Guling biru saya tertinggal di ruang tamu.

My blue bolster was left in the living room.

Breakdown of Guling biru saya tertinggal di ruang tamu.

• di: in
• ruang tamu: the living room
• saya: my
• tertinggal: to be left behind
• biru: blue
• guling: the bolster

Questions & Answers about Guling biru saya tertinggal di ruang tamu.

Why do the adjective and the possessive come after the noun in guling biru saya?

Indonesian noun phrases usually go in the order: Noun + Adjective + Possessor. So guling biru saya literally is “bolster blue my.”

• Default: guling biru saya = my blue bolster.
• If you want to single out the blue one among several you own, use guling saya yang biru (“my bolster, the one that’s blue”).

What exactly does tertinggal mean? How is it different from the base tinggal?

Tertinggal means “(to end up) left behind/forgotten,” often implying it was unintentional and describing a resulting state.
The base tinggal means “to live/stay” or “to remain.” For example, Saya tinggal di Jakarta = “I live in Jakarta.”
Related verbs:

• meninggalkan = “to leave (something/someone) behind” (deliberate action)
• ketinggalan = “to miss/forget/leave something behind” from the experiencer’s perspective

What’s the difference between tertinggal and ketinggalan here?

• tertinggal focuses on the item: Guling biru saya tertinggal di ruang tamu (my blue bolster ended up left behind in the living room).
• ketinggalan focuses on the person who forgot/missed: Saya ketinggalan guling biru saya di ruang tamu (I accidentally left my blue bolster in the living room).
  You may also hear Guling biru saya ketinggalan... in casual speech, but many prefer tertinggal when the item is the subject.

Can I say Saya tertinggal guling biru saya di ruang tamu?

No. Saya tertinggal means “I was left behind (by others),” so it doesn’t take an object like guling.
Use either:

• Saya ketinggalan guling biru saya di ruang tamu (accidentally left it), or
• Saya meninggalkan guling biru saya di ruang tamu (I left it there, often deliberate).

How do I show it’s in the past? There’s no past tense marking.

Indonesian uses time words and context instead of tense. You can add:

• tadi / barusan (earlier/just now), kemarin (yesterday), sudah (already).
  Examples: Tadi guling biru saya tertinggal di ruang tamu; Guling biru saya sudah tertinggal di ruang tamu.

Is di here a preposition or the passive prefix, and how should it be written?

Here it’s the preposition di = “in/at,” and it’s written separately: di ruang tamu.
The passive prefix di- attaches to a verb with no space, e.g., ditinggalkan (was left). Compare:

• di ruang tamu (in the living room)
• ditinggalkan (was left)

What exactly is ruang tamu? How is it different from kamar tamu or ruang keluarga?

• ruang tamu = living room (literally “guest room” in the sense of a reception room).
• kamar tamu = guest bedroom.
• ruang keluarga = family room/den.

How do I say “in this/that living room”?

Use ini/itu after the noun phrase: di ruang tamu ini (in this living room), di ruang tamu itu (in that living room).
Very formal writing might use di ruang tamu tersebut.
Alternatively, for place adverbs: di sini (here), di situ (there), di sana (over there).

Do I need an article like “the” or “a”?

No. Indonesian has no articles. Definiteness is inferred from context or shown with ini/itu.

• guling biru can be “a blue bolster” or “the blue bolster,” depending on context.
• guling biru saya is inherently definite (“my blue bolster”).

How do I say it was deliberate, or specify the agent who left it?

Use action/passive forms and optionally add sengaja (on purpose):

• Active, deliberate: Saya sengaja meninggalkan guling biru saya di ruang tamu.
• Passive: Guling biru saya (sengaja) ditinggalkan di ruang tamu (oleh saya).
  The original with tertinggal usually implies an unintentional result.

Can I use aku or the possessive -ku instead of saya?

Yes. Informal/intimate:

• Gulingku tertinggal di ruang tamu.
• Guling biruku tertinggal di ruang tamu.
  Both are natural. The clitic -ku attaches to the head noun or the last word of the noun phrase.

How do I say “your/his/her blue bolster” naturally?

• Your (informal): guling birumu / guling biru kamu
• Your (polite): guling biru Anda
• His/her: guling birunya / guling biru dia
  Using -nya can mean “his/her” or simply “the (specific) one,” depending on context.

How do I count or indicate plural here?

Use numerals or quantifiers; reduplication is optional and not always needed:

• satu guling biru (one blue bolster), dua guling biru (two blue bolsters)
• beberapa guling biru (several blue bolsters)
• With possession: Dua guling biru saya tertinggal di ruang tamu.
  Reduplication (guling-guling) can mark variety/plural but is less common here than using numbers/quantifiers.

Can tertinggal be used beyond physical objects?

Yes. It can mean “left behind/lagging” metaphorically: wilayah tertinggal (underdeveloped region).
For “miss the train/bus,” people commonly say ketinggalan kereta/bus, not tertinggal kereta.
For people being left behind by a group: Saya tertinggal rombongan.

Any quick pronunciation tips?

• g is always hard, as in “go”: guling = goo-ling (final ng is a velar nasal).
• ruang = roo-ahng (smooth glide between u and a; final ng again).
• tamu = tah-moo.
• tertinggal = tehr-ting-gahl (rolled/flapped r, stress fairly even).

Can I move the location phrase to the front?

Yes, for emphasis on place: Di ruang tamu, guling biru saya tertinggal.
This is stylistic; the meaning stays the same.

Does the sentence specify whose living room it is?

No. To specify, add a possessor: di ruang tamu saya/kami/rumah saya.
Example: Guling biru saya tertinggal di ruang tamu saya.

What exactly is a guling? How is it different from bantal?

A guling is a cylindrical bolster pillow (commonly hugged while sleeping in Indonesia). A bantal is a regular head pillow.
In Malaysia you’ll often hear bantal peluk for “bolster,” but guling is standard in Indonesian.