river

sepanjang hari throughout the day

sepanjang tahun throughout the year

sepanjang hidupnya throughout his/her life

36. per

per means “per / each” and is common in measurements, rates, and formal language.

Indonesian English

per hari per day

per orang per person

per kilogram per kilogram

per tahun per year

per bulan per month

per minggu per week

Harganya Rp10.000 per orang.

“The price is Rp10,000 per person.”

37. versus

versus / vs. means “against” or “versus.”

Indonesia versus Malaysia

“Indonesia versus Malaysia”

It is especially common in sports, legal contexts, comparisons, and titles.

38. Informal Prepositions

Indonesian English Register

buat for informal

sama with / to colloquial

lewat via / through everyday

dekat near everyday

kayak like very informal

tentang about everyday

soal about informal

gara-gara because of informal

sama

In colloquial Indonesian:

Saya pergi sama teman saya.

“I went with my friend.”

Standard/formal Indonesian would normally use:

Saya pergi dengan teman saya.

<h2>12- DETERMINERS</h2>

Indonesian Transliteration English

ini ini this

itu itu that

ini semua ini semua all these

itu semua itu semua all those

yang ini yang ini this one

yang itu yang itu that one

di sini di sini here

di situ di situ there

di sana di sana over there

Examples

buku ini

buku ini

“this book”

rumah itu

rumah itu

“that house”

orang-orang ini

orang-orang ini

“these people”

anak-anak itu

anak-anak itu

“those children”

Important

Indonesian demonstratives normally come after the noun:

buku ini = this book

rumah itu = that house

rather than English's:

this book / that house

2. Possessive Determiners — Penentu Kepemilikan

Indonesian possessive words normally follow the noun.

Indonesian Transliteration English

saya saya my

aku aku my

kamu kamu your

Anda Anda your

kau kau your

dia dia his / her

ia ia his / her

beliau beliau his/her — respectful

kami kami our — excluding you

kita kita our — including you

kalian kalian your — plural

mereka mereka their

Examples

buku saya

buku saya

“my book”

rumah kamu

rumah kamu

“your house”

mobil mereka

mobil mereka

“their car”

Short possessive forms

Indonesian also has clitic-like possessive forms:

Form English

-ku my

-mu your

-nya his / her / its / their

Examples:

bukuku

bukuku

“my book”

bukumu

bukumu

“your book”

bukunya

bukunya

“his/her book”

3. Quantifier Determiners — Quantifiers

These specify amount or quantity.

Indonesian Transliteration English

semua semua all

seluruh seluruh all / entire

segenap segenap all / entire

segala segala all / every kind of

tiap tiap each / every

setiap setiap every / each

masing-masing masing-masing each / respective

banyak banyak many / much

sedikit sedikit few / little

beberapa beberapa several / some

sejumlah sejumlah a number of / some

sebagian sebagian some / part of

separuh separuh half

setengah setengah half

kedua kedua both / the two

kedua-duanya kedua-duanya both

seluruhnya seluruhnya all of it

semuanya semuanya all of it / everyone

sisanya sisanya the rest

sebagian besar sebagian besar most / the majority

sebagian kecil sebagian kecil a small portion

mayoritas mayoritas the majority

minoritas minoritas the minority

4. semua — all

semua buku

semua buku

“all books”

semua orang

semua orang

“everyone / all people”

buku-buku itu semuanya bagus.

buku-buku itu semuanya bagus.

“All those books are good.”

5. seluruh — the whole / entire / all

Example English

seluruh dunia the whole world

seluruh kota the entire city

seluruh keluarga the whole family

seluruh negeri the entire country

seluruh dunia

seluruh dunia

“the whole world”

6. segenap — all / entire

More formal/literary than semua.

segenap masyarakat

segenap masyarakat

“the entire community”

segenap keluarga

segenap keluarga

“the whole family”

7. segala — all / every kind of

Often used with abstract or general categories.

Indonesian English

segala sesuatu everything

segala macam all kinds of

segala jenis all types of

segala cara every possible way

segala bentuk all forms of

segala urusan all matters

segala sesuatu

segala sesuatu

“everything”

8. setiap — every / each

setiap hari

setiap hari

“every day”

setiap orang

setiap orang

“every person”

setiap buku

setiap buku

“every book”

Unlike semua, setiap normally focuses on members individually.

semua siswa = all the students

setiap siswa = every student / each student

9. tiap — each / every

tiap hari

tiap hari

“every day”

tiap orang

tiap orang

“each person”

tiap-tiap orang

tiap-tiap orang

“each individual person”

tiap is generally shorter and somewhat less formal than setiap.

10. masing-masing — each / respective

masing-masing siswa

masing-masing siswa

“each student”

Mereka membawa tas masing-masing.

Mereka membawa tas masing-masing.

“They each brought their respective bags.”

11. Indefinite Determiners

Indonesian Transliteration English

suatu suatu a certain / one

seorang seorang a person / one person

seseorang seseorang someone

sesuatu sesuatu something

sebuah sebuah a / one — for many objects

seekor seekor a / one — animal

seorang seorang a / one — person

sebatang sebatang a / one — long object

selembar selembar a / one — flat sheet

sebutir sebutir a / one — small round object

sepucuk sepucuk a / one — letter/firearm etc.

sejumlah sejumlah some / a number of

beberapa beberapa some / several

suatu suatu a certain

salah satu salah satu one of / one particular

salah seorang salah seorang one of the people

salah sebuah salah sebuah one of the objects

12. suatu — a certain / one

suatu hari

suatu hari

“one day”

suatu masalah

suatu masalah

“a certain problem”

suatu ketika

suatu ketika

“once / at one time”

It is generally more formal than simply leaving the noun unmarked.

