Interrogatives can be copied to form non-specific expressions: siapa-siapa “anyone,” apa-apa “anything,” and mana-mana “anywhere/everywhere.” The copies do not ask a question and do not independently mean “nobody” or “nothing.” Their interpretation comes from an environment such as negation, prohibition, unrestricted choice, or exhaustive location.
English anyone, anything, and anywhere also depend heavily on sentence type, but English speakers may overlook that the Indonesian copied forms have narrower distributions. In particular, siapa-siapa and apa-apa are not normal affirmative first-mention indefinites.
From a question to an open variable
Bare siapa, apa, and mana request an identity, thing, or choice. Copying suspends the request for one answer and presents an indefinite range instead.
Siapa yang menelepon tadi malam?
Who called last night?
Saya tidak berbicara dengan siapa-siapa tadi malam.
I did not speak with anyone last night.
Apa yang hilang dari meja ini?
What is missing from this table?
Saya tidak mengambil apa-apa dari meja ini.
I did not take anything from this table.
The negative predicate licenses an indefinite reading over all possible people or things. Siapa-siapa itself does not contain tidak; the clause supplies negative force.
Siapa-siapa under negation and prohibition
Siapa-siapa is especially natural after a negated predicate or within a prohibition. It normally stays inside the scope of tidak, belum, or jangan.
Tadi pagi tidak ada siapa-siapa di kantor.
There was no one at the office this morning.
Saya belum memberi tahu siapa-siapa tentang rencana ini.
I have not told anyone about this plan yet.
Jangan izinkan siapa-siapa masuk sebelum petugas datang.
Do not let anyone enter before the officer arrives.
The required pattern tidak ada siapa-siapa literally combines existential ada, negation, and a non-specific human variable. The whole clause means “there is nobody,” but siapa-siapa alone is not the negative word “nobody.”
Kami tidak mengenal siapa-siapa di kota itu.
We did not know anyone in that city.
Dia tidak mengajak siapa-siapa ke acara perpisahan.
He/She did not invite anyone to the farewell event.
In careful formal writing, siapa pun is often preferred inside a negated clause (formal): Kami tidak memberikan data itu kepada siapa pun. Conversational siapa-siapa remains ordinary contemporary Indonesian (informal). The siapa pun comparison develops that register and scope contrast.
Apa-apa: any thing under a negative scope
Apa-apa works similarly for things, information, and events.
Dia tidak mengatakan apa-apa selama pemeriksaan.
He/She did not say anything during the examination.
Saya belum membeli apa-apa untuk makan malam.
I have not bought anything for dinner yet.
Jangan sentuh apa-apa di meja kerja saya.
Do not touch anything on my desk.
Petugas tidak menemukan apa-apa yang mencurigakan.
The officer did not find anything suspicious.
When apa-apa itself is the predicate, bukan is possible because the clause identifies or evaluates what something amounts to.
Cedera kecil itu bukan apa-apa bagi atlet tersebut.
That minor injury is nothing to that athlete.
The fixed expression tidak apa-apa means “it is all right/it does not matter.” Its conversational meaning is conventional, but the historical negative environment remains visible.
Tidak apa-apa kalau kamu belum bisa datang hari ini.
It is all right if you cannot come today.
Do not interpret the two copies as plural “things.” The construction ranges over possible things and lets negation exclude all relevant alternatives.
Mana-mana: negative anywhere and positive everywhere
With a spatial preposition, mana-mana can occur under negation just like English negative anywhere. Keep di, ke, or dari separate from the copied word.
Kami tidak pergi ke mana-mana selama libur panjang.
We did not go anywhere during the long holiday.
Jangan ke mana-mana sebelum saya kembali.
Do not go anywhere before I return.
Saya tidak menemukan dompet itu di mana-mana.
I could not find that wallet anywhere.
Unlike siapa-siapa and apa-apa, spatial mana-mana also has established positive exhaustive readings. Di mana-mana means “everywhere,” and dari mana-mana means “from everywhere/all over.”
Menjelang hari raya, hiasan warna-warni terlihat di mana-mana.
As the holiday approaches, colorful decorations can be seen everywhere.
Peserta festival itu datang dari mana-mana.
The festival participants came from all over.
Dengan koneksi internet yang stabil, kamu bisa bekerja dari mana-mana.
With a stable internet connection, you can work from anywhere.
