Questions & Answers about Saya menempel poster belajar di dinding dengan lem.
Should it be menempel or menempelkan?
Both are used, but there’s a nuance:
- menempel: literally “to stick/adhere.” Traditionally intransitive (no direct object): Poster itu sudah menempel di dinding. In everyday speech, people often use it transitively: Saya menempel poster…
- menempelkan: clearly transitive/causative “to stick (something) onto (something).” This is the safest choice in careful or formal writing: Saya menempelkan poster di dinding dengan lem.
Your sentence with menempel is natural in conversation. In formal text, many would prefer menempelkan.
Where did the t from tempel go in menempel?
It’s from the meN- prefix assimilation rule. With roots starting with t, meN- becomes men- and the initial t of the root drops:
- tempel → menempel
- tulis → menulis
- tonton → menonton
So the missing t is expected and correct.
Why di dinding, not ke dinding or pada dinding?
- di marks location (where something is/ends up). You’re describing the final location of the poster, so di dinding is standard.
- ke marks direction (to/toward). You might hear menempelkan … ke dinding, but many speakers still prefer di/pada after menempelkan because the result is a location.
- is a more formal alternative to with concrete nouns: is fine, just a bit formal.