13. sebuah — one / a

sebuah rumah

sebuah rumah

“a house”

sebuah buku

sebuah buku

“a book”

sebuah mobil

sebuah mobil

“a car”

sebuah is a classifier + se- construction and is especially common with many inanimate count nouns.

14. seorang — one / a person

seorang guru

seorang guru

“a teacher”

seorang wanita

seorang wanita

“a woman”

seorang anak

seorang anak

“a child”

15. seekor — one / a (animal)

seekor kucing

seekor kucing

“a cat”

seekor anjing

seekor anjing

“a dog”

16. Classifier-Based Determiners

Indonesian frequently uses se- + classifier to mean “one / a.”

Indonesian English

seorang one person / a person

sebuah one object / a

seekor one animal / a

sebatang one long object

selembar one sheet

sehelai one piece/sheet of something thin

sebutir one small round object

sepucuk one letter / one small item

sepotong one piece

setangkai one stalk/bunch

seikat one bundle

sekeranjang one basketful

sepasang one pair

sekelompok one group

serombongan one group / party

segelas one glass

secangkir one cup

sebotol one bottle

sekantong one bag

sekotak one box

sekaleng one can

sepiring one plate

semangkuk one bowl

sesendok one spoonful

sepot one pot/container, depending on noun

Examples

segelas air

segelas air

“a glass of water”

secangkir kopi

secangkir kopi

“a cup of coffee”

sebotol susu

sebotol susu

“a bottle of milk”

17. Numeral Determiners

Indonesian numerals can directly determine nouns.

Indonesian English

satu one

dua two

tiga three

empat four

lima five

enam six

tujuh seven

delapan eight

sembilan nine

sepuluh ten

seratus one hundred

seribu one thousand

sejuta one million

pertama first

kedua second

ketiga third

terakhir last

Examples

dua buku

dua buku

“two books”

tiga orang

tiga orang

“three people”

buku pertama

buku pertama

“the first book”

18. Ordinal Determiners

Indonesian English

pertama first

kedua second

ketiga third

keempat fourth

kelima fifth

keenam sixth

ketujuh seventh

kedelapan eighth

kesembilan ninth

kesepuluh tenth

terakhir last

Formation:

ke- + cardinal number

dua → kedua = second

tiga → ketiga = third

empat → keempat = fourth

Example:

rumah kedua

rumah kedua

“the second house”

19. Negative Determiners

Indonesian English

tidak ada no / there is no

tak ada no / there is no

bukan not a / not

tanpa without

tidak satu pun not a single

tak satu pun not a single

tidak seorang pun nobody / no person

tak seorang pun nobody

tidak ada satu pun not even one

tak ada satu pun not even one

Examples

tidak ada buku

tidak ada buku

“there are no books”

tidak seorang pun datang.

tidak seorang pun datang.

“Not a single person came.”

20. pun-Based Determiner Structures

pun can create free-choice or emphatic indefinite expressions.

Indonesian English

apa pun whatever / anything

siapa pun whoever / anyone

mana pun whichever

kapan pun whenever

di mana pun wherever

ke mana pun wherever

bagaimana pun however

berapa pun however many / much

Examples:

apa pun

apa pun

“anything / whatever”

siapa pun

siapa pun

“anyone / whoever”

mana pun

mana pun

“whichever”

21. saja-Based Determiner Structures

Indonesian English

apa saja anything / whatever

siapa saja anyone / whoever

mana saja any / whichever

berapa saja any number / however many

di mana saja anywhere

kapan saja anytime

Example:

Pilih buku mana saja.

Pilih buku mana saja.

“Choose any book.”

22. Question Determiners

Indonesian Transliteration English

apa apa what

siapa siapa which person / who

mana mana which / which one

berapa berapa how many / how much

yang mana yang mana which one

berapa banyak berapa banyak how many / how much

berapa buah berapa buah how many objects

berapa orang berapa orang how many people

jenis apa jenis apa what kind

macam apa macam apa what kind

yang mana saja yang mana saja which ones / whichever

Examples

buku apa?

buku apa?

“what book?”

buku yang mana?

buku yang mana?

“which book?”

berapa buku?

berapa buku?

“how many books?”

23. yang as a Determiner-Like Marker

yang does not have one exact English equivalent.

It can mark a noun phrase or introduce a relative description.

Indonesian English

yang ini this one

yang itu that one

yang pertama the first one

yang kedua the second one

yang lain the other one

yang sama the same one

yang terbesar the biggest one

yang kecil the small one

yang mana which one

Example

Saya memilih yang merah.

Saya memilih yang merah.

“I choose the red one.”

24. Other / Another

Indonesian English

lain other

yang lain the other / another one

lainnya the others / other ones

satu lagi another one / one more

yang berbeda the different one

berbagai various

beragam various / diverse

macam-macam all kinds of / various

aneka various / assorted

bermacam-macam various kinds of

Examples

buku lain

buku lain

“another book / other book”

buku yang lain

buku yang lain

“the other book”

satu lagi

satu lagi

“one more / another one”

25. Various / Different

Indonesian English

berbagai various

beragam various

aneka various / assorted

bermacam-macam various kinds of

macam-macam various kinds of

segala macam all kinds of

berbagai macam various kinds of

sejumlah a number of

Examples:

berbagai negara

berbagai negara

“various countries”

berbagai macam makanan

berbagai macam makanan

“various kinds of food”

26. Distributive Determiners

Indonesian English

setiap every

tiap every

masing-masing each

masing-masingnya each one

seorang demi seorang one person at a time

satu per satu one by one

tiap-tiap each and every

setiap orang everyone / every person

masing-masing orang each person

Example

Setiap siswa mendapat buku.

Setiap siswa mendapat buku.

“Every student gets a book.”

Mereka masing-masing mendapat satu buku.

