Saya menyalakan lampu di kamar.

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Breakdown of Saya menyalakan lampu di kamar.

• saya: I
• di: in
• kamar: the room
• menyalakan: to turn on
• lampu: the light

Questions & Answers about Saya menyalakan lampu di kamar.

What does menyalakan mean in this sentence?

Menyalakan translates to “to turn on” or “to switch on.” In this context, it indicates that the subject (saya meaning “I”) caused the lamp (lampu) to emit light.

How is the verb menyalakan formed grammatically?

The verb menyalakan is built from the root nyala (“light” or “flame”), with the prefix men- (which marks an active transitive verb) and the suffix -kan (often used to create a causative meaning). This structure shows that the subject is causing the lamp to light up.

Why are there no articles like “the” before lampu and kamar?

Indonesian does not use definite or indefinite articles like “the” or “a.” The words lampu (lamp) and kamar (room) stand alone, and the meaning is understood from context without the need for additional words.

What is the function of the preposition di in the phrase di kamar?

The preposition di means “in” or “at,” indicating location. In di kamar, it specifies where the action is taking place—namely, in the room.

How does the word order in this Indonesian sentence compare with that of English?

The sentence follows a Subject-Verb-Object-Location (S-V-O-L) structure: saya (subject) → menyalakan (verb) → lampu (object) → di kamar (location). This is quite similar to English, where you might say, “I turned on the lamp in the room,” with a similar order of elements.

If I want to specify that the action happened in the past, do I need to change the verb form?

No, Indonesian verbs do not change form to indicate tense. Instead, you add context or time adverbs to clarify when the action occurred. For example, adding tadi (“just now” or “earlier”) as in Saya tadi menyalakan lampu di kamar makes it clear that the lamp was turned on in the past.