Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Jendela lama di ruang tamu juga terbuka sendiri tadi malam. - The old window in the living room also opened by itself last night.

In Indonesian, adjectives typically follow the noun they describe. So jendela lama literally reads “window old” but idiomatically means old window. Here, jendela = “window” and lama = “old” (not “long”) because it comes after the noun.

Why is there no article like “the” or “a” in this sentence?

Indonesian does not use articles (the/a). Definiteness or indefiniteness is inferred from context. If you need to be specific, you can add words like itu (“that”) or sebuah (“a certain”), but they are optional.

What role does di play in di ruang tamu?

di is the preposition for location, equivalent to “in/at/on.” Placed before ruang tamu (“living room”), di ruang tamu means in the living room. You always attach di directly to the location noun.

What does juga mean here and why is it included?

juga means also or too. In this sentence it indicates that in addition to something else (perhaps another window or a door), this old window also opened by itself. It modifies the verb phrase and can appear before or after the verb.

What is meant by terbuka sendiri? How does the prefix ter- work, and what does sendiri add?

buka = “to open”
terbuka (with prefix ter-) becomes an intransitive or stative verb meaning “opened (by itself/unintentionally).” The ter- prefix often signals:
• an involuntary or unplanned action
• a resultant state
sendiri means by itself, emphasizing that no one actively opened it.

So terbuka sendiri = opened on its own.

How is terbuka different from dibuka?

dibuka is the passive form of membuka (“to open something”) and implies an agent (often introduced with oleh).
Example: Pintu itu dibuka oleh saya = “That door was opened by me.”
terbuka has no explicit agent and implies the action was unintentional or spontaneous.
Example: Jendela itu terbuka = “The window opened (by itself).”

What does tadi malam mean, and why is it placed at the end of the sentence?

tadi means “earlier” or “just now,” and combined with malam it forms tadi malam = last night. In Indonesian, time expressions often go at the beginning or end of a sentence. Here it’s at the end, following the pattern Subject – Verb – Time.