Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Perjalanan ke kantor pagi ini macet sekali. - The journey to the office this morning was very congested.

In Indonesian, time expressions like pagi ini (“this morning”) can be placed flexibly. Putting pagi ini after perjalanan ke kantor emphasizes which journey you’re talking about—the one that happened this morning. You could also say Pagi ini perjalanan ke kantor macet sekali, and it would mean essentially the same thing, just shifting the focus slightly to the time first.

What does sekali mean here, and how does it function?

Sekali literally means “once,” but when used after an adjective (or verb) it acts as an intensifier: macet sekali = “jammed very badly” or “extremely congested.” You can think of sekali as similar to “very” or “extremely” in English.

Why is there no word for “is” in Perjalanan ... macet sekali?

Indonesian often drops the copula “to be” in predicative sentences. Instead of saying something like Perjalanan ke kantor pagi ini adalah macet sekali, speakers simply link the subject to the predicate directly: Perjalanan ... macet sekali. Adding adalah is grammatically correct but sounds more formal or literary.

What part of speech is macet in this sentence?

Here, macet functions as a predicate adjective (or stative verb). It describes the condition of the journey: “to be congested/blocked.” In other contexts, macet can also be a noun meaning “traffic jam,” but in macet sekali it’s describing how the journey was.

Why does the sentence use perjalanan instead of the verb pergi?

Perjalanan is a noun meaning “journey” or “trip,” focusing on the entire act or experience of traveling. Pergi is the verb “to go.” If you said Pergi ke kantor pagi ini macet sekali, you’d be saying “Going to the office this morning was extremely jammed,” which sounds off because you need a noun subject. So you use perjalanan to name the trip itself.

Why is there no article like “the” before perjalanan or “this” before kantor?

Indonesian does not have definite or indefinite articles (no “a,” “an,” or “the”). Context alone tells you whether you’re talking about a specific office or journey. If you want to specify “my office,” you’d add a pronoun: perjalanan ke kantor saya.

Can you replace macet sekali with a more formal alternative?

Yes. In formal or written Indonesian, you might see sangat macet instead of macet sekali. Both mean “very congested,” but sangat is a standard adverb of degree used in more formal registers.

If I want to say “My trip to the office this morning was very fast,” how would I change the sentence?

Swap macet sekali for an adjective meaning “fast,” such as cepat. Then add saya after perjalanan to mark possession:
Perjalanan saya ke kantor pagi ini cepat sekali.
This means “My trip to the office this morning was very fast.”