Murid-murid berlatih di ruang olahraga.

The students practice in the sports room.

Breakdown of Murid-murid berlatih di ruang olahraga.

• di: in
• murid: the student
• berlatih: to practice
• ruang olahraga: the sports room

Questions & Answers about Murid-murid berlatih di ruang olahraga.

Why is murid repeated with a hyphen as murid-murid? Can’t you just say murid?

In Indonesian, reduplication (repeating a word) is a common way to show plurality or a group of things/people.

• murid alone most often means “a student.”
• murid-murid explicitly means “students” (multiple).
  Although context sometimes lets murid stand for “students,” doubling it removes any ambiguity.

What does the prefix ber- do in berlatih? How is it different from latih?

• latih (the root) is a transitive verb meaning “to train someone.” You need an object: Latih dia = “Train him/her.”
• ber- is a productive prefix that often makes the verb intransitive and indicates a self-initiated action.
• berlatih = “to practice” or “to train oneself.” It doesn’t take a direct object unless you specify what you’re practicing (e.g., berlatih sepakbola).

Why is there no “the” or “a” before ruang olahraga?

Indonesian does not use articles like “the,” “a,” or “an.” Nouns stand alone, and definiteness or indefiniteness is understood from context. If you need to be specific, you can add:

• ruang olahraga ini = “this gym/sports hall”
• ruang olahraga itu = “that gym/sports hall”

What role does di play in di ruang olahraga?

di is the preposition for a static location, equivalent to “in,” “at,” or “on” in English. It tells you where something happens, not where it’s going. Thus, di ruang olahraga = “in/at the gym” or “in the sports hall.”

Why can’t you use ke instead of di before ruang olahraga?

• ke indicates motion toward somewhere (“to”).
• di marks a fixed location (“at/in”).
  Since berlatih describes doing an activity in a place (no movement toward it), you use di.

What exactly does ruang olahraga mean?

It’s a compound noun:

• ruang = “room”
• olahraga = “sport” or “sports”
  Together, ruang olahraga literally is “sports room,” i.e. “gym” or “sports hall.”

Why is there no object after berlatih? Shouldn’t they be practicing something?

berlatih can stand alone to mean “practice” or “train” in a general sense. If you want to specify what they practice, you add an object:

• Murid-murid berlatih basket = “The students practice basketball.”
• Murid-murid berlatih menulis = “The students practice writing.”
  In the example, the focus is on the location, not the specific activity.

Could you use para murid instead of murid-murid?

Yes. para is a plural marker used before certain nouns to emphasize a group, often more formal or literary:

• Para murid berlatih di ruang olahraga.
  Both para murid and murid-murid work to mean “the students,” with murid-murid being the everyday spoken form.