Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu.

Mrs. Dini arrives on time.

Breakdown of Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu.

• datang: to arrive
• tepat waktu: on time
• Ibu Dini: Mrs. Dini

Questions & Answers about Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu.

What does Ibu mean here?

Ibu is a respectful title used before a woman’s name, roughly like Ms./Mrs./Ma’am. It can also mean “mother” as a common noun, but in this sentence it’s an honorific. The everyday shortened form is Bu. The male counterpart is Bapak/Pak (e.g., Pak Budi).

Why is Ibu capitalized?

It’s capitalized because it functions as a title before a name. Compare:

• Title: Ibu Dini
• Common noun: ibu saya (my mother), seorang ibu (a mother)

Can I say Bu Dini instead of Ibu Dini?

Yes. Bu Dini is very common in speech and informal writing. Ibu Dini sounds a bit more formal or careful, often used in writing or polite contexts.

Does using Ibu imply she’s married or a mother?

Not necessarily. Ibu is a general respectful title for adult women. Older Indonesian also had Nyonya (Ny.) for married women, but today Ibu is the default. For younger women you may hear Mbak in some regions.

Where is the past tense? How do we know when it happened?

Indonesian doesn’t mark tense on the verb. Time is inferred from context or added words:

• Past/aspect: sudah/telah (already), tadi (earlier), kemarin (yesterday). Example: Ibu Dini sudah datang.
• Present progressive: use context words like sedang, or more naturally: sedang dalam perjalanan (on the way).
• Future: akan, nanti, besok. Example: Ibu Dini akan datang besok.

What’s the nuance difference between datang, tiba, sampai, and hadir?

• datang: come (motion toward a place); neutral and common.
• tiba: arrive (focus on the moment of arrival); a bit more formal.
• sampai: arrive/reach; very common in speech, often with di (e.g., sampai di kantor).
• hadir: be present/attend an event; formal/official. All can pair with punctuality: tiba tepat waktu, sampai tepat waktu, hadir tepat waktu.

Can datang take a destination?

It’s intransitive (no direct object), but you add a destination with a preposition:

• Ibu Dini datang ke kantor tepat waktu.
• Mereka datang ke rumah saya.

What exactly does tepat waktu mean? Any alternatives?

tepat waktu means “on time/punctual.” Related expressions:

• tepat jadwal: on schedule (often for transport/services).
• tepat pukul/jam tujuh: exactly at seven o’clock.
• tepat pada waktunya / pada waktunya: in due time/at the right time (not necessarily the punctuality sense).

How do I say the opposite of tepat waktu?

For a single late arrival, the natural choice is:

• terlambat (standard) or telat (colloquial): Ibu Dini datang terlambat. You can say tidak tepat waktu, but that often sounds like “not punctual” (habitual) rather than “was late this time.”

Where do adverbs like “always,” “yesterday,” or “tomorrow” go?

• Frequency (e.g., selalu): usually before the verb: Ibu Dini selalu datang tepat waktu.
• Time words (e.g., kemarin, tadi pagi, besok): often at the beginning or end:
  • Kemarin, Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu.
  • Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu tadi pagi.

How do I turn this into a yes–no question?

• Neutral/polite: Apakah Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu?
• Conversational (intonation): Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu?
• Seeking confirmation: Ibu Dini datang tepat waktu, kan?

Can I front tepat waktu for emphasis?

Yes, for stylistic emphasis in writing or formal speech:

• Tepat waktu, Ibu Dini datang. Don’t say Ibu Dini tepat waktu datang; the natural order is datang tepat waktu.

Any pronunciation tips for these words?

• Ibu: ee-boo
• Dini: DEE-nee
• datang: DAH-tung (final ng like in “sung”)
• tepat: tuh-PAHT
• waktu: WAHK-too Stress is usually on the penultimate syllable.

Can I replace Ibu Dini with a pronoun?

Yes:

• Dia datang tepat waktu. (neutral/informal “she/he”)
• Beliau datang tepat waktu. (respectful for older/higher-status people) Use beliau sparingly and respectfully.

How do I talk about the “arrival” as a noun?

Use kedatangan (arrival):

• Kedatangan Ibu Dini tepat waktu. (Dini’s arrival is on time)
• Kami menunggu kedatangan Ibu Dini. (We are waiting for her arrival)

Any colloquial variants I should recognize?

• dateng (Jakarta colloquial for datang)
• telat (colloquial for terlambat)
• Bu (short for Ibu) Example: Bu Dini datengnya telat dikit (very colloquial; “Ms. Dini came a bit late”).