Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Saya memeriksa jadwal rapat sebelum pergi ke kantor. - I check the meeting schedule before going to the office.

The prefix me- creates an active, transitive verb. memeriksa comes from the root periksa (to check/examine) with the affixes me- and -kan attached. Because periksa starts with p, it undergoes assimilation, turning me- + periksa + -kan into memeriksa. The -kan suffix indicates the action is directed at an object.

Why is there no plural marker on jadwal or rapat if I might be talking about multiple meetings?

Indonesian usually does not require plural markers. Plurality is understood from context. If you really want to emphasize “multiple,” you can use reduplication—jadwal-jadwal or rapat-rapat—but it’s often optional. In everyday usage, jadwal rapat can refer to one or several meeting schedules.

Why doesn’t memeriksa change form to show past tense? How do we know when the checking happened?

Indonesian verbs do not conjugate for tense. Instead, time is indicated by context or time words. Here, sebelum (before) tells us that the checking took place prior to going to the office. If you want to explicitly mark completion, you can add sudah: Saya sudah memeriksa jadwal rapat.

What is the function of sebelum in this sentence? Can I place it at the beginning?

sebelum is a conjunction meaning “before.” It introduces the action that happens first. You can indeed move it to the front for stylistic variation:
Sebelum pergi ke kantor, saya memeriksa jadwal rapat.
Just remember to add a comma when the time clause comes first.

Why do we say pergi ke kantor? Is ke always necessary?

ke is a preposition meaning “to” when indicating direction toward a place. In formal Indonesian, you generally include ke: pergi ke kantor. In very casual speech you might hear pergi kantor, but that’s less standard.

Why is the sentence ordered SVO (Subject-Verb-Object)? Can I switch it around?

The basic Indonesian word order is SVO: Saya (subject) memeriksa (verb) jadwal rapat (object). While Indonesian is somewhat flexible, doing VSO or OSV often sounds awkward. You can front an element for emphasis, but the underlying structure stays SVO.

What’s the difference between saya and aku for “I”?

Both mean “I,” but saya is more formal and polite, suitable for work or with strangers. aku is informal and used among close friends or family. So saya fits the neutral, everyday context of checking a meeting schedule.