Mereka masing-masing mendapat satu buku.

“They each received one book.”

27. Collective Determiners

Indonesian English

semua all

seluruh entire / all

segenap all

bersama collective/together

kedua both / the two

kedua-duanya both

semuanya all of them

sekalian all / everyone

serentak all at once

sekelompok a group of

serombongan a group/party of

28. kedua — both / the two

kedua tangan saya

kedua tangan saya

“both my hands”

kedua anak itu

kedua anak itu

“those two children / both children”

kedua-duanya

kedua-duanya

“both of them”

29. Amount Determiners

Indonesian English

banyak many / much

sedikit few / little

beberapa several / some

sejumlah a number of

cukup banyak quite a lot

cukup sedikit quite a few / relatively little

terlalu banyak too many / too much

terlalu sedikit too few / too little

begitu banyak so many / so much

sebanyak as many/as much

sebesar as large as / an amount as large as

sejumlah besar a large number/amount

sejumlah kecil a small number/amount

sebagian some / part of

sebagian besar most / the majority of

sebagian kecil a small portion of

separuh half

setengah half

sepertiga one third

seperempat one quarter

seperlima one fifth

30. Fractional Determiners

Indonesian English

setengah half

separuh half

sepertiga one third

seperempat one quarter

seperlima one fifth

seperenam one sixth

sepertujuh one seventh

seperdelapan one eighth

sepersembilan one ninth

sepersepuluh one tenth

sebagian a portion

sebagian besar most

sebagian kecil a small portion

31. Possessive + Demonstrative Combinations

These can combine.

buku saya ini

my book here / this book of mine

rumah mereka itu

that house of theirs

teman saya itu

that friend of mine

Structure:

Noun + Possessor + Demonstrative

buku + saya + ini

book + my + this

“this book of mine”

32. Determiner Order

A useful general pattern is:

[Quantifier] + Noun + [Possessor] + [Demonstrative]

Examples:

semua buku saya ini

“all these books of mine”

dua buku saya itu

“those two books of mine”

beberapa teman saya

“some of my friends”

setiap buku itu

“each of those books”

There is considerable flexibility depending on what is being emphasized.

Function Formation / Word Example English

This N + ini buku ini this book

That N + itu buku itu that book

My N + saya / -ku buku saya / bukuku my book

Your N + kamu / -mu buku kamu / bukumu your book

His/her N + dia / -nya buku dia / bukunya his/her book

All semua + N semua buku all books

Every setiap + N setiap buku every book

Each masing-masing + N masing-masing siswa each student

Some beberapa + N beberapa buku some books

Many banyak + N banyak buku many books

Few sedikit + N sedikit buku few books

A certain suatu + N suatu hari a certain day

A/an sebuah + N sebuah buku a book

A person seorang + N seorang guru a teacher

An animal seekor + N seekor kucing a cat

Other N + lain buku lain another book

Various berbagai + N berbagai buku various books

Which N + yang mana buku yang mana which book

How many berapa + N berapa buku how many books

Any N + apa saja / mana saja buku apa saja any book

None tidak ada + N tidak ada buku no books

Both kedua + N kedua buku both books

First N + pertama buku pertama the first book

<h2>13- IF CONDITIONAL</h2>

Zero Conditional kalau/jika + present, present Kalau air dipanaskan, air mendidih.

First Conditional kalau/jika + present, akan + verb Kalau hujan, saya akan tinggal di rumah.

Second Conditional seandainya/andaikan + clause, akan + verb Seandainya saya kaya, saya akan membeli rumah.

Third Conditional seandainya/andaikan + past context, akan + verb Seandainya saya belajar, saya akan lulus.

Mixed Conditional seandainya + past context, present result Seandainya saya belajar tahun lalu, sekarang saya menjadi dokter.

Conditional Simple akan + Verb Saya akan makan.

Conditional Continuous (akan) sedang + Verb Saya sedang makan.

Conditional Perfect (akan) sudah + Verb Saya sudah makan.

Conditional Perfect Continuous (akan) sudah + Verb + selama... Saya sudah belajar selama dua jam.

Conditional Simple Negative tidak akan + Verb Saya tidak akan makan. I would not eat

Conditional Continuous Negative tidak sedang + Verb Saya tidak sedang makan.

Conditional Perfect Negative tidak akan + Verb (with past context) Saya tidak akan makan.

Conditional Perfect Continuous Negative rephrased with tidak sedang / belum + duration Saya tidak sedang belajar selama dua jam.

Would never tidak pernah + Verb Saya tidak pernah datang.

Would no longer tidak lagi + Verb Saya tidak lagi bekerja.

Would not yet belum + Verb Saya belum makan.

would be eaten akan di-Verb akan dimakan

would be being eaten sedang di-Verb (context) sedang dimakan

would have been eaten (akan) sudah di-Verb sudah dimakan

would have been being eaten rephrased with sudah/sedang + duration sudah dimakan selama...

would not be eaten tidak akan di-Verb tidak akan dimakan

would not be being eaten tidak sedang di-Verb tidak sedang dimakan

would not have been eaten tidak akan di-Verb (past context) tidak akan dimakan

would not have been being eaten rephrased with tidak sedang + duration tidak sedang dimakan selama...

would not yet be eaten belum di-Verb belum dimakan

would never be eaten tidak pernah di-Verb tidak pernah dimakan

would no longer be eaten tidak lagi di-Verb tidak lagi dimakan

jika if Formal, neutral

kalau if Most common in speech

bila if, when Formal/literary

apabila if, in the event that Very formal

asal as long as, provided that Condition

asal saja provided that Stronger condition

asalkan provided that Formal

asalkan provided that Very common

dengan syarat on condition that Formal

dengan syarat bahwa on the condition that Very formal

selama as long as Condition/duration

selama ... tidak as long as ... not Negative condition

andaikan if only, suppose Unreal/hypothetical

seandainya if only Unreal

sekiranya if, if only Formal/literary

misalkan suppose (that) Giving examples

umpamanya suppose, for example Informal

katakanlah let's say, suppose Hypothetical

kalau saja if only Regret

seumpama if, as if Literary

ibarat as if, like Comparison

<h2>14- COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE</h2>

more / -er lebih + adjective Dia lebih tinggi. He is taller.

