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Questions & Answers about Jalan itu ramai malam ini.
What does Jalan mean in this sentence?
Here Jalan means “street.” Although jalan can also be the verb “to walk,” context tells you it’s a noun.
Why is itu placed after Jalan, and what does it do?
Itu is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” or functioning like the definite article “the.” Placed after a noun, it makes Jalan itu = “that street” or “the street.”
Why is there no word for “is” in Jalan itu ramai malam ini?
Indonesian often omits the copula (“to be”) in simple descriptive sentences. You don’t need adalah or itu again. The structure [Subject] + [Adjective] + [Time] is enough.
Is ramai acting as an adjective or a verb here?
In this sentence, ramai is an adjective meaning “crowded” or “busy.” You can sometimes use ramai as an intransitive verb (“to be busy/noisy”), but here it describes the street’s state.
What does malam ini mean, and why is it at the end?
Malam ini literally means “this night,” i.e. “tonight.” Indonesian word order is flexible; placing the time expression at the end is neutral: “The street is busy tonight.”
Can I move malam ini elsewhere in the sentence?
Yes. You could say “Malam ini jalan itu ramai” to emphasize “tonight.” Or “Jalan itu malam ini ramai.” All are correct; nuance shifts slightly with emphasis.
What if I want to say “on that street it’s busy tonight”? Do I need di?
If you want to use a location marker, you say “Di jalan itu ramai malam ini.” Here di means “at/on,” so it emphasizes the street as the place rather than the subject.
How do I turn this into a question: “Is that street busy tonight?”
You can add apakah at the front:
“Apakah jalan itu ramai malam ini?”
Or tag kan at the end for a casual question:
“Jalan itu ramai malam ini, kan?”