Kucing saya tidur sendiri di ruang tamu.

My cat sleeps alone in the living room.

Breakdown of Kucing saya tidur sendiri di ruang tamu.

• di: in
• kucing: the cat
• tidur: to sleep
• ruang tamu: the living room
• saya: my
• sendiri: alone

Questions & Answers about Kucing saya tidur sendiri di ruang tamu.

Why do we say kucing saya instead of saya kucing?

In Indonesian the possessor follows the noun it owns. You form possession as noun + pronoun, so kucing saya literally “cat my” = “my cat.” If you put saya first (saya kucing), it reads “I am a cat.” You can also use the possessive suffix -ku: kucingku.

How do we know the tense of tidur here? Why isn’t there a past or present tense marking?

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. The basic verb (tidur) can be past, present, or future based on context or time words. In this sentence, without any time adverb, it’s understood as a general or present action. If you want to emphasize “is sleeping right now,” insert sedang:
Kucing saya sedang tidur sendiri di ruang tamu.

What does sendiri do in tidur sendiri? Is it modifying the verb or the noun?

Here sendiri is an adverb meaning “alone” or “by itself,” modifying the verb tidur. It tells you how the cat sleeps—namely, that it sleeps alone.

Can we use sendirian instead of sendiri, as in tidur sendirian? Are they different?

Yes, you can say tidur sendirian. Both sendiri and sendirian can mean “alone.”

• sendiri is more flexible (works as adjective/adverb)
• sendirian is strictly adverbial and often sounds a bit more casual or emphatic
  Either is correct:
  Kucing saya tidur sendiri di ruang tamu.
  Kucing saya tidur sendirian di ruang tamu.

Why do we use di before ruang tamu? What role does di play?

di is the preposition that marks location, equivalent to “in,” “at,” or “on.” It must precede any place noun:
di ruang tamu = “in the living room.”

Why isn’t there an article like “the” or “a” before ruang tamu?

Standard Indonesian does not have articles. Definite or indefinite meaning is inferred from context. If you need to be explicit, you can add words like itu (“that”) or sebuah (“a”), but in everyday speech you simply say ruang tamu for both “a living room” or “the living room.”

Could we move di ruang tamu to the front? For example: Di ruang tamu, kucing saya tidur sendiri?

Yes. Indonesian word order is relatively flexible. Fronting di ruang tamu puts emphasis on the location but keeps the meaning identical.

Is ruang tamu literally “guest room”? How did it come to mean “living room”?

Literally ruang = “room,” tamu = “guest,” so “guest room.” Culturally it’s the room where you receive guests, which corresponds to the English “living room.” You might also hear ruang keluarga (“family room”) used for a similar purpose.