Breakdown of Ketika tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali.
Questions & Answers about Ketika tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali.
How do I know whether this sentence is past or present?
Indonesian doesn’t mark tense. The sentence can be read as past or present depending on context. Because ketika often refers to a specific occasion, many readers will default to a past reading. To make time explicit:
- Past: Kemarin, ketika tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali.
- Habitual present: Kalau tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali.
- Ongoing: Ketika tombol tidak berfungsi, dia sedang menekan remot berkali-kali.
Can I replace ketika with saat, waktu, kalau, bila, or apabila? What’s the nuance?
- ketika: neutral, often a specific time point (common in narratives).
- saat / waktu: close synonyms of ketiga; saat can feel a bit more formal; waktu is very common.
- kalau: casual; often means if/when in general or habitual statements.
- bila / apabila: more formal counterparts of kalau. All work here, with slight tone differences:
- Saat/Waktu tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali.
- Kalau tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali.
- Apabila tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali.
Why is it tidak berfungsi and not bukan berfungsi?
Tidak negates verbs, adjectives, and prepositional phrases; bukan negates nouns and pronouns. Berfungsi is a verb-like predicate, so tidak berfungsi is correct. Compare:
- Ini bukan tombol. (This is not a button.)
- Tombol ini tidak berfungsi. (This button doesn’t work.)
What’s the difference between tidak berfungsi, rusak, and tidak bekerja?
- tidak berfungsi: does not function/doesn’t work (may be temporary).
- rusak: broken/damaged (stronger; implies it needs repair).
- tidak bekerja: literally “not working”; fine for machines or systems, but odd for a button specifically. You can also say tidak berfungsi dengan baik (doesn’t work properly).
Is menekan remot natural, or should it be menekan tombol?
Strictly speaking, you press a button, not the whole remote. More precise:
- dia menekan tombol remot berkali-kali or
- dia menekan tombol pada remot berkali-kali. In casual speech many people do say (me)mencet remot to mean “press the remote’s buttons,” and it’s widely understood, though less precise/formal.
What’s the difference between menekan and memencet/mencet?
They all mean “to press,” but:
- menekan: neutral/standard, good for writing.
- memencet/mencet: informal/colloquial, very common in speech.
Is remot the correct spelling? What about remote? How do you say “remote control” in Indonesian?
Both remot and remote are found; remote is often the dictionary form, while remot is extremely common in everyday use. A fully Indonesian term is pengendali jarak jauh. All of these are understandable:
- menekan remot TV
- menekan remote TV
- menekan pengendali jarak jauh
What exactly does berkali-kali mean, and are there synonyms?
Berkali-kali means “many times/again and again.” It’s reduplication of kali (times) and is written with a hyphen. Close alternatives:
- berulang kali (no hyphen between ulang and kali)
- berulang-ulang For fewer repetitions: beberapa kali (a few times).
Can I move berkali-kali earlier in the sentence?
Yes. All of these are correct, with slight emphasis differences:
- Dia menekan remot berkali-kali. (neutral)
- Dia berkali-kali menekan remot. (emphasizes the frequency)
- Berkali-kali dia menekan remot. (strong fronted emphasis on repetition)
Why is there a comma after the first clause?
When a subordinate clause comes first, Indonesian normally uses a comma before the main clause:
- Ketika tombol tidak berfungsi, dia menekan remot berkali-kali. If you reverse the order, a comma is usually unnecessary:
- Dia menekan remot berkali-kali ketika tombol tidak berfungsi.
Does dia mean “he” or “she”? How can I make it explicit?
Dia is gender-neutral and means “he” or “she.” To clarify:
- dia (laki-laki) / dia (perempuan)
- pria itu / wanita itu
- or use a name. In formal writing, ia can replace dia as a subject pronoun; beliau is a respectful third-person pronoun for elders or respected figures.
How do I say “the button” or “his/her remote”?
Use -nya to mark definiteness or possession:
- tombolnya tidak berfungsi = the button doesn’t work / its button doesn’t work
- remotnya = his/her/the remote (context decides whether it’s “the” or “his/her”)
What is the base verb of menekan, and why is the initial consonant different?
The base is tekan. With the meN- prefix, the initial t drops and the prefix surfaces as men-: meN- + tekan → menekan. This assimilation is regular:
- tulis → menulis
- pukul → memukul
- kirim → mengirim
- sapu → menyapu
Is tombol the right word here? What about tuts or saklar?
- tombol: button (on a remote, elevator, phone, etc.) — correct here.
- tuts: key (on a keyboard or piano).
- saklar: switch (e.g., a wall light switch). So for a remote control, tombol is the natural choice.
Do I need yang after tombol (e.g., tombol yang tidak berfungsi)?
Not in this structure. Ketika tombol tidak berfungsi is a full clause with tombol as subject and tidak berfungsi as predicate. You would use yang to make a noun phrase like tombol yang tidak berfungsi (the button that doesn’t work), for example:
- Dia menekan tombol yang tidak berfungsi berkali-kali. (He pressed the button that didn’t work repeatedly.)
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