more ... than lebih + adjective + daripada Dia lebih tinggi daripada saya. He is taller than me.

less ... than kurang + adjective + daripada Rumah ini kurang besar daripada rumah itu. This house is less big than that house.

as ... as se- + adjective Rumah ini sebesar rumah itu. This house is as big as that house.

as ... as sama + adjective + dengan Dia sama tinggi dengan saya. He is as tall as me.

not as ... as tidak se- + adjective Rumah ini tidak sebesar rumah itu. This house is not as big as that house.

most / -est paling + adjective Dia paling tinggi di kelas. He is the tallest in the class.

most / -est ter- + adjective Dia tertinggi di kelas. He is the tallest in the class.

better lebih baik Buku ini lebih baik. This book is better.

worse lebih buruk / lebih jelek Cuaca ini lebih buruk daripada kemarin. This weather is worse than yesterday's.

best terbaik / paling baik Ini pilihan terbaik. This is the best choice.

worst terburuk / paling buruk Itu hari terburuk dalam hidup saya. That was the worst day of my life.

more (quantity) lebih banyak Saya punya lebih banyak buku daripada dia. I have more books than him/her.

less/fewer lebih sedikit Saya punya lebih sedikit buku daripada dia. I have fewer books than him/her.

most (quantity) paling banyak Dia punya paling banyak buku. He/She has the most books.

least paling sedikit Dia punya paling sedikit buku. He/She has the fewest books.

more often lebih sering Dia lebih sering datang daripada saya. He comes more often than me.

less often lebih jarang Dia lebih jarang datang daripada saya. He comes less often than me.

the most often paling sering Dia paling sering datang ke sini. He comes here most often.

the least often paling jarang Dia paling jarang datang ke sini. He comes here the least often.

more and more semakin + adjective Kota ini semakin besar. This city is getting bigger and bigger.

less and less semakin sedikit / semakin jarang Dia semakin jarang keluar. He goes out less and less often.

the more..., the more... semakin..., semakin... Semakin banyak kamu belajar, semakin pintar kamu. The more you study, the smarter you become.

much more jauh lebih Rumah ini jauh lebih besar daripada rumah itu. This house is much bigger than that house.

a little more sedikit lebih Mobil ini sedikit lebih mahal. This car is a little more expensive.

compared with dibandingkan dengan Dibandingkan dengan mobil itu, mobil ini lebih murah. Compared with that car, this car is cheaper.

among di antara Dia yang paling tinggi di antara kami. He is the tallest among us.

one of the most salah satu yang paling + adjective Dia salah satu siswa yang paling pintar di kelas. He is one of the smartest students in the class.

<h2>15- RELATIVE CLAUSES</h2>

who yang

whom yang

that yang

which yang

whose usually yang + possessed noun (often with -nya)

Subject Noun + yang + Verb orang yang datang person who came

Object Noun + yang + Subject + Verb buku yang saya baca book that I read

Adjective Noun + yang + Adjective rumah yang besar house that is big

Passive Noun + yang + Passive Verb buku yang dibeli book that was bought

Possession Noun + yang + Possessive + ... pria yang mobilnya merah man whose car is red

Place Noun + tempat + Clause kota tempat saya tinggal city where I live

Time Noun + ketika + Clause hari ketika kami bertemu day when we met

Reason alasan mengapa + Clause alasan mengapa dia pergi reason why he left

Ongoing Noun + yang sedang + Verb anak yang sedang makan child who is eating

Completed Noun + yang sudah + Verb buku yang sudah saya baca book that I have read

<h2>16- REPORTED SPEECH AND DIRECT SPEECH</h2>

Direct Speech: Speaker + reporting verb + ":" + "quotation"

Reported Speech: Subject + reporting verb + bahwa + clause

He said he was tired. Dia berkata (bahwa) dia lelah.

She asked where I lived. Dia bertanya di mana saya tinggal.

They told us to wait. Mereka menyuruh kami menunggu.

He promised he would help. Dia berjanji bahwa dia akan membantu.

Statement berkata/mengatakan (bahwa)...

Dia mengatakan bahwa dia sedang belajar. He said that he was studying.

Yes/No question bertanya apakah...

WH-question bertanya + question word...

Command menyuruh/memerintahkan + object + verb

Request meminta + object + (untuk) + verb

Negative command melarang / meminta + object + untuk tidak + verb

Suggestion menyarankan / mengusulkan agar...

Advice menyarankan agar...

Promise berjanji bahwa...

Threat mengancam bahwa...

Warning memperingatkan agar...

