Suara musik terdengar jelas dari taman sebelah.

Music sounds clear from the neighboring garden.

Breakdown of Suara musik terdengar jelas dari taman sebelah.

• taman: the garden
• musik: the music
• dari: from
• suara: the sound
• terdengar: to be heard
• jelas: clearly
• sebelah: neighboring

Questions & Answers about Suara musik terdengar jelas dari taman sebelah.

What does suara musik mean in this sentence?

• Suara = sound
• Musik = music
  Together suara musik literally “sound music,” but in natural English it’s the sound of music.

How does terdengar function? Is it active, passive, or something else?

• Root is dengar (to hear)
• Prefix ter- creates an intransitive/state verb meaning to be heard or to sound
• It indicates that the subject (the sound) is in a state of being audible, not that someone is actively hearing it
  Compare:
  • mendengar = “to hear” (active)
  • didengar = “is heard” (passive)
  • terdengar = “is audible” / “sounds” (unintentional or descriptive)

What role does jelas play? Is it an adjective or an adverb? Why is it placed after terdengar?

• Jelas means clear or obvious
• Here it describes how the sound is heard, so it acts as an adverb (i.e. “clearly”)
• In Indonesian, adverbs usually follow the verb they modify, hence terdengar jelas = “is heard clearly.”

How do we translate dari taman sebelah? Does sebelah mean next door or beside?

• Dari = from
• Taman = park
• Sebelah = adjacent, next door
  Put together, dari taman sebelah = from the park next door (or “from the adjacent park”).

Why are there no words equivalent to the or a in the sentence?

Indonesian does not have articles like the or a. Nouns stand alone, and context tells you whether they’re definite or indefinite.

Where is the linking verb is or are? How does Indonesian express that relationship?

Indonesian often omits a copula in descriptive or equational sentences. You simply place the predicate after the subject. In English you need is/are, but in Indonesian you just say Suara musik terdengar jelas… without inserting an extra word for “is.”

Can I start the sentence with Dari taman sebelah? How would that change the emphasis?

Yes. Indonesian has flexible word order.

• Suara musik terdengar jelas dari taman sebelah. (neutral)
• Dari taman sebelah, suara musik terdengar jelas. (emphasizes location first)

Could I say musiknya terdengar jelas dari taman sebelah instead of suara musik? How does the -nya change the nuance?

• musiknya uses -nya as a definite marker or pronoun (“that music” or “the music”).
• Musiknya terdengar jelas dari taman sebelah is grammatical and more specific: That music is clearly audible from the park next door.
• Suara musik… is a bit more general (“the sound of music…”). Both are correct, just slightly different in focus.