The preposition dengan links an event to something associated with it. That associate may be an instrument (menulis dengan pena “write with a pen”), a companion (pergi dengan teman “go with a friend”), a manner (dengan cepat “quickly”), or the partner in a reciprocal interaction. English often uses “with,” but not every English “with” or “by” maps mechanically to dengan.
This page covers the core prepositional relations. Full subordinate-clause syntax and derivational affixes belong to dedicated adjacent pages.
Instrument: what is used
With a tool, material, vehicle, or channel, dengan identifies what a participant uses to carry out the event.
Rina menulis alamat itu dengan pena biru.
Rina writes that address with a blue pen.
Ayah memotong mangga dengan pisau kecil.
Dad cuts the mango with a small knife.
Kami mengirim dokumen itu dengan aplikasi ini.
We sent the document using this application.
The agent controls or employs the instrument. A pen does not independently write the address; Rina writes and the pen participates as her means. This is why an instrument differs from a passive agent introduced by oleh.
Transport can also be framed as a means:
Kami pergi ke Bandung dengan kereta pagi.
We went to Bandung by the morning train.
Everyday Indonesian often uses a transport verb instead: Kami naik kereta ke Bandung “We took the train to Bandung.” Both are natural; dengan kereta foregrounds means, while naik kereta names the travel activity.
Accompaniment: who participates alongside
With a person or group, dengan gives the subject a companion. The required pattern pergi dengan teman does not make the companion a second grammatical subject.
Saya pergi ke pameran dengan teman kuliah.
I went to the exhibition with a college friend.
Dimas tinggal dengan kakaknya selama mencari apartemen.
Dimas is staying with his older sibling while looking for an apartment.
Anak-anak datang dengan orang tua mereka.
The children came with their parents.
Compare dan “and.” Rina dan Dimas pergi coordinates Rina and Dimas as a joint subject. Rina pergi dengan Dimas chooses Rina as subject and adds Dimas as companion. Both can describe the same real-world pair, but they organize the participants differently.
Rina dan Dimas pergi ke pasar.
Rina and Dimas went to the market.
Rina pergi ke pasar dengan Dimas.
Rina went to the market with Dimas.
English speakers sometimes use dan wherever English has “and,” then extend it incorrectly to accompaniment. Indonesian dan joins equal constituents; dengan subordinates the companion to the event.
Manner: how an event unfolds
Before an adjective or manner noun phrase, dengan presents the quality or style of the action.
Petugas menutup pintu dengan cepat ketika alarm berbunyi.
The officer closed the door quickly when the alarm sounded.
Tolong jelaskan masalahnya dengan jelas.
Please explain the problem clearly.
Dia menerima kritik itu dengan tenang.
She accepted the criticism calmly.
Indonesian does not need an English-style -ly ending. A bare property word can also modify an event: Dia berjalan cepat “She walks quickly.” Dengan cepat makes the manner relation explicit and may sound more deliberate. The full contrast appears on manner with dengan.
Bicaralah pelan-pelan agar semua orang bisa mengikuti.
Speak slowly so everyone can follow.
The lexical reduplication pelan-pelan normally needs no dengan and keeps its hyphen.
Reciprocal partners
Several verbs describe an inherently two-sided or socially directed interaction. Dengan introduces the other participant: berbicara dengan, berdiskusi dengan, bertemu dengan, bertengkar dengan, and bekerja sama dengan.
Saya sudah berbicara dengan manajer tentang jadwal baru.
I have spoken with the manager about the new schedule.
Tim kami bekerja sama dengan universitas setempat.
Our team collaborates with the local university.
Rina bertemu dengan Dedi di depan perpustakaan.
Rina met Dedi in front of the library.
The partner is not an instrument. The broader association expressed by dengan extends from “together with” to a participant whose presence completes the interaction. With bertemu, dengan is sometimes omitted before a simple partner—Rina bertemu Dedi—but keeping it is clear and standard.
Jangan bertengkar dengan adikmu hanya karena masalah kecil.
Don't argue with your younger sibling just because of a small problem.
Ambiguity and attachment
Because dengan + noun phrase can name an instrument or associate, its attachment may be ambiguous. Rina melihat anak itu dengan teropong can mean that Rina used binoculars or, in an unusual context, that the child had the binoculars.