Permission mengizinkan + object + verb

Refusal menolak untuk + verb

Passive statement berkata bahwa + passive clause

<h2>17- INFINITIVES AND VERBAL NOUNS</h2>

to eat makan

eating makan / membaca / berenang (depending on context)

to read membaca

reading membaca / pembacaan

to write menulis

writing menulis / penulisan

after eating setelah makan

before sleeping sebelum tidur

without speaking tanpa berbicara

in order to study untuk belajar

I am happy seeing you. Saya senang melihatmu. Subject + Adjective + Verb + Object

I am happy to see you. Saya senang melihatmu. Subject + Adjective + Verb + Object

I plan to eat. Saya berencana makan. Subject + Verb + Verb

I plan to eat. Saya berencana untuk makan. Subject + Verb + untuk + Verb (untuk and without it are both correct)

I plan eating. Saya berencana makan. Same as above

I see him run. Saya melihat dia berlari. Subject + Perception Verb + Object + Verb

I see him running. Saya melihat dia sedang berlari. Subject + Perception Verb + Object + sedang + Verb

I eat to play (reason). Saya makan untuk bermain. Subject + Verb + untuk + Verb

I eat in order to play. Saya makan untuk bermain. Subject + Verb + untuk + Verb

<h2>18- SUBJUNCTIVE</h2>

agar so that

supaya so that

semoga may, hopefully

mudah-mudahan hopefully

seandainya if only

andaikan if only

kalau saja if only

berharap hope

menyarankan suggest

meminta request

mengusulkan propose

bersikeras insist

harus must

perlu necessary

mungkin maybe, perhaps

I suggest that he study. Saya menyarankan agar dia belajar.

I wish I were rich. Seandainya saya kaya.

May God bless you. Semoga Tuhan memberkatimu.

I hope he comes. Saya berharap dia datang.

It is necessary that he be here. Dia harus ada di sini.

Let him go. Biarkan dia pergi.

If I were you... Seandainya saya jadi kamu...

I ask that she come. Saya meminta agar dia datang.

<h2>19- TAG QUESTIONS</h2>

You're tired, aren't you? Kamu lelah, kan?

He came, didn't he? Dia datang, kan?

She isn't here, is she? Dia tidak di sini, kan?

They'll help, won't they? Mereka akan membantu, kan?

This is good, isn't it? Ini bagus, kan?

Aren't you busy? Kamu tidak sibuk? OR: Apakah dia tidak datang? Isn't he coming? (We can add apakah at the beginning of the sentence along with the rest of the sentence)

Isn't he a teacher? Bukankah dia guru?

Haven't you eaten yet? Kamu belum makan?

Don't you like coffee? Kamu tidak suka kopi?

Why didn't you come? Mengapa kamu tidak datang?

Can't you swim? Kamu tidak bisa berenang?

Wasn't the book read? Buku itu tidak dibaca?

Why not try? Mengapa tidak mencoba

<h2>20- MODAL WORDS</h2>

Indonesian Transliteration Meaning Example English

bisa bisa can; be able to Saya bisa membaca. I can read.

dapat dapat can; be able to; may Dia dapat datang besok. He/She can come tomorrow.

boleh boleh may; be allowed to Kamu boleh masuk. You may enter.

harus harus must; have to Saya harus pergi. I must go.

mesti mesti must; have to Kamu mesti belajar. You must study.

perlu perlu need to Saya perlu tidur. I need to sleep.

wajib wajib must; be obliged to Mereka wajib membayar. They must pay.

seharusnya seharusnya should; ought to Kamu seharusnya belajar. You should study.

semestinya semestinya should; ought to Dia semestinya datang. He/She should come.

sebaiknya sebaiknya should; had better Kamu sebaiknya pergi sekarang. You should leave now.

hendaknya hendaknya should; ought to Kita hendaknya berhati-hati. We should be careful.

kiranya kiranya presumably; hopefully; may Kiranya dia datang. Hopefully he/she comes.

mungkin mungkin may; might; perhaps Dia mungkin datang. He/She might come.

barangkali barangkali perhaps; maybe Dia barangkali sibuk. He/She may be busy.

agaknya agaknya apparently; probably Dia agaknya sakit. He/She is probably ill.

rasanya rasanya seemingly; probably; I think Dia rasanya sudah pergi. He/She probably already left.

tampaknya tampaknya apparently; seems Dia tampaknya sibuk. He/She seems busy.

nampaknya nampaknya apparently; seems Dia nampaknya marah. He/She seems angry.

tentu tentu certainly; surely Dia tentu tahu. He/She surely knows.

tentunya tentunya certainly; surely Dia tentunya tahu. He/She certainly knows.

pasti pasti certainly; definitely; must Dia pasti datang. He/She will definitely come.

barangkali barangkali perhaps; maybe Mereka barangkali terlambat. They may be late.

2. Ability / possibility

These correspond especially to can, could, be able to.

Indonesian Transliteration Meaning Formation Example English

bisa bisa can; be able to S + bisa + V Saya bisa membaca. I can read.

dapat dapat can; be able to S + dapat + V Saya dapat membaca. I can read.

mampu mampu be capable of S + mampu + V Dia mampu melakukannya. He/She is capable of doing it.

sanggup sanggup be able/willing to manage S + sanggup + V Dia sanggup bekerja. He/She can manage to work.

kuasa kuasa have the power/ability S + kuasa + V Ia kuasa mengubahnya. He/She has the power to change it.

berkesempatan berkesempatan have an opportunity to S + berkesempatan + V Saya berkesempatan bertemu dengannya. I had the opportunity to meet him/her.

Important distinction

bisa is the normal everyday word for can.

Saya bisa berenang.

Saya bisa berenang.

I can swim.

mampu emphasizes capability/ability.

Dia mampu menyelesaikan pekerjaan itu.

He/She is capable of completing that work.

3. Permission

Indonesian Meaning Example English

boleh may; be allowed to Kamu boleh pergi. You may go.

diperbolehkan be permitted to Anda diperbolehkan masuk. You are permitted to enter.

diizinkan be allowed/permitted to Dia diizinkan pergi. He/She is allowed to leave.

mengizinkan allow Guru mengizinkan kami pergi. The teacher allows us to leave.

dapat may/can Anda dapat menggunakan fasilitas ini. You may use this facility.

Most common

boleh = everyday may / be allowed to

Boleh saya masuk?

May I come in?

