Guru kami aktif di perpustakaan.

to be

Breakdown of Guru kami aktif di perpustakaan.

• di: in
• guru: the teacher
• perpustakaan: the library

Questions & Answers about Guru kami aktif di perpustakaan.

Where is the verb “is”? Why is there no word like “is/are”?

Indonesian usually drops “to be” before adjectives. So Guru kami aktif literally reads “Our teacher active,” which means “Our teacher is active.” You don’t add adalah before an adjective. Use adalah mainly when the predicate is a noun: Guru kami adalah koordinator perpustakaan (Our teacher is the library coordinator).

Does Guru kami refer to one teacher or multiple teachers?

It can be either, depending on context. Indonesian doesn’t mark plural by default. If you need to be explicit:

• Plural: guru-guru kami or para guru kami
• Definitely one specific teacher: guru kami itu
• “One of our teachers”: seorang guru kami

What’s the difference between kami and kita?

• kami = “we/our” excluding the listener.
• kita = “we/our” including the listener. So guru kami = “our teacher (not yours),” while guru kita = “our teacher (yours and ours).” Choose based on inclusivity.

Why is the pronoun after the noun (Guru kami) and not before (like “our teacher”)?