Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Staf kami menunggu di depan perpustakaan. - Our staff is waiting in front of the library.

In Indonesian, staf is a collective noun and can refer to the staff as a group or to staff members in general; number is not specified unless you add a marker. So Staf kami menunggu... could mean one or several people. To be explicit:

One person: Salah satu staf kami... or Seorang anggota staf kami... (Colloquial but common: Seorang staf kami...)
Several people: Beberapa staf kami... or Para staf kami...

Is staf the same as karyawan, pegawai, or petugas?

They overlap but have nuances:

staf: office/professional staff; often collective.
karyawan: employees (especially in the private sector); countable individuals.
pegawai: employees/officials, often in government or formal settings.
petugas: an on-duty officer/attendant (role-focused). For a library, you might hear petugas perpustakaan or pegawai perpustakaan (public library), or staf perpustakaan/karyawan perpustakaan (company/organizational context).

Why is kami used instead of kita?

kami = we/our, excluding the listener.
kita = we/our, including the listener. Use staf kami when the listener is not part of the group; use staf kita if both speaker and listener belong to the same organization.

Do I need sedang to say “are waiting (right now)”?

No. Indonesian doesn’t require tense/aspect marking. menunggu can mean wait/waits/is waiting. Add markers only if you want to be explicit:

Ongoing: sedang menunggu (neutral), lagi nunggu (colloquial)
Past (earlier): tadi ... menunggu
Completed: sudah menunggu
Future: akan menunggu

What’s the difference between menunggu, tunggu, and nunggu?

tunggu: base verb; common for imperatives: Tunggu!
menunggu: standard active form; good for statements: Mereka menunggu...
nunggu: colloquial reduction of menunggu: Kami nunggu... (informal speech/writing)

Does menunggu need an object? And is menunggu untuk... natural?

menunggu can take an object: menunggu bus/Anda. It can also be used without an explicit object if context/location is given: menunggu di depan perpustakaan is natural.
Avoid menunggu untuk + verb/noun in most cases. Prefer:
- menunggu giliran (wait for one’s turn)
- menunggu sampai/hingga... (wait until...)
- menunggu agar/supaya... (wait so that..., in certain contexts) If you want to name what is being awaited, add it directly: Staf kami menunggu Anda di depan perpustakaan.

What exactly does di depan perpustakaan mean?

It means “in front of the library” (outside, at the front). If you mean inside the library at the front area, say di bagian depan perpustakaan.

Can I put the place at the beginning: Di depan perpustakaan, staf kami menunggu?

Yes. Fronting the location is grammatical and emphasizes the place. The unfronted order (Staf kami menunggu di depan perpustakaan) is the neutral/default order.

How do I make the library definite, like “that specific library”?

Use determiners or other definiteness markers:

di depan perpustakaan itu (that library)
di depan perpustakaan tersebut (the aforementioned library; formal)
di depan perpustakaannya (in front of the library, made definite by -nya; refers back to something known) Or name it: di depan Perpustakaan Kota.

What’s the difference between di depan and di depannya?

di depan
- noun: di depan perpustakaan (in front of the library)
di depannya: “in front of it/him/her,” referring to something already known: Mereka menunggu di depannya. Don’t combine them as di depannya perpustakaan.

Is it ever written didepan as one word?

No. As a preposition, di is always separate: di depan. The attached form di- is a passive verb prefix (e.g., dipanggil), not a preposition.

How can I emphasize that multiple staff members are waiting?

Use a plural marker or quantifier:

beberapa staf kami menunggu... (several)
para staf kami menunggu... (our staff, explicitly plural/collective)
banyak staf kami menunggu... (many) Avoid staf-staf; repetition is uncommon with staf.

How do I say “One of our staff is waiting in front of the library”?

Salah satu staf kami menunggu di depan perpustakaan.
Seorang anggota staf kami menunggu di depan perpustakaan. (Colloquial but common: Seorang staf kami menunggu...)

How can I phrase a polite instruction like “Please wait in front of the library”?

Neutral/polite: Tolong tunggu di depan perpustakaan. (You’ll also hear Tolong menunggu..., which is widely used.)
Formal/customer-facing: Silakan menunggu di depan perpustakaan. / Mohon menunggu di depan perpustakaan.

Are there alternatives to di depan for “in front of”?

di muka: older/formal; can mean “in front of” (place).
di hadapan: “before/in the presence of,” usually with people, e.g., di hadapan polisi. For places/buildings, di depan is the most natural and common choice.