The modal bisa creates an unrestricted-choice reading in the last sentence. Without negation, mana-mana is therefore not automatically wrong; its positive locative use is a specific, established exception to the stronger polarity restriction on siapa-siapa and apa-apa.
Saja and pun for affirmative free choice
In affirmative permission, possibility, and first mention, use saja, pun, or an ordinary existential indefinite rather than freely inserting siapa-siapa or apa-apa.
Kamu boleh memilih apa saja dari menu ini.
You may choose anything from this menu.
Apa saja yang harus dibawa untuk perjalanan itu?
What all has to be brought for that trip?
Siapa saja boleh mengajukan pertanyaan.
Anyone may ask a question.
Kita bisa duduk di mana saja yang masih kosong.
We can sit anywhere that is still free.
The required apa saja opens a set of alternatives. In a question it asks for an exhaustive list; in permission it means any allowed choice. Pun more strongly removes restrictions on identity.
Apa pun keputusannya, kami akan menghormatinya.
Whatever the decision is, we will respect it.
Siapa pun dapat melakukan kesalahan.
Anyone can make a mistake.
For an actual but unidentified first-mentioned person or thing, use seseorang “someone” or sesuatu “something.”
Tadi saya bertemu seseorang dari kantor pusat.
Earlier I met someone from head office.
Ada sesuatu yang bergerak di balik tirai.
Something is moving behind the curtain.
Position and scope
Because siapa-siapa and apa-apa need a preceding negative predicate, they do not normally stand as a subject before negation. Indonesian uses tidak seorang pun, tidak satu pun, or an existential clause instead.
Tidak seorang pun mengetahui kata sandi itu.
No one knows that password. (formal)
Tidak ada siapa-siapa yang mengetahui kata sandi itu.
There is nobody who knows that password. (informal)
Tak satu pun dari pilihan itu cocok untuk anak kecil.
None of those options is suitable for a small child. (formal)
English permits nobody directly before the verb. Indonesian copied interrogatives instead prefer a position after the negative licensor. This ordering is grammatical licensing, not merely stylistic preference.
Orthography
Hyphenate full copying: siapa-siapa, apa-apa, mana-mana. Write spatial prepositions separately: di mana-mana, ke mana-mana, dari mana-mana. Write apa saja, siapa pun, and mana saja as two separate words because their second element is a particle, not a reduplicated copy. Digit forms such as apa2 are nonstandard digital shortcuts (informal) and are never edited spelling.
Common Mistakes
1. Using siapa-siapa in an affirmative first mention
❌ Tadi saya bertemu siapa-siapa di pintu masuk hotel.
Incorrect affirmative first mention — siapa-siapa needs a suitable polarity environment.
✅ Tadi saya bertemu seseorang di pintu masuk hotel.
I met someone at the hotel entrance earlier.
2. Using apa-apa for an affirmative unknown object
❌ Ada apa-apa di dalam kotak itu.
Incorrect for ‘there is something’ — affirmative first mention requires sesuatu.
✅ Ada sesuatu di dalam kotak itu.
There is something inside that box.
3. Putting the copied human indefinite before negation
❌ Siapa-siapa tidak datang ke rapat pagi ini.
Incorrect scope and position — siapa-siapa cannot normally serve as the subject before its negative licensor.
✅ Tidak ada siapa-siapa yang datang ke rapat pagi ini.
No one came to this morning’s meeting.
4. Using a copied form for affirmative free choice
❌ Kamu boleh mengambil apa-apa dari meja ini.
Incorrect affirmative free-choice form — use apa saja or apa pun.
✅ Kamu boleh mengambil apa saja dari meja ini.
You may take anything from this table.
5. Omitting the hyphen or using digit 2
❌ Kami tidak melihat siapa2 di halte.
Incorrect edited spelling — write both copies in full with a hyphen.
✅ Kami tidak melihat siapa-siapa di halte.
We did not see anyone at the bus stop.
Key Takeaways
- Siapa-siapa and apa-apa are non-specific indefinites normally licensed after negation or prohibition.
- Negation supplies “no/not any”; the copied form does not carry negative force by itself.
- Di/ke/dari mana-mana can be negative, but also has established positive anywhere/everywhere readings.
- Use apa saja/apa pun, siapa saja/siapa pun, seseorang, or sesuatu in affirmative environments as their meanings require.
- Preserve the hyphen and keep spatial prepositions separate.
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