Selimut tipis itu dipakai ketika udara malam dingin.

That thin blanket is used when the night air is cold.

Breakdown of Selimut tipis itu dipakai ketika udara malam dingin.

• itu: that
• ketika: when
• dingin: cold
• malam: the night
• udara: the air
• dipakai: to be used
• selimut: the blanket
• tipis: thin

Questions & Answers about Selimut tipis itu dipakai ketika udara malam dingin.

What does selimut tipis itu mean, and why is itu placed after the noun?

selimut tipis itu literally breaks down to:

• selimut = blanket
• tipis = thin
• itu = that (demonstrative)
  In Indonesian, demonstratives like itu usually follow the noun phrase they modify. So selimut tipis itu means that thin blanket.

Why is dipakai used instead of an active form like memakai?

dipakai is the passive form of memakai (to use; to wear).

• Passive voice focuses on the item being used (the blanket) rather than who uses it.
• Active voice (memakai) would require a subject (e.g., Orang memakai selimut tipis itu…).

What is the difference between dipakai and digunakan?

Both mean used, but:

• dipakai often refers to objects you wear or directly employ (clothes, blankets).
• digunakan is more general, suitable for tools, methods, systems.
  In this sentence, dipakai is more natural since we’re talking about a blanket you “wear” or “use” for warmth.

Why is ketika used here, and can we replace it with saat or waktu?

• ketika = when (formal/concrete moment)
• saat = when (neutral, very common)
• waktu = time (noun), so you’d say pada waktu for “at the time when.”
  You can replace ketika with saat:
  Selimut tipis itu dipakai saat udara malam dingin.
  If you use waktu, it becomes dipakai pada waktu udara malam dingin (less concise).

How do we parse udara malam dingin? Why are there three words in a row?

This is a noun phrase with stacked modifiers:

1. udara = air (head noun)
2. malam = night (modifies udara, making “night air”)
3. dingin = cold (adjective, also modifies udara)
   Indonesian order: Head Noun + Modifier Noun + Adjective = udara malam dingin (“cold night air”).

Why isn’t there a yang before dingin (as in udara malam yang dingin)?

yang is a relative pronoun used to link modifiers, but it’s optional when meaning is clear. Omitting yang makes the sentence more concise without changing meaning. Both forms are correct:

• udara malam dingin
• udara malam yang dingin

Can we add di malam hari to specify “at night,” and where would it go?

Yes. You can explicitly say at night by inserting di malam hari. For example:
Selimut tipis itu dipakai di malam hari saat udara dingin.
This adds di malam hari (at night) before saat udara dingin.

How would you express the same idea in active voice?

Introduce a subject and use memakai (active):
Orang memakai selimut tipis itu ketika udara malam dingin.
Here orang (people) is the subject doing the action of memakai the blanket.