Rina melihat anak itu dengan teropong.
Rina saw the child with binoculars. (ambiguous attachment)
When precision matters, make the instrument a verb or expand the noun phrase:
Rina menggunakan teropong untuk melihat anak itu.
Rina used binoculars to see the child.
Rina melihat anak yang membawa teropong itu.
Rina saw the child who was carrying the binoculars.
Position alone does not always settle the meaning. The verb, the complement’s semantics, and real-world plausibility guide the interpretation.
Not every English “by” or “with”
English by covers several unrelated relations. Indonesian chooses according to meaning:
- instrument or means: dengan pena, dengan kereta
- passive agent: oleh Rina
- deadline: paling lambat hari Jumat
- location beside: di dekat pintu
Laporan itu ditulis oleh Rina dengan pena hitam.
The report was written by Rina with a black pen.
Kirim formulir ini paling lambat hari Jumat.
Send this form by Friday at the latest.
The first sentence cleanly separates the agent from the instrument. Translating both English by and with as dengan would erase that distinction.
English with also marks possession in “the man with the red hat.” Indonesian can use a relative phrase such as pria yang memakai topi merah, not necessarily a bare dengan phrase when attachment would be unclear.
Word boundaries
Write the preposition separately before a full complement: dengan pena, dengan teman, dengan cepat. Bound pronouns attach in denganku, denganmu, and dengannya, while independent pronouns remain separate: dengan saya, dengan dia.
Free location di rumah and destination ke kantor are also separate. Passive ditulis and ordinal kedua contain attached di- and ke-. These EYD V boundaries reflect different grammatical categories.
Saya bertemu dengannya di kafe dekat kantor.
I met with him/her at a café near the office.
Common Mistakes
Using dan for accompaniment
❌ Saya pergi ke dokter dan teman saya.
Incorrect for the intended accompaniment — dan coordinates the doctor and friend as destinations or constituents.
✅ Saya pergi ke dokter dengan teman saya.
I went to the doctor with my friend.
Marking a passive agent as an instrument
❌ Surat itu ditulis dengan Rina.
Incorrect — Rina is the agent who wrote it, not an instrument.
✅ Surat itu ditulis oleh Rina.
The letter was written by Rina.
Joining the preposition to its complement
❌ Dia menulis catatan denganpena biru.
Incorrect — dengan is separate before the noun phrase.
✅ Dia menulis catatan dengan pena biru.
She wrote the note with a blue pen.
Doubling manner markers
❌ Petugas bekerja dengan secara teliti.
Incorrect — dengan and secara cannot both introduce the same manner phrase.
✅ Petugas bekerja dengan teliti.
The officer works carefully.
Ignoring instrument attachment
❌ Doni memotret pria dengan kamera baru itu.
Ambiguous — it is unclear whether Doni used the new camera or the man had it.
✅ Doni menggunakan kamera baru itu untuk memotret pria tersebut.
Doni used the new camera to photograph the man.
Key Takeaways
- Dengan links an event to an instrument, companion, manner, or reciprocal partner.
- Dan coordinates equals; dengan introduces a companion associated with the subject’s event.
- Use oleh for a passive agent and dengan for an instrument.
- Rewrite ambiguous dengan phrases when safety or precision matters.
- Keep prepositions separate from full complements and attach only genuine prefixes or bound pronouns.
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- Manner with denganA2 — Express manner with dengan plus a property or noun phrase, while recognizing when a bare adjective is more compact and natural.
- oleh: Passive Agent and CauseA2 — Use oleh for passive agents, selected affected causes, and the formal connective oleh karena itu.
- untuk: Beneficiary and PurposeA1 — Use untuk to mark intended beneficiaries, purposes, uses, and prospective goals.
- Spatial Relators with atas, bawah, depan, and belakangA1 — Build precise locations, destinations, and sources with di, ke, or dari plus the relational nouns atas, bawah, depan, and belakang.
- dan and serta: AdditionA2 — Coordinate words, phrases, predicates, clauses, and formal list members with neutral dan and register-marked serta.
- saling and satu sama lainB1 — Express mutual action with verbal saling or the reciprocal phrase satu sama lain without doubling the same reciprocal object.