Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Kepercayaan diri kami naik setelah latihan. - Our self-confidence goes up after practice.

In Indonesian, the possessed noun comes first and the possessor follows it. So kepercayaan diri kami literally reads as self-confidence our. Saying kami kepercayaan diri would be ungrammatical. You could also say kami punya kepercayaan diri (we have self-confidence), but that doesn’t match the meaning of “our self-confidence went up.”

What’s the difference between kami and kita?

kami = we/us (excluding the listener)
kita = we/us (including the listener) If the listener was part of the group that practiced, use kita: Kepercayaan diri kita naik setelah latihan. If not, stick with kami.

Can I say percaya diri kami instead of kepercayaan diri kami?

Not with the verb naik. percaya diri is an adjective (“confident”), while kepercayaan diri is the noun (“self-confidence”). Keep your original structure, or rephrase to use the adjective:

Noun: Kepercayaan diri kami naik setelah latihan.
Adjective: Kami menjadi lebih percaya diri setelah latihan.

What does naik mean here? Could I use meningkat or bertambah?

naik means “to go up/rise.” You can use:

meningkat (more formal/neutral “increase”): Kepercayaan diri kami meningkat setelah latihan.
bertambah (“to grow/add/increase in amount”): Kepercayaan diri kami bertambah setelah latihan. All are acceptable; meningkat sounds a bit more formal than naik.

What’s the difference between naik, menaikkan, and kenaikan?

naik: intransitive verb, “go up” (no direct object). Example: Kepercayaan diri kami naik.
menaikkan: transitive verb, “raise/increase (something).” Example: Pelatih menaikkan intensitas latihan.
kenaikan: noun, “an increase.” Example: Ada kenaikan kepercayaan diri. Don’t say menaik; the correct causative form is menaikkan.

Is setelah the only way to say “after”? What about sesudah or habis?

setelah: standard and common.
sesudah: synonymous with setelah, slightly more formal in some ears.
habis/sehabis/usai: more colloquial/literary/regional.
All fit here: … setelah/sesudah/sehabis/usai latihan.

Should it be setelah latihan or setelah berlatih?

Both are fine:

setelah latihan = after (the) practice/training session (noun).
setelah berlatih = after practicing (verb). Choose based on whether you want to emphasize the event (noun) or the activity (verb).

What’s the word family for latihan? How do berlatih, melatih, and pelatihan differ?

latih (root): train.
berlatih: to practice (intransitive). Example: Kami berlatih setiap hari.
melatih: to train (someone) (transitive). Example: Pelatih melatih kami.
latihan: practice/training/exercise (noun). Example: latihan fisik.
pelatihan: training program/course (more formal/organized). Example: pelatihan kepemimpinan.

Do I need sudah to show the past, like sudah naik?

No. Indonesian doesn’t mark tense on the verb. setelah already shows sequence, so Kepercayaan diri kami naik setelah latihan is enough. sudah can emphasize a completed change (e.g., sudah naik = “has already gone up”), but pairing sudah with setelah can feel redundant. If you want that nuance, a more natural pairing is with sejak (“since”): Kepercayaan diri kami sudah naik sejak latihan.

Can I drop kami?

You can, but the meaning changes. Kepercayaan diri naik setelah latihan sounds like a general statement (“Self-confidence goes up after practice”), not specifically “our self-confidence.” Keep kami if you mean “our.”

Can I start with the time phrase?

Yes: Setelah latihan, kepercayaan diri kami naik. This is a common, natural word order. The comma is optional but recommended.

How do I specify “this/that/earlier” practice?

Add a demonstrative or time word:

setelah latihan ini/itu
setelah latihan tadi (earlier)
setelah latihan kemarin (yesterday)
setelah latihan pertama (the first practice)

How do I say it more strongly, like “went way up” or “increased a lot”?

Options:

naik drastis/pesat
meningkat pesat/sangat meningkat
jauh lebih percaya diri (with the adjective) Colloquially, you might hear naik banget, but that’s informal.

Are there articles like “the” in Indonesian? Do I need one before latihan?

Indonesian has no articles. latihan can be understood as “practice/the practice” from context. Use demonstratives if you need to be specific: latihan itu/ini/tadi.

How is kepercayaan pronounced and syllabified?

Syllables: ke-per-ca-ya-an.
Tips:

ke has a short schwa-like vowel.
c is like English “ch” in “chair.”
r is tapped/flapped.
ya = “ya” as in “yard.”
-an at the end is a clear “an,” not silent.

Does kepercayaan also mean “belief” or “religion”? Will kepercayaan diri be confusing?

Yes, kepercayaan alone can mean “belief/faith” (even “religion” in some contexts, e.g., agama dan kepercayaan). But the compound kepercayaan diri specifically means “self-confidence,” so there’s no ambiguity in this phrase.

Can I attach a possessive suffix instead of using kami?

For first person plural, Indonesian doesn’t have a suffix like -kami. You use the full pronoun after the noun: kepercayaan diri kami. Suffixes exist for:

-ku (my): kepercayaan diriku
-mu (your): kepercayaan dirimu
-nya (his/her/their): kepercayaan dirinya For “our,” stick with kami or kita after the noun.