Saya meninggalkan payung di kantor.

I left my umbrella at the office.

Breakdown of Saya meninggalkan payung di kantor.

• saya: I
• di: at
• kantor: the office
• payung: the umbrella
• meninggalkan: to leave

Questions & Answers about Saya meninggalkan payung di kantor.

What does meninggalkan mean, and how is it formed?

Meninggalkan means “to leave something behind.” It’s built from the root tinggal (“to stay/remain”) with the prefix me- and the suffix -kan, forming a transitive verb that makes someone leave an object somewhere.

Why does me- become men- in meninggalkan?

In Indonesian, the prefix me- assimilates to different nasal sounds depending on the first letter of the root. Before t, it becomes men-. So me- + tinggal → meninggal, then add -kan → meninggalkan.

Is the sentence in past, present, or future tense?

Indonesian verbs don’t change form for tense. Here, meninggalkan is neutral. To specify past, you add time markers like sudah (“already”) or kemarin (“yesterday”):
– Saya sudah meninggalkan payung di kantor.
For future, you can use akan: Saya akan meninggalkan payung di kantor.

Why is there no plural marker on payung even if I mean multiple umbrellas?

Indonesian nouns aren’t marked for number. Context or words like beberapa payung (“several umbrellas”) or reduplication payung-payung convey plurality.

Could I say Saya tinggalkan payung di kantor instead?

In casual speech, yes – dropping me-…-kan can happen: Saya tinggalkan payung di kantor. But the standard, fully formed verb is meninggalkan.

Why is di before kantor and not after?

Di here is a preposition meaning “at” or “in” and must precede the noun. Standard preposition-noun order is di + place: di kantor.

Is this di- the same as the passive di- prefix?

No.
• Preposition di stands alone before a noun (di kantor, “at the office”).
• Prefix di- attaches to a verb to form the passive voice (ditinggalkan, “was left behind”).

Why isn’t the object payung marked by any particle?

Indonesian transitive verbs take direct objects without markers. The object simply follows the verb: [subject] + [verb] + [object].

Can I replace saya with aku or gue? What’s the difference?

• Saya is neutral/formal “I.”
• Aku is informal, friendly.
• Gue (and gua) is slang, very casual.
Choose based on setting and who you’re speaking to.

If I wanted to emphasize location first, can I say Di kantor saya meninggalkan payung?

Yes. Indonesian allows topicalization. Putting di kantor at the front highlights location:
Di kantor, saya meninggalkan payung.

How would I ask “Where did I leave the umbrella?” in Indonesian?

You can say:
Di mana saya meninggalkan payung?
Here di mana = “where.”