4. Obligation / necessity

Indonesian Meaning Strength Example English

harus must; have to strong Kamu harus pergi. You must go.

mesti must; have to strong Kamu mesti pergi. You must go.

wajib must; be obliged to very formal/official Semua siswa wajib hadir. All students must attend.

perlu need to necessity Kamu perlu belajar. You need to study.

diharuskan be required to formal/passive Siswa diharuskan memakai seragam. Students are required to wear uniforms.

dituntut be required/expected to formal Mereka dituntut bekerja keras. They are required to work hard.

harus

Saya harus bekerja.

I must work / I have to work.

mesti

Kamu mesti berhati-hati.

You must be careful.

wajib

Anda wajib membayar pajak.

You are required to pay taxes.

perlu

Saya perlu membeli makanan.

I need to buy food.

5. Advice / recommendation

These correspond mainly to should, ought to, had better.

Indonesian Transliteration Meaning Example English

seharusnya seharusnya should Kamu seharusnya belajar. You should study.

semestinya semestinya should; ought to Dia semestinya datang. He/She should come.

sebaiknya sebaiknya should; had better Kamu sebaiknya tidur. You should go to sleep.

hendaknya hendaknya should; ought to Kita hendaknya berhati-hati. We should be careful.

patut patut ought to; deserve to Kita patut bersyukur. We ought to be grateful.

seyogianya seyogianya ideally; should Pemerintah seyogianya bertindak. The government should act.

selayaknya selayaknya should; appropriately Kita selayaknya menghormati mereka. We should respect them.

Difference

sebaiknya = advice/recommendation

Kamu sebaiknya pergi sekarang.

You should leave now.

seharusnya = what ought to happen / what is expected

Kamu seharusnya sudah sampai.

You should have arrived by now.

6. Possibility / probability

These correspond to may, might, perhaps, probably.

Indonesian Meaning Example English

mungkin may; might; maybe Dia mungkin datang. He/She might come.

barangkali perhaps; maybe Dia barangkali sibuk. He/She may be busy.

agaknya apparently; probably Dia agaknya sakit. He/She is probably ill.

kiranya perhaps; hopefully Kiranya dia datang. Hopefully he/she comes.

tampaknya apparently; seems Dia tampaknya lelah. He/She seems tired.

nampaknya apparently; seems Dia nampaknya marah. He/She seems angry.

rasanya apparently; probably Dia rasanya sudah pulang. He/She probably went home.

kemungkinan possibility/probability Kemungkinan dia datang. It is possible that he/she will come.

besar kemungkinan very likely Besar kemungkinan dia datang. He/She is very likely to come.

barangkali saja perhaps Dia barangkali saja datang. He/She might come.

7. Certainty

Indonesian Meaning Example English

pasti definitely; certainly Dia pasti datang. He/She will definitely come.

tentu certainly; surely Dia tentu tahu. He/She surely knows.

tentunya certainly; surely Mereka tentunya mengerti. They certainly understand.

niscaya certainly; inevitably Dia niscaya berhasil. He/She will certainly succeed.

jelas clearly; certainly Dia jelas tahu. He/She clearly knows.

sudah pasti certainly; definitely Itu sudah pasti benar. That is definitely true.

tentu saja of course; certainly Dia tentu saja boleh. He/She may of course.

pasti akan will definitely Dia pasti akan datang. He/She will definitely come.

8. Intention / volition

Indonesian does not have a direct equivalent of English will/would as a grammatical auxiliary, but intention and future meaning can be expressed with several words.

Indonesian Meaning Example English

akan will; be going to Saya akan pergi. I will go.

mau want to; be willing to Saya mau pergi. I want to go.

ingin want to Saya ingin pergi. I want to go.

hendak intend to; want to Saya hendak pergi. I intend to go.

berniat intend to Dia berniat pergi. He/She intends to leave.

bermaksud intend to; mean to Dia bermaksud pergi. He/She intends to leave.

berkehendak wish/intend Ia berkehendak pergi. He/She wishes/intends to leave.

akan

Saya akan makan.

I will eat.

mau

Saya mau makan.

I want to eat.

hendak

Saya hendak makan.

I intend to eat / I am about to eat.

9. Future / prospective modality

Indonesian Meaning Example English

akan will; going to Dia akan datang. He/She will come.

bakal will; is going to Dia bakal datang. He/She will come.

hendak be about to; intend to Dia hendak pergi. He/She is about to leave.

mau going to/about to/want to Dia mau pergi. He/She is going to leave.

berencana plan to Dia berencana pergi. He/She plans to leave.

rencananya the plan is/intends to Rencananya dia akan pergi. The plan is that he/she will leave.

bakal is particularly common in informal speech.

Dia bakal datang besok.

He/She will come tomorrow.

10. Desire / willingness

Indonesian Meaning Example English

mau want; be willing Saya mau membantu. I want/am willing to help.

ingin want Saya ingin belajar. I want to study.

hendak want/intend Dia hendak berbicara. He/She wants/intends to speak.

bersedia be willing Dia bersedia membantu. He/She is willing to help.

rela be willing to; willingly accept Dia rela menunggu. He/She is willing to wait.

sudi be willing to Dia sudi membantu. He/She is willing to help.

berkenan be willing/pleased to Beliau berkenan hadir. He/She is graciously willing to attend.

11. Lack of ability / impossibility

Indonesian Meaning Example English

tidak bisa cannot Saya tidak bisa datang. I cannot come.

tidak dapat cannot Dia tidak dapat hadir. He/She cannot attend.

tak bisa cannot Saya tak bisa pergi. I can't go.

mustahil impossible Itu mustahil terjadi. That is impossible.

tidak mungkin impossible / cannot be Itu tidak mungkin benar. That cannot be true.

nyaris tidak mungkin almost impossible Hal itu nyaris tidak mungkin terjadi. That is almost impossible to happen.

