Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Dia memakai kaus dan kaus kaki bersih hari ini. - He/She wears a T-shirt and clean socks today.

In Dia memakai kaus dan kaus kaki bersih hari ini, most readers will take bersih as modifying the closest noun, kaus kaki, so it naturally reads as “a T‑shirt and clean socks.” To be explicit:

If you mean both are clean: Dia memakai kaus bersih dan kaus kaki bersih hari ini. / Dia memakai kaus dan kaus kaki yang bersih hari ini.
If you mean only the shirt is clean: Dia memakai kaus bersih dan kaus kaki hari ini.

Where do adjectives go in Indonesian?

They normally come after the noun:

kaus bersih = clean T‑shirt
baju merah = red shirt
sepatu baru = new shoes Putting the adjective before the noun is ungrammatical in standard Indonesian.

Could I mark “is wearing right now” like English present continuous?

Yes, you can add the aspect marker sedang to stress an ongoing situation:

Dia sedang memakai kaus dan kaus kaki bersih. In everyday speech, lagi is also common: Dia lagi pakai kaus dan kaus kaki bersih. Without these, Indonesian still often reads as present, and context (like hari ini) handles time.

Is memakai the best verb here? What about mengenakan or pakai?

memakai: neutral and common for “wear” or “use.”
mengenakan: a bit more formal/literary; specifically “to put on/wear” clothing. Example: Dia mengenakan kemeja putih.
pakai: informal/colloquial form of memakai. Example: Dia pakai kaus… All three are acceptable with clothing; choose based on formality.

What’s the difference between kaus, baju, and kemeja?

kaus: a T‑shirt (casual, knit, no buttons). You may also see kaus oblong for T‑shirt.
baju: general word for “clothes” or “a top/garment”; broad usage.
kemeja: a collared, buttoned shirt (dress/casual shirt). So if you specifically mean a T‑shirt, kaus is the precise choice.

Which spelling is right: kaus or kaos? And what about socks: kaus kaki or kaos kaki?

Both kaus and kaos are widely used; kaus is the dictionary-preferred form. For socks, the standard compound is kaus kaki, though kaos kaki is extremely common in everyday writing. In formal contexts, prefer kaus and kaus kaki.

Do I need to say “a pair of socks”?

Not unless you want to specify quantity. Indonesian doesn’t mark plural by default.

Generic: Dia memakai kaus kaki. (wearing socks)
One pair: Dia memakai sepasang kaus kaki.
Two pairs: Dia memakai dua pasang kaus kaki.
One sock only: Dia memakai satu kaus kaki saja.

Can I move hari ini somewhere else in the sentence?

Yes. Position is flexible; meaning stays the same, but emphasis shifts slightly:

Hari ini dia memakai kaus dan kaus kaki bersih. (focus on “today”)
Dia memakai kaus dan kaus kaki bersih hari ini. (neutral)
Dia hari ini memakai kaus dan kaus kaki bersih. (emphasizes “today” for this person)

How do I say “the shirt” or “his/her shirt” when there is no “the” or “a” in Indonesian?

Indonesian has no articles; context decides definiteness. To be explicit:

Dia memakai kaus itu. = he/she wears that/the specific T‑shirt.
Dia memakai kausnya. = he/she wears his/her T‑shirt or the aforementioned T‑shirt (‑nya can mark possession or definiteness).
Dia memakai kaus dia. = his/her T‑shirt (colloquial; ‑nya is more compact/natural).

Does dia mean “he” or “she”? Are there other third‑person pronouns I should know?

dia: gender‑neutral “he/she,” used in speech and writing.
ia: also “he/she,” mostly in formal writing and typically as a subject.
beliau: respectful “he/she” for elders or people of high status.
mereka: “they.” Indonesian doesn’t grammatically mark gender.

How would I negate this sentence?

Use tidak before the verb or adjective part:

Not wearing socks today: Dia tidak memakai kaus kaki hari ini.
The socks aren’t clean: Dia memakai kaus dan kaus kaki yang tidak bersih.

Do I need a classifier like “a piece of” for clothing?

Not required. You can just use numbers, and in many contexts that’s most natural:

satu kaus, dua kaus In retail or formal counting you may see:
satu potong kaus (one piece of clothing) For socks specifically, use the pair classifier:
sepasang kaus kaki (a pair of socks)