Breakdown of Saya menggunakan payung ketika hujan deras.
sebuah
a
saya
I
ketika
when
payung
the umbrella
hujan
to rain
deras
heavily
menggunakan
to use
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Questions & Answers about Saya menggunakan payung ketika hujan deras.
What does menggunakan mean, and how is it formed?
menggunakan is a transitive verb meaning to use. It’s built from the root guna (use) with the active prefix me- and the suffix -kan, which often turns a root into a verb that takes a direct object. So:
- me- (active) + guna (root) + -kan (causative/transitive) → menggunakan
Why isn’t there any change to the verb for past, present, or future tense?
Indonesian verbs don’t inflect for tense. You keep the same form (menggunakan) for all time frames. If you want to specify time, you add time adverbs or aspect markers, for example:
- Yesterday: Kemarin saya menggunakan payung
- Right now (progressive): Saya sedang menggunakan payung
- Tomorrow: Besok saya akan menggunakan payung
What is the role of ketika, and how is it different from kalau or karena?
- ketika is a temporal conjunction meaning when, used to introduce a time clause.
- kalau can also mean when in informal contexts, but it often carries a conditional sense like if.
- karena means because, indicating a cause rather than a time.
So in this sentence, ketika correctly links the timing of using the umbrella to the heavy rain.
Could I use waktu or saat instead of ketika? Are there style differences?
Yes. All three can mean when, but:
- ketika is slightly more formal or literary.
- saat is neutral and common in speech and writing.
- waktu is also very common and can function as both a noun (time) and conjunction (when).
Example substitutions: - Saya menggunakan payung saat hujan deras.
- Saya menggunakan payung waktu hujan deras.
Why is deras placed after hujan? In English we say heavy rain, not rain heavy.
In Indonesian, adjectives follow the noun they modify. The structure is:
noun + adjective
So:
- hujan (noun) + deras (adjective/adverbial intensifier) → hujan deras (heavy rain / the rain falls heavily).
How do you express plural for payung? If I have two umbrellas, do I say payung-payung?
Indonesian nouns aren’t marked for number. Context tells you singular or plural. If you need to emphasize plurality, you can:
- use a numeral or quantifier: dua payung, banyak payung
- use reduplication for a general plural feel: payung-payung (some umbrellas)
But in most cases, payung alone can mean one or more.
Can I switch the clause order? For example, start with Ketika hujan deras?
Absolutely. Indonesian allows flexibility:
- Saya menggunakan payung ketika hujan deras.
- Ketika hujan deras, saya menggunakan payung.
Both are grammatically correct; placing the time clause first can add emphasis or vary your style.
Is there a more colloquial or casual way to express this?
Yes. You might hear:
- Aku pakai payung kalau hujan deras.
Here, aku is an informal first-person pronoun, pakai is a casual verb for “use,” and kalau replaces ketika in everyday speech.