Saya kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat.

I go back to the apartment after the meeting.

Breakdown of Saya kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat.

• saya: I
• ke: to
• rapat: the meeting
• setelah: after
• apartemen: the apartment
• kembali: to go back

Questions & Answers about Saya kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat.

Do I need to mark past tense in Indonesian here?

No. Indonesian doesn’t inflect verbs for tense. Time is shown through context or time words:

• Completed: Saya sudah kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat.
• Earlier today: Tadi saya kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat.
• Future: Nanti/Besok saya akan kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat. Without any marker, Saya kembali… is time-neutral and understood from context.

What’s the difference between kembali, pulang, and balik?

• kembali = return/go back (neutral to formal; can be used for places or states).
• pulang = go home/return to one’s home base. Natural if the apartment is your home: Saya pulang ke apartemen.
• balik = go back (casual/colloquial): Saya balik ke apartemen. All three can be fine depending on tone and nuance.

Do I need the preposition ke after kembali?

Yes, for a physical destination you use ke:

• Correct: Saya kembali ke apartemen.
• Not needed when returning to a state/condition: Harga kembali normal (no ke).

How do I say “my apartment”?

Add a possessive after the noun:

• Neutral/formal: apartemen saya
• Casual/intimate: apartemenku
• Informal Jakarta slang: apartemen gue/gua Example: Saya kembali ke apartemen saya setelah rapat. Omitting the possessive is fine if context already makes it clear.

Can I drop the subject saya?

You can, especially in casual speech: Kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat.
But dropping it can sound like an instruction: Kembali ke apartemen setelah rapat! (Return to the apartment after the meeting!). Keep saya for clarity.

Can I move setelah rapat to the front?

Yes, very natural:

• Setelah rapat, saya kembali ke apartemen. Use a comma after the fronted time phrase.

Are setelah, sesudah, habis, and usai/seusai interchangeable?

They all mean “after,” but differ in tone:

• setelah / sesudah: neutral/standard.
• habis: colloquial.
• usai / seusai: formal/literary. Examples:
• Sesudah rapat, saya balik ke apartemen.
• Habis rapat, saya balik ke apartemen.
• Usai rapat, saya kembali ke apartemen.

Does rapat need an article? How do I say “after the meeting”?

Indonesian has no articles. Use determiners for specificity:

• setelah rapat = after a/the meeting (context decides)
• setelah rapat itu = after that meeting
• setelah rapatnya = after the meeting (previously known)
• setelah rapat tadi = after the earlier meeting (today)

What’s the difference between ke and di here?

• ke = to (movement): Saya kembali ke apartemen.
• di = at/in (location): Saya di apartemen. Don’t say kembali di apartemen for “returned to the apartment.”

What’s the difference between kembali and lagi?

• kembali = back/return.
• lagi = again (repetition), or “currently” in some contexts. Examples:
• Saya kembali ke apartemen. = I returned.
• Saya ke apartemen lagi. = I went to the apartment again (not necessarily “back”; just another time).
• Harga kembali normal = returned to normal.
• Harga naik lagi = went up again.

When would I use mengembalikan?

mengembalikan is transitive: to return something.

• Saya mengembalikan buku ke perpustakaan. Don’t use it for physically going back yourself. Use kembali/balik/pulang.

Is kembali also what people say for “You’re welcome”?

It exists but feels old-fashioned. Today most people say Sama-sama.
Note: Terima kasih kembali means “thank you too,” not “you’re welcome.”

Is rapat the right word for “meeting”?

Yes for work/organizational meetings. Alternatives:

• pertemuan = meeting in general (broader).
• diskusi = discussion.
• Business slang sometimes uses English meeting, but rapat is the standard Indonesian word.

Should I use pulang or kembali with apartemen?

If the apartment is your home, pulang ke apartemen highlights “going home.”
kembali ke apartemen is fine and neutral (just “return to the apartment”).
Both are acceptable; choose based on nuance.

How do I add a time like “earlier” or “later”?

Place time words near the start or before the verb:

• Tadi setelah rapat, saya kembali ke apartemen. (earlier today)
• Setelah rapat nanti, saya akan kembali ke apartemen. (later)
• Besok setelah rapat, saya akan kembali ke apartemen. (tomorrow)

Is there a difference between setelah rapat and setelah rapat selesai/berakhir?

• setelah rapat = after the meeting (event) — already implies it’s over.
• setelah rapat selesai/berakhir = explicitly “after the meeting finished,” adding emphasis on completion. Both are correct; the latter is more explicit.

Why not kepada instead of ke?

kepada is “to” for recipients (people/animate), not places:

• Mengirim email kepada dia. Use ke for destinations:
• kembali ke apartemen (to the apartment).

Do I need a classifier like sebuah with apartemen?

No. Classifiers like sebuah (“a/one [thing]”) are optional and used for emphasis or counting:

• Saya tinggal di sebuah apartemen kecil. In your sentence, ke apartemen is natural without any classifier.