Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Saya mengisi formulir dan menyerahkannya di meja resepsionis. - I fill out the form and hand it in at the receptionist’s desk.

-nya is a clitic that here means “it” (3rd-person object referring back to the already-mentioned thing, i.e., the form). It can also mean “the” (definiteness) or “his/her/its,” but in this sentence it’s an object pronoun. It attaches directly to the word with no hyphen: menyerahkannya = “hand it in/over.” Context determines whether -nya means “it” or “them,” since Indonesian doesn’t mark number on nouns.

Could I just repeat the word formulir instead of using -nya?

Yes. You can say Saya mengisi formulir dan menyerahkan formulir itu di meja resepsionis. Using -nya avoids repetition and sounds smooth. Avoid menyerahkan itu here; itu is a demonstrative (“that”) and, without context, sounds less natural than -nya or formulir itu.

Why is it di meja resepsionis and not ke or kepada?

di marks a location: “at the reception desk.”
ke marks movement toward a place: ke meja resepsionis = “to the reception desk.”
kepada marks a recipient (usually a person): kepada resepsionis = “to the receptionist.”
Your sentence emphasizes the place of the handover, not the recipient.

What’s the difference between menyerahkan, memberikan, and mengumpulkan?

menyerahkan: to hand over/submit something, often to an authority or as a required step.
memberikan: to give (general “give” in any context).
mengumpulkan: to submit/turn in (especially assignments, tasks, forms) or to collect.
In many “submission” contexts, both menyerahkan and mengumpulkan are fine; menyerahkan stresses the act of handing over, mengumpulkan the act of submitting/collecting.

Why is it spelled menyerahkan (with ny)? What happened to the s in serah?

The prefix meN- assimilates to the first sound of the root:

Before words starting with s, meN- becomes meny- and the s of the root drops.
So meN- + serah + -kan → menyerahkan.
Similarly, meN- + isi → mengisi (before a vowel, meN- becomes meng-).

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

No. In di meja resepsionis, di is a separate preposition meaning “at,” written with a space. The passive prefix di- attaches to verbs with no space (e.g., diserahkan = “is/was submitted”). Spacing tells you which is which.

Could I say kepada resepsionis instead? How does that change the nuance?

Yes: Saya … menyerahkannya kepada resepsionis focuses on the recipient (the person). … di meja resepsionis focuses on the location. You can combine them: Saya menyerahkannya kepada resepsionis di meja resepsionis (to the receptionist at the reception desk).

Is resepsionis the person or the desk?

resepsionis = the person (receptionist).
meja resepsionis = the receptionist’s desk/reception desk.
Don’t confuse with resepsi (a reception/event). meja resepsi would be the registration desk at an event.

Can I drop Saya or use other pronouns?

Yes. Subjects are often dropped when clear from context: Mengisi formulir dan menyerahkannya…. For register: saya (polite/neutral), aku (informal), gue/gua (very informal, Jakarta). Choose based on formality and region.

Does dan between two verbs sound natural? Could I use lalu or kemudian?

Yes, dan is natural to join two actions with the same subject. If you want to stress sequence, lalu or kemudian is great: Saya mengisi formulir lalu/kemudian menyerahkannya…. Terus is common in casual speech.

How would I mark past time, since Indonesian doesn’t have tense?

Use time words/aspect markers:

tadi, kemarin (earlier, yesterday)
sudah/telah (already)
E.g., Saya sudah mengisi formulir dan menyerahkannya… or Tadi saya mengisi…. Context often makes the time clear without extra words.

Where exactly does -nya attach? Do I need a hyphen?

It attaches to the whole verb phrase head and comes after -kan: menyerahkan + -nya → menyerahkannya. No hyphen is used. By contrast, particles like -lah/-kah also attach without hyphens (e.g., apakah).

Could I make this passive?

Yes. Common options:

Short passive with actor fronted: Formulir itu saya serahkan di meja resepsionis.
Passive with di-: Formulirnya diserahkan di meja resepsionis (oleh saya).
You can also chain actions: Formulir saya isi lalu saya serahkan di meja resepsionis.

Is mengisi formulir the best collocation? What about mengisikan, melengkapi, or memasukkan?

The standard collocation is mengisi formulir (“fill out a form”).
mengisikan can mean “fill something in for someone (benefactive),” but is less common here.
melengkapi (“to complete”) is fine if you mean “complete the required fields”: melengkapi formulir.
memasukkan (data) = “enter (data)” (often digital): memasukkan data ke formulir online.

Why not di resepsionis?

Because resepsionis is a person. di should mark a place, so you use the location noun: di meja resepsionis (at the receptionist’s desk), or di resepsion if the venue labels the area that way. If you want the person as recipient, use kepada resepsionis.

How do I handle plurals here? What if I submitted multiple forms?

Indonesian usually leaves number to context. menyerahkannya can mean “handed it/them in,” depending on prior mention. If you need to be explicit: beberapa formulir, semua formulir, or formulir-formulir itu (reduplication for plural).

Any common informal variants of this sentence?

In casual speech you might hear: Saya/ngisi form, terus nyerahin ke resepsionis.
Notes: ngisi (< mengisi), nyerahin (< menyerahkan), form (loanword), terus (then), and ke for a person (very common in speech, though prescriptively kepada is preferred).