Question 1

What does terkadang mean, and is it different from kadang-kadang?

Accepted Answer

terkadang is an adverb meaning “sometimes.” You can use kadang or kadang-kadang interchangeably—in fact, kadang-kadang is just the reduplicated, more colloquial form. All three convey the same basic idea of an action happening on occasion.

Question 2

Why is terkadang placed at the beginning of the sentence? Could I put it somewhere else?

Accepted Answer

In Indonesian, time adverbs like terkadang are very flexible. Placing it at the start emphasizes the frequency:  
• Terkadang saya minum teh hangat…  
You could also say:  
• Saya terkadang minum teh hangat…  
or even  
• Saya minum teh hangat terkadang sebelum tidur.  
But the most natural spots are before the subject or immediately before the verb.

Question 3

Why do we use saya for “I”? Could we use aku instead?

Accepted Answer

Both saya and aku mean “I,” but they differ in register.  
• saya is neutral or polite—safe in formal situations and with people you don’t know well.  
• aku is informal and closer to English “I” used among friends or family.  
So in a casual chat you could say Terkadang aku minum teh hangat sebelum tidur, but saya is more universally appropriate.

Question 4

Why is there no word for “a,” “an,” or “the” before teh hangat? How would I say “a cup of warm tea”?

Accepted Answer

Indonesian has no articles. To specify “a cup,” you add a classifier and a numeral or quantifier:  
• satu cangkir teh hangat = “a cup of warm tea”  
• sedikit teh hangat = “a little warm tea”  
Without a quantity word, teh hangat simply means “warm tea” in general.

Question 5

Why does the adjective hangat come after the noun teh, instead of before like in English?

Accepted Answer

In Indonesian, adjectives almost always follow the noun they modify. English word order is Noun + Adjective in reverse, but Indonesian is:  
• teh hangat (tea warm)  
• buku baru (book new)  
• rumah besar (house big)

Question 6

How do you express tense in Indonesian? Why doesn’t minum change form?

Accepted Answer

Indonesian verbs do not conjugate for tense. Instead, you rely on:  
1. Context (e.g. habitual vs. one-time)  
2. Time markers (adverbs or particles) such as sudah (already), akan (will), baru saja (just), or terkadang (sometimes).  
Here, minum stays in its base form while terkadang signals a recurring/habitual action.

Question 7

What is the function of sebelum in sebelum tidur? Could I say sebelum saya tidur?

Accepted Answer

sebelum is a subordinating conjunction meaning “before.” It can directly introduce:  
• a noun: sebelum tidur (“before sleep”/“before sleeping”)  
• a clause with an understood subject: sebelum (saya) tidur  
Adding saya is grammatically fine but often omitted because the subject is clear from the main clause. You could also front the phrase:  
• Sebelum tidur, terkadang saya minum teh hangat.

Terkadang saya minum teh hangat sebelum tidur.

Breakdown of Terkadang saya minum teh hangat sebelum tidur.

Questions & Answers about Terkadang saya minum teh hangat sebelum tidur.

More from this lesson

Master Indonesian — from Terkadang saya minum teh hangat sebelum tidur to fluency