The practical contrast is control and endpoint salience. Use di- when an affected participant is the clause's center but the sentence still reports an event: somebody opens, reads, hears, or moves it. Use ter- when the clause foregrounds an attained state, reduced control, perceptibility, or possibility instead. Neither prefix is an ordinary past-tense marker.
This guide focuses on the choice itself. The ter- overview and di- passive overview give fuller form and argument patterns.
The fastest decision
Ask what the listener should notice:
- A deliberate or simply bounded event affecting a patient? Choose di-.
- The condition that now holds at the endpoint? Choose result-state ter-.
- A mishap or action with reduced control? Choose involuntary ter-.
- Whether something is perceptible or possible? Choose lexicalized ter- such as terlihat, terdengar, or terbaca.
The required door contrast is compact but revealing:
| Clause | Question answered | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| Pintu terbuka. | What condition is the door in? | The door is open. |
| Pintu dibuka. | What happens to the door? | The door is opened. |
Ketika kami tiba, pintu samping sudah terbuka.
When we arrived, the side door was already open.
Pintu samping dibuka petugas lima menit sebelum acara dimulai.
The side door was opened by an attendant five minutes before the event began.
Angin kencang membuat jendela dapur terbuka lagi.
A strong wind made the kitchen window come open again.
The ter- clause makes the open endpoint salient; the di- clause packages an opening event and readily admits an actor.
Di- keeps an event in view
A di- passive promotes the affected participant while retaining an event with an implicit or explicit actor. The actor may be unknown, irrelevant, or recoverable.
Jadwal penerbangan diubah karena cuaca buruk.
The flight schedule was changed because of bad weather.
Dokumen itu diperiksa dua kali sebelum ditandatangani.
The document was checked twice before it was signed.
Lampu aula dimatikan oleh teknisi setelah pertunjukan.
The hall lights were switched off by the technician after the performance.
Sepeda saya dipindahkan petugas ke dekat gerbang.
My bicycle was moved by an attendant to near the gate.
These clauses can describe intentional actions even when the actor is omitted. Dokumen diperiksa does not mean that the document somehow entered a “checked” state by accident; it reports an examination.
Time comes from context or markers, not di- itself.
Formulir itu diperiksa setiap pagi.
That form is checked every morning.
Formulir itu sedang diperiksa sekarang.
That form is being checked now.
Formulir itu akan diperiksa besok.
That form will be checked tomorrow.
The same prefix spans habitual, progressive, and future readings. Calling di- “past passive” therefore gives the learner the wrong decision rule.
Ter- foregrounds an attained state
With result-state ter-, the sentence describes the condition of the theme at the reference time. It does not assert a deliberate actor or a bounded event, even when an earlier event plausibly produced the state.
Semua kursi sudah tersusun rapi sebelum tamu datang.
All the chairs were already neatly arranged before the guests arrived.
Nama para pemenang tertulis di papan dekat pintu masuk.
The winners' names are written on the board near the entrance.
Koper merah itu masih terkunci di ruang penyimpanan.
That red suitcase is still locked in the storage room.
Dua kursi depan sudah terisi.
The two front seats are already occupied.
Not every apparent pair is equally productive. Many ter- forms are lexicalized, so learners must verify that the word exists with the intended meaning. There is no mechanical instruction “replace di- with ter- to get a state.”
Compare an event and its endpoint:
Kotak itu ditutup Rina sebelum dipindahkan.
The box was closed by Rina before it was moved.
Saat ditemukan, kotak itu tertutup rapat.
When it was found, the box was tightly closed.
The first sentence can answer “Who closed it?” The second answers “What state was it in?”
Reduced control and accidental events
Another ter- family presents the affected participant as having little control or the event as unplanned. This reading is common with mishaps and inadvertent actions.
Ponsel saya terbawa ke kantor di dalam tas adik.
My phone was accidentally carried to the office in my sibling's bag.
Saya terjatuh ketika turun dari bus yang masih bergerak.
I took a fall while getting off a bus that was still moving.
Kaki saya terinjak penumpang lain saat kereta berhenti mendadak.
My foot was accidentally stepped on by another passenger when the train stopped suddenly.
Berkas lama itu terhapus ketika komputer mengalami gangguan.
That old file was accidentally deleted when the computer malfunctioned.
Compare deliberate passive action:
Berkas duplikat itu dihapus administrator untuk menghemat ruang.
The duplicate file was deleted by the administrator to save space.
The choice does not prove real-world intention. Terhapus is a way of presenting the deletion as unintended or responsibility-backgrounding; evidence may contradict that presentation.
Terlihat and terdengar: visible, audible, or apparent
Perceptibility predicates make a sight or sound available from a viewpoint without requiring a specific perception event. Terlihat can mean “be visible,” “look/seem”; terdengar can mean “be audible,” “sound/seem.”
Dari jembatan ini, pulau kecil itu terlihat jelas.
From this bridge, that small island is clearly visible.
Rina terlihat lebih tenang setelah berbicara dengan dokter.
Rina looks calmer after speaking with the doctor.
Suara mesin terdengar sampai ke lantai atas.
The sound of the machine can be heard as far as the upper floor.
Usul itu terdengar sederhana, tetapi pelaksanaannya rumit.
That proposal sounds simple, but carrying it out is complicated.
A di- passive instead asserts a perception event.