12. Prohibition

Indonesian Meaning Example English

jangan don't Jangan pergi! Don't go!

dilarang prohibited Dilarang merokok. Smoking is prohibited.

tidak boleh must not; may not Kamu tidak boleh pergi. You must not go.

tak boleh must not Kamu tak boleh masuk. You must not enter.

jangan sampai don't let it happen / make sure not to Jangan sampai terlambat. Don't be late.

hendaknya tidak should not Kamu hendaknya tidak pergi. You should not go.

Important distinction

tidak boleh = prohibition

Kamu tidak boleh merokok.

You must not smoke.

tidak harus = lack of obligation

Kamu tidak harus datang.

You don't have to come.

These are not the same.

13. Lack of necessity

Indonesian Meaning Example English

tidak perlu don't need to Kamu tidak perlu datang. You don't need to come.

tak perlu don't need to Kamu tak perlu menunggu. You don't need to wait.

tidak harus don't have to Kamu tidak harus pergi. You don't have to go.

tidak mesti don't have to Kamu tidak mesti datang. You don't have to come.

tidak wajib not required to Anda tidak wajib hadir. You are not required to attend.

14. Permission vs obligation vs possibility

This distinction is particularly important:

Indonesian Core meaning Example English

bisa ability Saya bisa pergi. I can go.

boleh permission Saya boleh pergi. I may go.

mungkin possibility Saya mungkin pergi. I might go.

harus obligation Saya harus pergi. I must go.

perlu necessity Saya perlu pergi. I need to go.

sebaiknya advice Saya sebaiknya pergi. I should go.

akan future/intention Saya akan pergi. I will go.

mau desire/willingness Saya mau pergi. I want to go.

15. Modal words with akan

Indonesian frequently combines modal expressions with akan.

Formation Example English

mungkin + akan + V Dia mungkin akan datang. He/She might come.

pasti + akan + V Dia pasti akan datang. He/She will definitely come.

seharusnya + akan + V Dia seharusnya akan datang. He/She should be expected to come.

kemungkinan + akan + V Dia kemungkinan akan datang. He/She is likely to come.

diperkirakan akan + V Dia diperkirakan akan datang. He/She is estimated/expected to come.

berencana akan + V Dia berencana akan pergi. He/She plans to leave.

16. Modal combinations

Indonesian can combine several modal expressions.

Possibility + obligation

Dia mungkin harus pergi.

He/She might have to leave.

mungkin + harus + V

Certainty + obligation

Dia pasti harus pergi.

He/She definitely has to leave.

pasti + harus + V

Future + obligation

Dia akan harus pergi.

This is grammatically possible in some contexts, but harus pergi with a future time expression is often more natural:

Dia harus pergi besok.

He/She has to leave tomorrow.

Ability + possibility

Dia mungkin bisa datang.

He/She might be able to come.

mungkin + bisa + V

Ability + obligation

Dia harus bisa melakukannya.

He/She must be able to do it.

harus + bisa + V

Permission + ability

Kamu boleh bisa...?

This combination is generally not natural. Indonesian normally uses boleh + V for permission and bisa + V for ability.

17. Past modality

Indonesian does not conjugate modal words for past tense.

Time is normally established through context, time expressions, or other constructions.

English "could"

Saya bisa berenang ketika kecil.

I could swim when I was young.

English "could have"

Dia sebenarnya bisa datang.

He/She actually could have come.

English "should have"

Dia seharusnya datang kemarin.

He/She should have come yesterday.

English "might have"

Dia mungkin sudah pergi.

He/She might have already left.

Here sudah helps express completed/past meaning.

18. "Must have" / strong inference

Indonesian often uses:

pasti + sudah + V

Dia pasti sudah tidur.

He/She must have already slept.

Or:

pasti + sudah + V

Dia pasti sudah pergi.

He/She must have already left.

Here pasti expresses strong certainty/inference rather than obligation.

Compare:

Dia harus pergi.

He/She must leave. → obligation

Dia pasti sudah pergi.

He/She must have left. → strong inference

19. "Should have"

The usual construction is:

seharusnya + sudah + V

Kamu seharusnya sudah selesai.

You should have finished already.

Or:

Dia seharusnya sudah datang.

He/She should have arrived already.

20. "Might have"

A common construction is:

mungkin + sudah + V

Dia mungkin sudah makan.

He/She might have eaten already.

Or:

mungkin + telah + V

Dia mungkin telah pergi.

He/She might have left.

21. "Can be / may be"

Indonesian frequently uses bisa or dapat:

Ini bisa berbahaya.

This can be dangerous.

Hal itu dapat terjadi.

That can happen / That may happen.

For possibility:

Ini mungkin benar.

This may be true.

22. Formal modal expressions

There are many formal/literary expressions that function modally.

Expression Meaning

seyogianya should; ideally

semestinya should; ought to

selayaknya should; appropriately

hendaknya should; ought to

patut ought to; appropriate to

niscaya certainly; inevitably

kiranya hopefully; may

barangkali perhaps

agaknya apparently; probably

tampaknya apparently; seems

nampaknya apparently; seems

kemungkinan possibility

barangkali saja perhaps

besar kemungkinan very likely

sangat mungkin very likely

sangat kecil kemungkinan very unlikely

mustahil impossible

nyaris mustahil almost impossible

23. Very common Indonesian modal system

English modality Indonesian Example

can bisa Saya bisa pergi.

be able to dapat / mampu Dia mampu melakukannya.

may (permission) boleh Kamu boleh masuk.

may (possibility) mungkin Dia mungkin datang.

might mungkin Dia mungkin datang.

must harus / mesti Kamu harus pergi.

have to harus / mesti Saya harus bekerja.

need to perlu Saya perlu tidur.

be required to wajib Anda wajib hadir.

