itu: That, Those, and Given Reference | Indonesian Grammar

Indonesian itu can mean “that,” “those,” or a less visibly translated signal that the listener can identify the referent. Like ini, it normally follows its noun: buku itu “that book/those books.” It can point to something at a distance, call back to something already mentioned, or invoke knowledge shared by speaker and listener.

The unifying idea is identifiability. Physical distance is one way to make a referent identifiable—both speakers can see the book over there—but prior mention and shared experience work just as well. This page develops that insight while leaving classifier selection, noun derivation, and full relative-clause analysis to dedicated pages.

Distal pointing: “that over there”

Use itu after a noun when pointing to something away from the speaker or contrasting it with a nearer item.

Tolong ambil buku itu di rak paling atas.

Please take that book on the top shelf.

Siapa yang tinggal di rumah itu?

Who lives in that house?

Saya mau mangga itu, bukan yang di sebelahnya.

I want that mango, not the one next to it.

In these uses, gesture and shared sight can establish the referent. The structure remains noun + itu, unlike English that + noun.

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Start with physical pointing, but do not stop there. Itu means “the identifiable one outside my immediate sphere,” and discourse can establish that identity without any visible object.

Itu is neutral for number

Indonesian does not change itu for singular versus plural.

Buku-buku itu milik perpustakaan sekolah.

Those books belong to the school library.

Tiga rumah itu rusak akibat banjir.

Those three houses were damaged by the flood.

Anak-anak itu sedang bermain di halaman.

Those children are playing in the yard.

Plurality is carried by a number, reduplication, or context. English alternates that/those; Indonesian keeps itu.

Narrative callback: a referent already mentioned

After a speaker introduces something, itu can retrieve it in the next sentence. Consider this miniature narrative:

Kemarin Rina membeli sebuah buku bekas di pasar.

Yesterday Rina bought a used book at the market.

Buku itu ternyata berisi catatan pemilik lamanya.

That book turned out to contain notes by its former owner.

The first sentence introduces sebuah buku bekas. The second uses buku itu to tell the listener “the book you can now identify from the story.” The book might be nowhere near either participant. Its discourse history, not its physical location, licenses itu.

Saya bertemu seorang dokter di kereta. Dokter itu bekerja di rumah sakit dekat rumah saya.

I met a doctor on the train. That doctor works at the hospital near my house.

English often uses the in the second sentence. Indonesian itu makes the backward link especially clear, although a bare noun or another strategy may also be possible in suitable discourse.

Shared knowledge

A referent can be identifiable even if it has not been named in the current conversation. Speaker and listener may share a memory, routine, or cultural reference.

Kita makan lagi di warung itu, yuk.

Let's eat at that food stall again.

Kamu masih ingat perjalanan ke Bali itu?

Do you still remember that trip to Bali?

Film itu bagus, tetapi bagian akhirnya membuat saya sedih.

That film was good, but the ending made me sad.

The word lagi or the broader situation may signal which stall is meant. A phrase such as perjalanan ke Bali itu packages an episode both speakers know. This is why translating itu only as “far from me” misses its most important discourse work.

Topic-comment uses

Because noun + itu produces an identifiable phrase, it often forms a natural topic: first establish what is being discussed, then comment on it.

Buku itu bagus, tetapi harganya terlalu mahal.

That book is good, but its price is too high.

Masalah itu sudah kami bicarakan kemarin.

We discussed that issue yesterday.

Orang itu saya kenal dari kantor lama.

That person, I know from my old workplace.

In Buku itu bagus, buku itu is the subject/topic and bagus is the comment. Indonesian needs no equivalent of English is before an adjective. In the final example, fronting the identifiable object makes it prominent; detailed topic-comment and voice analysis belongs on the topic-comment page.

Standalone itu and yang itu

Itu can point without a preceding noun.

Itu rumah Pak Arif.

That is Mr. Arif's house.

Itu terlalu jauh; kita naik bus saja.

That is too far; let's just take the bus.

In Itu rumah Pak Arif, itu means “that [thing/place]” and rumah Pak Arif identifies it. This is a clause, not the noun phrase “that house,” so initial itu does not violate the postnominal determiner pattern.

Use yang itu to select “that one” without repeating the noun:

Jangan yang ini; saya mau yang itu.

Not this one; I want that one.

Yang itu sudah terjual, tetapi ada model serupa.

That one has already been sold, but there is a similar model.

Full analysis of yang belongs elsewhere; the useful everyday unit here is yang itu.

Itu versus ini

The basic contrast is speaker-centered:

Form	Typical anchor	Example
ini	near/current/in the speaker's active sphere	cangkir ini “this cup”
itu	distal, previously mentioned, or shared	cangkir itu “that/the identified cup”

Gunakan pintu ini; pintu itu sedang diperbaiki.

Use this door; that door is being repaired.

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If no physical contrast exists, ask whether the listener can retrieve the referent from the conversation or shared experience. If yes, itu may be natural.

Itu is not a compulsory definite article

English frequently requires the, but Indonesian does not require itu before every identifiable or generic noun. Bare nouns can have definite, indefinite, or generic interpretations in context.

Kucing suka tempat yang hangat.

Cats like warm places.

Adding itu—Kucing itu suka tempat yang hangat—would most naturally select an identifiable cat: “That/the cat likes warm places.” Use itu when the identifying contrast or discourse link matters, not merely because the English translation contains the.

Orthography

Write free itu separately: buku itu, not bukuitu. Keep ordinary forms lowercase unless they begin a sentence. Capitalize personal names in phrases such as rumah Pak Arif itu according to their normal use. EYD V prescribes capitals in the religious epithet Sang Pencipta. Standard Indonesian uses no mandatory accent marks.

Common Mistakes

1. Copying English pre-noun order

❌ Saya memilih itu kursi dekat jendela.

Incorrect Standard Indonesian order for the object noun phrase ‘that chair.’

✅ Saya memilih kursi itu karena dekat jendela.

I chose that chair because it is near the window.

2. Treating itu as spatial only

❌ Kemarin saya membeli sebuah novel. Novel jauh itu sangat menarik.

Incorrect callback — jauh adds physical distance that the narrative never established.

✅ Kemarin saya membeli sebuah novel. Novel itu sangat menarik.

Yesterday I bought a novel. That novel was very interesting.

3. Inventing plural agreement on the demonstrative

❌ Itu-itu rumah rusak akibat badai.

Incorrect — itu does not change or reduplicate for plural agreement.

✅ Rumah-rumah itu rusak akibat badai.

Those houses were damaged by the storm.

4. Using itu as English the in a generic statement

❌ Burung itu punya sayap.

Incorrect for the intended generic meaning — this selects an identifiable bird.

✅ Burung punya sayap.

Birds have wings.

5. Joining itu to its noun

❌ Siapa pemilik mobilitu?

Incorrect spelling — itu is a free word.

✅ Siapa pemilik mobil itu?

Who owns that car?

Key Takeaways

Put itu after its noun: buku itu.
The same form covers “that” and “those.”
Physical distance is only one use; prior mention and shared knowledge are central.
Itu and yang itu can stand without a repeated noun.
Use itu to mark identifiability, not as a compulsory translation of every English the.

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