Rekaman itu didengar oleh tiga orang saksi.
The recording was listened to by three witnesses.
Gerakan mencurigakan itu dilihat petugas melalui kamera pengawas.
That suspicious movement was seen by an officer through a security camera.
Terdengar does not require a hidden agent who deliberately listened. Didengar is eventive and can name the listener.
Tidak terbaca versus tidak dibaca
Under negation, the contrast becomes especially clear. Tidak terbaca evaluates readability or successful perceptibility: the relevant endpoint cannot be reached. Tidak dibaca says that the reading event does not occur.
Nomor seri itu tidak terbaca karena tintanya luntur.
That serial number is illegible because the ink has faded.
Pesan panjang itu tidak dibaca penerimanya sampai selesai.
That long message was not read to the end by its recipient.
Tulisan di layar tidak terbaca dari baris belakang.
The writing on the screen cannot be read from the back row.
Petunjuk keselamatan itu tidak dibaca sebelum mesin dinyalakan.
The safety instructions were not read before the machine was started.
Formal prose may use tidak dapat dibaca for explicit passive possibility. It overlaps with tidak terbaca, but the latter is more compact and lexicalized as an assessment of readability.
Lampiran yang rusak tidak dapat dibaca oleh sistem.
The damaged attachment cannot be read by the system. (formal)
Expressing the actor or cause
Eventive di- readily takes a short bare third-person actor or oleh + actor, especially when the actor is long, formal, or contrastive.
Laporan itu disusun tim audit independen.
The report was prepared by an independent audit team.
Keputusan tersebut diumumkan oleh ketua panitia pada siang hari.
The decision was announced by the committee chair at noon. (formal)
Result-state ter- normally leaves the initiating actor outside the foreground. A nonagentive cause is often expressed with karena, akibat, or another cause phrase.
Pintu gudang terbuka karena kaitnya rusak.
The warehouse door is open because its latch is broken.
Jalan desa itu tertutup akibat tanah longsor.
The village road is blocked as a result of a landslide.
An accidental ter- clause can name an accidental participant, as in Kaki saya terinjak penumpang lain, but a purposeful, fully controlling actor strongly favors di-.
Common Mistakes
1. Treating both prefixes as past passive
❌ Karena kejadiannya kemarin, “pintu terbuka” dan “pintu dibuka” berarti hal yang sama.
Incorrect—terbuka foregrounds a state, while dibuka foregrounds an event; neither prefix marks past tense.
✅ Kemarin pintu itu dibuka pukul tujuh, dan ketika saya tiba pintunya sudah terbuka.
Yesterday the door was opened at seven, and when I arrived it was already open.
2. Using di- for an illegibility property
❌ Nomor di kuitansi itu tidak dibaca karena tintanya kabur.
Wrong for the intended meaning—the problem is legibility, not a person's failure to read.
✅ Nomor di kuitansi itu tidak terbaca karena tintanya kabur.
The number on the receipt is illegible because the ink is blurred.
3. Using ter- with a deliberate actor and direct object
❌ Petugas terkunci pintu utama sebelum pulang.
Incorrect—the deliberate actor requires an active verb such as mengunci.
✅ Petugas mengunci pintu utama sebelum pulang.
The attendant locked the main door before leaving.
4. Forcing an actor into a pure result description
❌ Jendela itu terbuka oleh Rina pukul enam.
Wrong for a deliberate opening event—use an eventive voice.
✅ Jendela itu dibuka Rina pukul enam agar udara masuk.
The window was opened by Rina at six so that air could enter.
5. Reading terdengar as an ordinary passive event
❌ Suara musik terdengar oleh petugas berarti petugas sengaja mendengarkan rekaman itu.
Incorrect—terdengar expresses audibility and does not assert deliberate listening.
✅ Dari ruang depan, suara musik itu terdengar sangat pelan.
From the front room, the music could be heard very faintly.
Key Takeaways
- Choose di- for an eventive passive centered on an affected participant.
- Choose ter- for an attained state, reduced control, or a perceptible/possible endpoint.
- Tidak terbaca evaluates readability; tidak dibaca denies a reading event.
- Terlihat and terdengar need no deliberate perceiver.
- Voice choice expresses control and endpoint salience, not past tense.
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Start learning Indonesian →Related Topics
- ter- Involuntary and Stative Voice: Overview and FormationA2 — Recognize ter- clauses that foreground a result, an involuntary event, or a perceptible and achievable endpoint rather than an intentional actor.
- ter- Involuntary and Stative Voice: Choosing This ConstructionC1 — Choose ter- when a result, low-control undergoer, or perceptible theme matters more than an intentional actor or bounded action.
- di- Passive: Overview and FormationA1 — Recognize and form the Indonesian di- passive, where an affected patient is subject and a third-person agent may follow or remain unspoken.
- di- Passive: Choosing This ConstructionA2 — Choose di- passive when an affected patient is the clause's topic, contrasting it with actor voice and pronoun-agent object voice across genres.
- ter- Involuntary and Stative Voice: Aspect, Modality, and NegationC1 — Combine ter- predicates with aspect, future, possibility, and negation while preserving Indonesian particle order and the construction's stative or low-control meaning.
- di- Passive versus Object VoiceB1 — Choose di- passive or pronominal object voice from the patient’s information status, the actor’s person and form, and the required agent placement.