English uses from for a place, a time, a giver, a material, and one side of a comparison. Contemporary Standard Malaysian Malay draws a line inside that broad “source” idea: dari introduces a starting point in space, direction, or time, while daripada is the careful standard choice for a giver or source, the material from which something is made, a part of a set, and the second term of a comparison.
This distinction is especially important in edited Malaysian writing. Everyday speech sometimes extends dari into jobs assigned to daripada, and Indonesian usage makes that extension even more familiar. Learners should recognize it, but use the Malaysian standard split in their own careful Malay.
Dari for a place or direction
Use dari + noun phrase when the complement is a physical point from which movement, sound, light, or another path begins. The spelling is always separate because dari is a preposition.
Bas malam itu baru tiba dari Bandung.
The night bus has just arrived from Bandung.
Angin sejuk bertiup dari arah gunung.
A cool wind is blowing from the direction of the mountains.
Dia mengeluarkan dompet dari begnya lalu membayar bil.
He took his wallet out of his bag and paid the bill.
The last example still describes a spatial path: the wallet moves from inside the bag to outside it. Compare meminjam wang daripada bank, where the bank is construed as the institutional source of the money rather than merely a building.
Dari for a starting time
Use dari when a time expression marks the beginning of a range, particularly in the paired pattern dari X hingga/sampai Y “from X until Y.”
Kedai itu dibuka dari pukul lapan pagi hingga pukul enam petang.
The shop is open from eight in the morning until six in the evening.
Dari pagi dia menunggu juruteknik itu datang.
He has been waiting since morning for the technician to arrive.
Dari pagi is natural when the speaker presents the morning as the starting point. When duration continuing up to a reference time is the main meaning, sejak pagi is often more precise: Dia sudah menunggu sejak pagi “He has been waiting since morning.” The full contrast appears on the time boundaries page.
Keadaan pesakit itu bertambah baik dari hari ke hari.
The patient's condition is improving day by day.
The fixed frame dari X ke X can express gradual progression: dari hari ke hari, dari semasa ke semasa, dari satu rumah ke satu rumah. Here the paired starting and ending points motivate dari, even when the whole phrase has an abstract interpretation.
Daripada for a giver, source, or origin
When a person, organization, text, substance, or abstract circumstance is the source from which something is received, derived, learned, or caused, careful Malaysian Malay uses daripada.
Saya menerima mesej itu daripada penyelia saya.
I received that message from my supervisor.
Petikan ini diambil daripada laporan tahunan syarikat.
This excerpt is taken from the company's annual report.
Banyak masalah itu berpunca daripada salah faham.
Many of those problems stem from a misunderstanding.
English leaves “source” undivided; Malaysian grammar asks how the source is being construed. Surat itu datang dari pejabat daerah presents the district office as the place from which the letter travelled. Saya menerima surat daripada pejabat daerah presents the office as its institutional sender.
Materials take daripada
In the prescribed Malaysian standard, the material or constituent from which an object is made takes daripada, not dari.
Meja ini diperbuat daripada kayu getah.
This table is made from rubberwood.
Beg itu dibuat daripada kain terpakai.
The bag was made from recycled fabric.
You will hear dari kayu in casual speech and encounter it in Indonesian-influenced material (informal or Indonesian-associated). For an examination, formal report, or edited Malaysian text, write daripada kayu. This is not a semantic guess: the Malaysian standard specifically assigns asal kejadian and material to daripada.
Comparisons and partitives take daripada
The second term in a true comparison takes daripada. The adjective or quantity before it establishes the scale being compared.
Bilik ini lebih besar daripada bilik sebelah.
This room is bigger than the room next door.
Perjalanan balik lebih singkat daripada perjalanan tadi.
The return journey is shorter than the earlier journey.
Lebih besar dari is widespread in conversation and common in Indonesian (informal or Indonesian-associated), but lebih besar daripada is the correct baseline for Standard Malaysian Malay. Do not confuse a genuine comparison with a numerical threshold: lebih dari sejam can be analysed as “more than an hour,” with dari retained in current DBP advice because it does not compare two named things. In maximally careful prose, rewriting as melebihi sejam removes any doubt.
Partitives also use daripada because an item is selected from a larger set:
Tiga daripada dua puluh peserta mara ke peringkat akhir.
Three of the twenty participants advanced to the final round.
Salah seorang daripada mereka akan menghubungi puan esok.
One of them will contact you tomorrow.
Word boundaries: dari, di, and ke are free words
Prepositions stand apart from their complements: dari rumah, di pejabat, ke bandar. By contrast, passive di- and the nominal or adjectival prefix ke- attach to their bases: ditulis, dibuka, ketiga, kecantikan.
Surat itu ditulis di pejabat sebelum dihantar ke Putrajaya.
The letter was written at the office before being sent to Putrajaya.
The difference is grammatical, not optional typography. Di pejabat locates an event; ditulis forms a passive verb. See static di, directional ke, and the di- passive overview.
Common Mistakes
1. Using dari for material in careful Malaysian Malay
❌ Meja ini dibuat dari kayu jati.
Incorrect in careful Standard Malaysian Malay—the complement names the material.
✅ Meja ini dibuat daripada kayu jati.
This table is made from teak.
2. Using dari for the second term of a comparison
❌ Kereta api lebih cepat dari bas.
Nonstandard for a careful Malaysian comparison; dari is common informally and in Indonesian.
✅ Kereta api lebih cepat daripada bas.
The train is faster than the bus.
3. Translating English from as oleh in a passive agent phrase
❌ Saya menerima hadiah oleh jiran saya.
Incorrect—oleh marks a passive agent, not the source after menerima.
✅ Saya menerima hadiah daripada jiran saya.
I received a gift from my neighbour.
4. Using dari when continuing duration requires sejak
❌ Kami berniaga di pasar ini dari bulan Mac hingga sekarang.
Awkward when the intended meaning is an activity continuing up to now.
✅ Kami berniaga di pasar ini sejak bulan Mac.
We have traded at this market since March.
5. Attaching a preposition to its complement
❌ Mereka baru pulang darikampung.
Incorrect—the preposition dari is a separate word.
✅ Mereka baru pulang dari kampung.
They have just returned from their home village.
Key Takeaways
Use dari for a place, direction, or temporal starting point: dari Bandung, dari arah utara, dari pagi. Use daripada for a giver or source, material, partitive set, and comparison: daripada ibu, daripada kayu, dua daripada lima, lebih besar daripada. Spoken overlap is real, but it should not erase the distinction expected in contemporary Standard Malaysian writing.
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Start learning Malay →Related Topics
- di: Static Location in Malaysian MalayA1 — Use the separate preposition di for static settings, and distinguish it from directional ke and the attached passive prefix di-.
- ke: Direction and Destination in Malaysian MalayA1 — Mark movement toward destinations with the separate preposition ke, and distinguish it from static di and attached ordinal ke-.
- pada: Time Points and Abstract Location in Malaysian MalayA2 — Use pada for time points, holders, viewpoints, and conceptual attachment, while reserving di for ordinary physical location.
- sejak, hingga, and sampai in Malaysian MalayA2 — Express starting points, endpoints, continuing duration, and spatial limits with sejak, hingga, and sampai.
- Comparatives with lebih and daripada in Malaysian MalayA2 — Compare people, prices, journeys, and alternatives with lebih plus an adjective and a standard introduced by daripada or conversational dari.
- di- Passive: Overview and Formation in Malaysian MalayA1 — Form the Malaysian Malay di- passive by placing the affected subject first, attaching di- to the verb, and optionally adding a third-person agent.