Saya mencatat jadwal rapat di buku harian setiap malam.

I write down the meeting schedule in my diary every night.

Breakdown of Saya mencatat jadwal rapat di buku harian setiap malam.

• buku: the book
• saya: I
• di: in
• setiap: every
• rapat: the meeting
• harian: daily
• jadwal: the schedule
• mencatat: to write down
• malam: the night

Questions & Answers about Saya mencatat jadwal rapat di buku harian setiap malam.

Why is the verb mencatat formed with the prefix meN- instead of just using catat?

The prefix meN- is an active-voice verb prefix in Indonesian. Attaching meN- to the root catat (“write down”) produces mencatat, meaning “to record” or “to note down.” Phonological rules adjust the prefix to men- here because catat starts with “c,” so meN- + catat → mencatat.

What does buku harian literally mean, and how is it different from jurnal or agenda?

Literally, buku harian means “daily book.” It’s commonly used for a personal diary or planner where you record daily events or appointments.

• Jurnal usually refers to a formal journal (academic or research).
• Agenda often means an appointment book or business planner.
  In everyday use, buku harian can serve both as a diary and as a personal agenda.

Why do we say jadwal rapat and not rapat jadwal?

In Indonesian noun–noun compounds, the first noun is the head (main noun) and the second noun describes it.

• Jadwal rapat = “schedule (jadwal) of meetings (rapat).”
  Reversing them to rapat jadwal would break this pattern and sound unnatural.

Why is there no tense marker on mencatat, and how do we know it’s a habitual action?

Indonesian verbs aren’t inflected for tense. Instead, time expressions and auxiliary words indicate time. Here, setiap malam (“every night”) signals a habitual action. For explicit tense you could add:

• sudah (already/past)
• sedang (currently)
• akan (future)

What is the function of di in di buku harian? Can we use ke or pada instead?

The preposition di marks a static location (“in” or “at”). So di buku harian means “in the diary.”

• Ke indicates direction or movement (“to the diary”), which doesn’t fit here.
• Pada can sometimes replace di for “in/on” in formal contexts (e.g., pada halaman 5), but di buku harian is more natural for everyday speech.

Why is setiap malam placed at the end of the sentence? Could it appear elsewhere?

Time expressions in Indonesian are flexible and often appear at the beginning or end. Placing setiap malam at the end emphasizes “every night.” You could also say:
“Setiap malam, saya mencatat jadwal rapat di buku harian.”
Both orders are grammatically correct.

Why doesn’t jadwal have a plural marker like -s or reduplication?

Indonesian nouns generally do not show plurality. Jadwal can imply one or many schedules; context (like setiap malam) clarifies the habitual action. To emphasize multiple, you could say beberapa jadwal (“several schedules”) or do reduplication (jadwal-jadwal).

Why is the subject saya used here and not aku?

Saya is a neutral, polite pronoun suitable for most contexts, formal or informal. Aku is more casual or intimate, used among close friends or family. Choosing saya keeps the tone neutral.

Could we replace saya with kami or kita, and what would change?

Yes—but kami and kita mean “we”:

• kami excludes the listener (“we, but not you”).
• kita includes the listener (“we, including you”).
  Using either would change the meaning to “we record the meeting schedule…” rather than “I record…”.

Is there any nuance if we change di buku harian to dalam buku harian?

Dalam also means “in,” but it’s more formal or literary. Saya mencatat… dalam buku harian is correct, but in everyday speech di buku harian is preferred for its simplicity and frequency.