should seharusnya / semestinya Kamu seharusnya belajar.

ought to hendaknya / semestinya Kita hendaknya berhati-hati.

had better sebaiknya Kamu sebaiknya pergi.

will akan Saya akan pergi.

be going to akan / mau Saya akan pergi.

want to ingin / mau Saya ingin makan.

intend to hendak / berniat Saya hendak pergi.

be willing to bersedia / mau Dia bersedia membantu.

probably mungkin / agaknya / barangkali Dia mungkin datang.

definitely pasti / tentu Dia pasti datang.

certainly pasti / tentu Dia tentu tahu.

apparently tampaknya / nampaknya Dia tampaknya sakit.

don't have to tidak perlu / tidak harus Kamu tidak perlu datang.

must not tidak boleh / jangan Kamu tidak boleh pergi.

cannot tidak bisa / tidak dapat Saya tidak bisa datang.

impossible mustahil / tidak mungkin Itu tidak mungkin.

Master formation table

Modal function Formation Indonesian example Transliteration English

Ability S + bisa + V Saya bisa membaca. saya bisa membaca I can read.

Ability S + dapat + V Dia dapat bekerja. dia dapat bekerja He/She can work.

Permission S + boleh + V Kamu boleh masuk. kamu boleh masuk You may enter.

Possibility S + mungkin + V Dia mungkin datang. dia mungkin datang He/She might come.

Obligation S + harus + V Saya harus pergi. saya harus pergi I must go.

Necessity S + perlu + V Saya perlu tidur. saya perlu tidur I need to sleep.

Requirement S + wajib + V Siswa wajib hadir. siswa wajib hadir Students must attend.

Advice S + seharusnya + V Kamu seharusnya belajar. kamu seharusnya belajar You should study.

Advice S + sebaiknya + V Kamu sebaiknya pergi. kamu sebaiknya pergi You should leave.

Future S + akan + V Saya akan pergi. saya akan pergi I will go.

Desire S + ingin + V Saya ingin makan. saya ingin makan I want to eat.

Intention S + hendak + V Dia hendak pergi. dia hendak pergi He/She intends to leave.

Willingness S + bersedia + V Dia bersedia membantu. dia bersedia membantu He/She is willing to help.

Certainty S + pasti + V Dia pasti datang. dia pasti datang He/She will definitely come.

Probability S + mungkin + V Dia mungkin sibuk. dia mungkin sibuk He/She may be busy.

Prohibition S + tidak boleh + V Kamu tidak boleh pergi. kamu tidak boleh pergi You must not go.

No necessity S + tidak perlu + V Kamu tidak perlu datang. kamu tidak perlu datang You don't need to come.

Inability S + tidak bisa + V Saya tidak bisa datang. saya tidak bisa datang I cannot come.

Strong inference S + pasti sudah + V Dia pasti sudah pergi. dia pasti sudah pergi He/She must have left.

Past possibility S + mungkin sudah + V Dia mungkin sudah pergi. dia mungkin sudah pergi He/She might have left.

Past expectation S + seharusnya sudah + V Dia seharusnya sudah datang. dia seharusnya sudah datang He/She should have arrived.

<h2>21- THERE IS / HAVE / BE</h2>

There is... Ada...

There are... Ada...

There isn't... Tidak ada...

There aren't... Tidak ada...

Is there...? Ada...? / Apakah ada...?

Are there...? Ada...? / Apakah ada...?

There was... Kemarin/Tadi ada...

There were... Kemarin/Tadi ada...

There will be... Besok/Nanti ada...

There has been... Sudah ada...

There had been... Sudah ada... (with past context)

There isn't yet... Belum ada...

There is no longer... Tidak ada lagi...

There has never been... Tidak pernah ada...

ada there is / there are

tidak ada there isn't / there aren't

belum ada there isn't yet

tidak ada lagi there is no longer

sudah ada there is already / there has been

masih ada there is still

pernah ada there was once / there has been

tidak pernah ada there has never been

I have a car. Saya punya mobil.

I have money. Saya punya uang.

I don't have time. Saya tidak punya waktu.

Possession punya (common) Saya punya mobil. = I have a car.

memiliki (formal) Dia memiliki rumah. = He has a house.

Negative possession tidak punya / tidak memiliki Saya tidak punya uang. = I don't have money.

Question punya? / Apakah ... punya? Kamu punya mobil? = Do you have a car?

Have to harus Saya harus pergi. = I have to go.

Have eaten sudah + verb Saya sudah makan. = I have eaten.

Have finished sudah selesai Saya sudah selesai. = I have finished.

Have lunch makan siang Kami makan siang. = We had lunch.

Have coffee minum kopi Saya minum kopi. = I had coffee.

Have a fever demam Saya demam. = I have a fever.

Have an idea punya ide Saya punya ide. = I have an idea.

Have time punya waktu Saya punya waktu. = I have time.

IMPERATIVES:

Command Verb Duduk!

Command + object Verb + Object Baca buku ini!

Polite request Tolong + Verb Tolong tunggu.

Formal invitation Silakan + Verb Silakan masuk.

Negative command Jangan + Verb Jangan pergi.

Prohibition Dilarang + Verb Dilarang merokok.

Invitation Mari/Ayo + Verb Mari makan.

Suggestion Coba + Verb Coba lagi.

Formal request Mohon + Verb Mohon tunggu.

Passive request Mohon/Harap + Passive Verb Mohon formulir diisi.

Formal request Harap + Passive Harap pintu ditutup.

Polite request Mohon + Passive Mohon formulir diisi.

Instruction Passive only Masker dipakai.

Negative Jangan + Passive Jangan dibuka.

Polite negative Harap tidak + Passive Harap tidak diparkir.

Prohibition Dilarang + Verb Dilarang merokok.