Saya membaca koran sebelum minum kopi.

I read the newspaper before drinking coffee.

Breakdown of Saya membaca koran sebelum minum kopi.

• sebuah: a
• saya: I
• minum: to drink
• kopi: the coffee
• membaca: to read
• koran: the newspaper
• sebelum: before

Questions & Answers about Saya membaca koran sebelum minum kopi.

What does saya mean in this sentence?

Saya means “I” in English, acting as the first-person singular subject of the sentence.

How is the verb membaca formed and what does it mean?

Membaca comes from the root word baca, which means “read.” The prefix mem- is added to the root to form the active verb “to read.”

What does koran refer to, and why doesn’t it appear with an article like “a” or “the”?

Koran translates to “newspaper.” Indonesian does not use articles such as “a” or “the,” so the noun is used on its own without any additional determiners.

What role does sebelum play in the sentence?

Sebelum means “before.” It introduces the subordinate clause that tells us the action of drinking coffee happens after the action of reading the newspaper, clearly indicating the sequence of events.

Why is the subject saya not repeated in the second part of the sentence, as in minum kopi?

In Indonesian, when the subject is the same in both parts of a sentence, it is common to omit the subject in the subordinate clause to avoid redundancy. Here, it is understood that saya is also the one who “minum kopi” (drinks coffee).

How is tense expressed in this sentence if the verbs remain in their base form?

Indonesian verbs do not change form to indicate tense. The sequence and timing of actions are understood from context and time indicators like sebelum. Thus, even though membaca and minum are in their basic forms, their order and meaning (past or habitual actions) are clear from the structure of the sentence.