Grammar Reference

Indonesian alphabet, vowels, consonants, and digraphs (ng, ny, kh, sy)

Can recognize and pronounce Indonesian letters, vowels, and key digraphs

Personal pronouns including the kami/kita distinction

Can use personal pronouns including the kami/kita distinction and formal address

Possessive pronouns, -nya suffix, and punya (to own/have)

Can express possession using pronouns after nouns, the -nya suffix, and punya

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

SVO word order, zero copula, and basic sentence patterns

Can form basic sentences with subjects, verbs, adjectives, and nouns without a copula

Question words (apa, siapa, di mana, kapan, mengapa, bagaimana, berapa) and question formation

Can ask and understand basic questions about identity, location, time, and price

Negation with tidak, bukan, belum, and jangan

Can negate sentences correctly using tidak, bukan, belum, and jangan

Commands, requests, and invitations: tolong, silakan, mohon, jangan, -lah, mari/ayo

Can give simple commands, make polite requests, and express prohibitions in everyday situations

Numbers 0-1000+, the se- prefix, and practical number usage

Can understand and use numbers for age, prices, quantities, and basic counting

Measure words / classifiers: orang, buah, ekor, batang, lembar, biji

Can use basic classifiers to count people, animals, objects, and other items correctly

Prepositions: di (at/in), ke (to), dari (from), pada, untuk, dengan, tanpa, tentang

Can use basic prepositions to describe location, direction, and origin

Basic verbs: no conjugation! makan, minum, pergi, datang, tidur, beli, jual, ada

Can use basic Indonesian verbs in simple sentences without conjugation

me- prefix for active transitive verbs: nasalization rules (mem-, men-, meng-, meny-)

Can form active transitive verbs using the meN- prefix with correct nasalization

ber- prefix for intransitive verbs: bernama, berbicara, berjalan, bekerja, belajar, bermain, berenang

Can use ber- prefix to form intransitive verbs and distinguish them from meN- verbs

di- prefix for passive voice: dimakan, ditulis, dibaca. Active vs passive. 'oleh' for agent.

Can form and understand passive sentences using the di- prefix

Verb suffixes -kan (benefactive/causative) and -i (locative/repetitive), often combined with meN- prefix

Can recognize and use basic -kan and -i verb suffixes to express benefactive actions and directed actions

Adjectives: after noun, no agreement, yang construction, predicate use without 'is'

Can use adjectives to describe people, places, and things in correct noun+adjective order

Comparisons: lebih...dari (more...than), paling (most), se- (as...as), kurang (less)

Can make comparisons using lebih/paling/se-/kurang with adjectives

Time expressions: sudah/sedang/akan for tense, days, time of day, clock time. setengah trap!

Can express past, present, and future using time markers and tell the time

Coordinating and subordinating conjunctions: dan, atau, tetapi, karena, kalau, supaya, ketika, sebelum, sesudah, sambil

Can connect ideas using coordinating and subordinating conjunctions in everyday sentences

Reduplication for plurals, variety, and intensity: full reduplication, partial reduplication, reduplication with affixes

Can understand and use reduplication for plurals, variety, and casual actions in everyday Indonesian

Formal vs informal register: saya/aku, Anda/kamu, tidak/nggak, Bapak/Ibu usage

Can distinguish between formal and informal Indonesian and choose the appropriate register for common social situations