Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.

Rina arrives early at the library.

Breakdown of Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.

• ke: to
• lebih awal: earlier
• datang: to arrive
• perpustakaan: the library
• Rina: Rina

Questions & Answers about Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.

Does datang mean “come” or “arrive” here?

Both are possible. Datang covers the idea of coming/arriving at a place. So the sentence can be read as “Rina came to/arrived at the library.” If you want to contrast it:

• pergi = to go (away from the current place)
• tiba/sampai = to arrive (focus on reaching the destination)

Why is it ke perpustakaan, not di perpustakaan?

Because ke marks motion “to,” while di marks location “at/in.” With these verbs:

• datang ke
  • place
• tiba di
  • place
• sampai di
  • place

How do I show that this happened in the past or will happen in the future?

Indonesian doesn’t inflect for tense. Add time words/particles:

• Past: tadi, kemarin, sudah. Example: Rina tadi datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.
• Future: besok, nanti, akan. Example: Besok Rina akan datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan. Often akan/sudah can be omitted if a time word is present.

Is lebih awal the same as lebih cepat, lebih dulu/lebih dahulu, or lebih dini?

• lebih awal: earlier in time/schedule; best for arrivals.
• lebih cepat: faster (speed) or sooner, but typically with actions like finishing: selesai lebih cepat. For arriving, prefer lebih awal or lebih cepat sampai.
• lebih dulu / lebih dahulu: earlier/before others; “in advance.” Rina datang lebih dulu = she came before the others.
• lebih dini: “earlier” in the sense of an early stage/age/time (e.g., usia dini, dini hari). Not the usual choice for “arrive early.”

Can I drop lebih and just say Rina datang awal?

• Rina datang awal is fine in casual speech: “Rina came early (not late).”
• Rina datang lebih awal is comparative: earlier than expected/than usual/than others. Use this when a comparison is implied.

Where can I place lebih awal in the sentence?

All are natural:

• Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.
• Rina datang ke perpustakaan lebih awal. Also possible but a bit more marked:
• Rina lebih awal datang ke perpustakaan. Avoid: Rina ke perpustakaan datang lebih awal.

Earlier than what? How do I make the comparison explicit?

Add a comparator with daripada (or colloquially dari):

• lebih awal daripada biasanya (earlier than usual)
• lebih awal daripada yang lain (earlier than the others)
• lebih awal daripada jadwal (earlier than the schedule)

How do I say “earliest,” “too early,” or “even earlier”?

• Superlative: paling awal (most common) or terawal (also used). Example: Rina datang paling awal.
• Too early: terlalu awal.
• Even earlier: lebih awal lagi.

Can I use tiba or sampai instead of datang?

Yes:

• Rina tiba di perpustakaan lebih awal. (more formal)
• Rina sampai di perpustakaan lebih awal. (neutral, everyday) Remember: tiba/sampai di, but datang ke.

Is there any article like “the” here? Does ke perpustakaan mean “to the library” or “to a library”?

Indonesian has no articles. ke perpustakaan can mean either, depending on context. To be specific:

• ke perpustakaan itu (to that/the mentioned library)
• ke perpustakaan ini (to this library)

How do I negate this?

• Not earlier: Rina tidak datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.
• Not yet (still hasn’t come): Rina belum datang ke perpustakaan. Use tidak for simple negation; belum for “not yet.”

How do I turn it into a yes–no question?

• Apakah Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan? (neutral/formal)
• Or just use rising intonation: Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan?

Can I replace the name with a pronoun? What’s the difference between dia, ia, and beliau?

• dia: he/she (common, any position)
• ia: he/she (written/formal; usually before the verb)
• beliau: respectful “he/she” for elders or respected people Example: Dia datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.

What does perpustakaan literally come from?

Root pustaka (“book, literature”) + affixes per- -an → perpustakaan (“library”). Related: pustakawan (“librarian”).

Is datang di perpustakaan acceptable?

Standard patterns:

• datang ke
  • place
• tiba/sampai di
  • place You may hear datang di in some speech, but the patterns above are the norm.

What would ke perpustakaannya mean if I add -nya?

-nya can mark “the/that (previously mentioned)” or possession (“his/her”).

• ke perpustakaannya = to that/its library, or to his/her library (context decides).
  If you mean it generally, keep ke perpustakaan.

Where do time words like besok, tadi, or a clock time go?

They’re flexible:

• Beginning: Besok Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan.
• After subject: Rina besok datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan. (colloquial)
• End: Rina datang lebih awal ke perpustakaan besok. Beginning or end is most common and clear.