Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Semoga pertandingan besok tidak tiba-tiba dibatalkan karena cuaca buruk. - Hopefully tomorrow’s match is not suddenly canceled because of bad weather.

Semoga is a fixed particle used to express a wish or hope. It literally means “may it be that….” You can think of it as equivalent to “I hope that” or “may” in English. Unlike English, it doesn’t change form and always appears at the start of the clause.

Why is the verb dibatalkan in the passive form, and how does Indonesian passive voice work here?

Dibatalkan is the passive of membatalkan (“to cancel”). In Indonesian, you form the passive by adding the prefix di- to the verb root (plus any necessary suffix). Here:

Root: batal (“to decide/resolve” but in this pattern it takes “cancel”)
Active: membatalkan (“to cancel [something]”)
Passive: dibatalkan (“be canceled”)
Using the passive emphasizes the event (the cancellation) rather than who does it.

What role does the suffix -kan play in membatalkan and dibatalkan?

The suffix -kan turns a basic verb into a transitive form that often means “to cause something to X” or “to do X for someone.” Here, batal is not normally “cancel,” but batal-kan makes it “to cancel.” Without -kan, you can’t directly cancel an object. So:

membatalkan pertandingan = “to cancel the match”
dibatalkan pertandingan = “the match is canceled”

Why is the adverb tiba-tiba placed before dibatalkan?

In Indonesian, adverbs typically come right before the verb they modify. Tiba-tiba means “suddenly,” so it naturally sits in front of dibatalkan to indicate that the cancellation happens without warning.

The sentence doesn’t use akan even though it talks about tomorrow. Why is that?

Indonesian often omits future markers when there’s already a clear time adverb. Here, besok (“tomorrow”) signals future, so akan (“will”) is optional. If you add akan, it’s still correct:
“Semoga pertandingan besok tidak akan tiba-tiba dibatalkan…”
But native speakers drop akan for brevity.

In pertandingan besok, why is besok placed after pertandingan instead of before?

Time adverbs like besok can appear before or after the noun phrase. Both are acceptable:

Besok pertandingan…
Pertandingan besok…
Placing besok afterward often sounds slightly more casual or conversational.

Can I replace karena with sebab? Do they mean the same thing?

Both karena and sebab mean “because.” They’re mostly interchangeable, but:

Karena is more common in everyday speech.
Sebab can feel a bit more formal or literary.
Either works: “karena cuaca buruk” = “sebab cuaca buruk.”

What exactly does cuaca buruk mean, and can I swap the order as “buruk cuaca”?

Cuaca buruk means “bad weather,” where cuaca is “weather” and buruk is “bad.” Adjectives in Indonesian usually follow the noun, so buruk cuaca is not standard. Always say cuaca buruk (noun + adjective).