Demonstratives
Demonstratives ini/itu, placement rules, and locative adverbs di sini/di situ/di sana
Can use ini/itu to identify and point to objects, and use di sini/di situ/di sana for location
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Ini rumah saya.
This is my house.
Buku itu mahal.
That book is expensive.
Siapa orang itu?
Who is that person?
Duduk di sini, jangan di sana.
Sit here, not there.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
Indonesian has two main demonstratives: ini (this) and itu (that).
Position: After noun = modifier ('buku ini' = this book). As subject = pronoun ('Ini apa?' = What is this?).
Locative adverbs — three distances:
| Word | Meaning | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| di sini | here | near speaker |
| di situ | there | near listener |
| di sana | over there | far from both |
Common Error Patterns
Put ini/itu before the noun instead of after
As modifier: noun + ini/itu. 'buku ini' (this book), NOT 'ini buku'. As subject: 'Ini buku' = This is a book.
Confused di sini/di situ/di sana
sini = near speaker, situ = near listener, sana = far from both. Think: me/you/far.
Ini rumah saya.
This is my house.
'Ini' as subject (no noun before it) = 'This is...'. No copula needed.
Buku itu mahal.
That book is expensive.
'Itu' AFTER the noun 'buku' = 'that book'. This is the modifier position.
Siapa orang itu?
Who is that person?
'Orang itu' = that person. 'Siapa' = who. Question word can be at beginning or end.
Duduk di sini, jangan di sana.
Sit here, not there.
Three-way system: 'di sini' (here, near me), 'di situ' (there, near you), 'di sana' (there, far from both).
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises