agar, supaya, and untuk | Indonesian Grammar

Indonesian purpose expressions answer “what is this action meant to achieve?” The most useful choice is not a word-for-word translation of English to or so that. It is a choice about controller identity: untuk most naturally introduces an action controlled by an already established participant, while agar and supaya can introduce a desired proposition with its own subject.

This page focuses on those three clause linkers. The fuller syntax appears in action complements with untuk and desired-outcome clauses.

The quick choice

Purpose relation	Natural pattern	Register
same participant performs both actions	untuk + predicate	neutral across speech and writing
a desired outcome, often with its own subject	agar + clause	neutral-formal; common in instructions
a desired outcome in everyday planning	supaya + clause	neutral-conversational

Mila datang lebih pagi untuk menata meja pendaftaran.

Mila came earlier to arrange the registration table.

Mila datang lebih pagi agar panitia dapat memeriksa semua perlengkapan.

Mila came earlier so that the committee could inspect all the equipment.

In the first sentence, Mila both comes and arranges. In the second, panitia is the actor of the desired inspection. That change of actor strongly favors agar or supaya.

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Underline the actor of each action. If the same line connects both underlined actors, start by considering untuk. If the second action needs a different underlined actor, use agar or supaya.

Untuk: one controller, a compact purpose

With a straightforward untuk purpose, the second predicate has no overt subject because its actor is recovered from the main clause.

Saya membawa botol kosong untuk mengisinya dengan air di ruang tunggu.

I brought an empty bottle to fill it with water in the waiting area.

Rudi menyalakan komputer untuk memeriksa surel dari klien.

Rudi switched on the computer to check email from the client.

Kami berhenti di minimarket untuk membeli baterai cadangan.

We stopped at a convenience store to buy spare batteries.

Nenek memakai kacamata untuk membaca label obat itu.

Grandmother put on her glasses to read the medicine label.

The subject of mengisi, memeriksa, membeli, and membaca is the same as the main subject. Indonesian does not use a special infinitive form; the second verb keeps its normal morphology.

An imperative supplies the addressee as controller:

Tekan tombol hijau untuk mencetak nomor antrean.

Press the green button to print a queue number.

Silakan pindai kode ini untuk membuka halaman pembayaran.

Please scan this code to open the payment page.

English to is not enough to predict untuk. After modals, desideratives, and phase predicates, Indonesian usually combines directly with the next predicate.

Saya ingin pulang sebelum hujan turun.

I want to go home before it rains.

Tari bisa datang setelah makan siang.

Tari can come after lunch.

Para petugas mulai membersihkan aula pukul enam.

The staff began cleaning the hall at six.

Do not insert untuk merely because English says want to, can, or begin to. In these sentences the second predicate is selected directly, not introduced as a free purpose adjunct.

Agar: a desired proposition

Agar introduces the state of affairs someone wants to make true. It is common in careful speech, notices, instructions, academic prose, and administrative writing (neutral-formal).

Petugas membuka pintu samping agar udara segar masuk.

The officer opened the side door so that fresh air could enter.

Kami mengirim pengingat agar semua peserta membawa kartu identitas.

We sent a reminder so that all participants would bring identification.

Harap periksa kembali alamat agar paket dapat dikirim tanpa penundaan.

Please check the address again so that the parcel can be sent without delay. (formal)

Sekolah menambah lampu di halaman agar siswa merasa aman saat pulang.

The school added lights in the yard so that students would feel safe when leaving.

Each agar clause is a proposition with an identifiable subject: udara segar, semua peserta, paket, or siswa. The desired outcome is not guaranteed; it is the aim behind the first action.

Agar also works when the actor remains the same, especially when ability, ease, or a resulting state matters.

Dina mencatat kata-kata baru agar dapat mengingatnya lebih lama.

Dina writes down new words so that she can remember them longer.

Kami berangkat sebelum fajar agar tidak terjebak kemacetan.

We left before dawn so that we would not get stuck in traffic.

In both, untuk could produce a tighter action purpose: untuk mengingatnya, untuk menghindari kemacetan. Agar presents the wished-for outcome more explicitly.

Supaya: the conversational desired outcome

Supaya has essentially the same core purpose meaning as agar, but it is especially natural in conversation, family instructions, and everyday planning (neutral-conversational).

Geser tasmu supaya Beni bisa duduk di sini.

Move your bag so Beni can sit here. (conversational)

Aku simpan nomornya supaya nanti mudah menghubungi dia.

I'll save the number so it'll be easy to contact him or her later. (conversational)

Tutup jendelanya supaya nyamuk tidak masuk.

Close the window so mosquitoes don't come in. (conversational)

Kita pesan meja dulu supaya tidak perlu menunggu lama.

Let's reserve a table first so we won't need to wait long. (conversational)

A formal notice normally prefers agar:

Mohon matikan telepon genggam agar pertunjukan tidak terganggu.

Please switch off mobile phones so that the performance is not disturbed. (formal notice)

An everyday reminder may prefer supaya:

Matikan suara ponselmu supaya adik tidak terbangun.

Mute your phone so your younger sibling doesn't wake up. (conversational)

The difference is a register tendency, not a difference between possible and impossible outcomes. Supaya also appears in writing, and agar is heard in careful conversation.

Same actor versus changed actor

Compare the structures directly:

Bima membawa bekal untuk makan di kereta.

Bima brought packed food to eat on the train. (Bima eats)

Bima membawa bekal supaya anaknya bisa makan di kereta.

Bima brought packed food so that his child could eat on the train. (the child eats)

Sari menabung untuk membeli mesin jahit baru.

Sari is saving to buy a new sewing machine. (Sari buys)

Sari menabung agar putrinya dapat melanjutkan sekolah.

Sari is saving so that her daughter can continue her education. (the daughter studies)

An overt noun after untuk can initially look like a beneficiary rather than the subject of an action. This makes forms such as untuk tamu masuk less clear in careful Indonesian. A full agar/supaya clause displays the participant roles immediately.

Raka menyalakan lampu teras agar kurir melihat nomor rumah.

Raka turned on the porch light so that the courier would see the house number.

Ibu membuka pagar supaya anak-anak bisa membawa sepeda keluar.

Mother opened the gate so the children could take their bicycles out. (conversational)

Negative purpose

Put tidak inside the desired proposition, before the predicate whose occurrence is being prevented.

Saya menyimpan kuitansinya agar tidak kehilangan bukti pembayaran.

I kept the receipt so as not to lose proof of payment.

Petugas memasang tali pembatas agar pengunjung tidak menyentuh lukisan.

The staff installed a barrier so visitors would not touch the painting.

Kami membungkus gelasnya dua kali supaya tidak pecah di perjalanan.

We wrapped the glass twice so it wouldn't break on the journey. (conversational)

Ayah menurunkan volume televisi supaya bayi tidak terganggu.

Dad lowered the television volume so the baby wouldn't be disturbed. (conversational)

Untuk tidak + verb occurs when a controlling expression selects deliberate nonaction, such as memilih untuk tidak menjawab “choose not to answer.” As an ordinary negative purpose, agar/supaya tidak is generally clearer.

Juru bicara memilih untuk tidak berkomentar sebelum penyelidikan selesai.

The spokesperson chose not to comment before the investigation was completed. (formal)

Clause order and punctuation

A final purpose clause is integrated with the preceding action and normally has no comma.

Kami menutup tirai agar cahaya tidak mengenai layar.

We closed the curtains so the light would not hit the screen.

When the purpose clause frames the whole instruction, it may come first and is followed by a comma under EYD V.

Agar semua tamu mendapat kursi, panitia membuka ruang tambahan.

So that every guest would get a seat, the committee opened an additional room.

Supaya sausnya tidak gosong, aduk terus dengan api kecil.

So the sauce doesn't burn, keep stirring it over low heat. (conversational instruction)

Common Mistakes

Using untuk with an unlicensed changed subject

❌ Dodi membuka jendela untuk udara dingin masuk.

Incorrect in careful Indonesian — untuk does not clearly establish udara dingin as a new purpose-clause subject.

✅ Dodi membuka jendela agar udara dingin dapat masuk.

Dodi opened the window so that cool air could enter.

Inserting untuk before every English infinitive

❌ Lani mau untuk menunggu di luar.

Incorrect neutral complement — mau takes the intended action directly.

✅ Lani mau menunggu di luar sampai tokonya buka.

Lani wants to wait outside until the shop opens.

Doubling the purpose linker

❌ Kami berbisik untuk supaya tidak mengganggu kelas sebelah.

Incorrect — two linkers compete for one purpose relation.

✅ Kami berbisik supaya tidak mengganggu kelas di sebelah.

We whispered so as not to disturb the class next door. (conversational)

Putting negation before agar

❌ Mereka berangkat pagi tidak agar terlambat.

Incorrect order — negation belongs inside the desired-outcome clause.

✅ Mereka berangkat pagi agar tidak terlambat mengikuti pemeriksaan.

They left in the morning so they would not be late for the examination.

Adding a comma before a final integrated purpose

❌ Saya menulis nama di kotaknya, agar tidak tertukar.

Incorrect standard punctuation — the final purpose clause is integrated.

✅ Saya menulis nama pada kotaknya agar tidak tertukar dengan paket lain.

I wrote a name on the box so it would not get mixed up with another parcel.

Key Takeaways

Untuk most naturally links a second action controlled by the established actor.
Agar and supaya package a desired proposition and readily introduce a different subject.
Agar trends neutral-formal; supaya trends conversational.
Put negative tidak inside the purpose clause before its predicate.
Indonesian has no universal infinitive linker: English to does not automatically require untuk.

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