Dia berani dan sopan.

He/She is brave and polite.

Breakdown of Dia berani dan sopan.

• adalah: to be
• dia: he/she
• dan: and
• sopan: polite
• berani: brave

Questions & Answers about Dia berani dan sopan.

In Dia berani dan sopan, does dia mean he or she? How can I tell which one?

Dia can mean he or she; it doesn’t show gender.

You know which one from context, for example:

• If you were already talking about a man, dia = he.
• If you were already talking about a woman, dia = she.

If you really need to be explicit, you can say:

• Laki-laki itu berani dan sopan. – That man is brave and polite.
• Perempuan itu berani dan sopan. – That woman is brave and polite.

Where is the word “is” in this sentence? Why don’t we say something like Dia adalah berani dan sopan?

Indonesian usually does not use a separate word for “is/are” when linking a subject to an adjective.

So:

• Dia berani dan sopan.
  literally: He/She brave and polite.
  natural English: He/She is brave and polite.

You cannot say Dia adalah berani dan sopan.
Adalah is generally used before nouns, not before adjectives:

• Correct: Dia adalah dokter. – He/She is a doctor. (noun)
• Incorrect: Dia adalah berani. ✗
• Correct: Dia berani. – He/She is brave. (adjective, no adalah)

Are berani and sopan adjectives?

Yes, berani and sopan function like adjectives here:

• berani = brave, courageous
• sopan = polite, well-mannered

In Indonesian, adjectives normally come after the noun or pronoun they describe:

• Dia berani. – He/She is brave.
• Anak itu sopan. – That child is polite.

So in Dia berani dan sopan, both berani and sopan are adjectives describing dia.

Can I change the order and say Dia sopan dan berani? Does the order change the meaning?

Yes, you can say Dia sopan dan berani. Grammatically it’s fine.

• Dia berani dan sopan.
• Dia sopan dan berani.

Both mean He/She is brave and polite.

Any difference is very subtle and more about emphasis:

• First version might slightly highlight brave first.
• Second version might slightly highlight polite first.

In everyday speech, people won’t feel a real difference; both are natural.

What does dan do here? Can I just say Dia berani sopan without dan?

Dan means and and is used to connect words or phrases of the same type:

• Dia berani dan sopan. – He/She is brave and polite.

You cannot drop dan in this sentence:

• Dia berani sopan. ✗ (sounds wrong/unnatural)

To list two adjectives describing the same subject, you normally must use dan:

• Dia pintar dan rajin. – He/She is smart and diligent.
• Rumah itu besar dan nyaman. – That house is big and comfortable.

How can I say “very brave and polite” or “quite brave and polite”?

You add an adverb before the adjective pair, or after the last adjective.

Common patterns:

1. Before the adjectives:

   • Dia sangat berani dan sopan.
     = He/She is very brave and polite.
   • Dia cukup berani dan sopan.
     = He/She is quite/fairly brave and polite.

2. After the adjectives (using sekali):

   • Dia berani dan sopan sekali.
     = He/She is very brave and polite.

All of these are natural. The most neutral for “very” is sangat before the adjectives or sekali at the end.

How do I say “He is not brave but polite” or “He is not brave and not polite”?

Use tidak to negate adjectives and tapi/ tetapi for but.

1. Not brave but polite:

   • Dia tidak berani tapi sopan.
   • Dia tidak berani tetapi sopan. (a bit more formal)
     = He/She is not brave but (is) polite.

2. Not brave and not polite:

   • Dia tidak berani dan tidak sopan.
     = He/She is not brave and not polite.

You need tidak before each adjective if you want to negate both of them clearly.

Can dia also mean “it” (for animals or things)?

Usually:

• Dia = he/she (a person), and sometimes a pet or animal you feel close to.
• For things or impersonal “it”, Indonesian more often uses itu, ini, or just omits a pronoun.

Examples:

• About a loved pet:
  Ini kucing saya. Dia berani dan sopan.
  This is my cat. It (he/she) is brave and polite.

• About an object (you usually don’t use dia):
  Mobil itu bagus dan nyaman. – That car is good and comfortable.
  (You don’t typically say Dia bagus dan nyaman for the car.)

So dia is mainly for people, and sometimes for animals treated like persons.

Is sopan formal? Are there similar words I should know?

Sopan is neutral and common in both spoken and written Indonesian. It means polite / well-mannered.

Related words:

• Sopan santun – politeness/etiquette (as a concept)
  
  • Dia punya sopan santun. – He/She has good manners.
• Santun – refined, courteous (often more formal)
  
  • Bahasanya sangat santun. – His/Her language is very courteous.
• Kurang sopan – not very polite
  
  • Dia kurang sopan. – He/She is not very polite.

So Dia berani dan sopan is perfectly natural and neutral; it doesn’t sound overly formal.

Is berani always positive, like “brave”, or can it also mean “reckless” or “bold” in a bad way?

Berani is usually positive (brave), but context can make it neutral or even negative.

Positive:

• Dia berani membela temannya.
  He/She is brave in defending his/her friend.

Potentially negative or risky:

• Dia terlalu berani.
  He/She is too daring / reckless.
• Dia berani melawan aturan.
  He/She dares to go against the rules.

In Dia berani dan sopan, with sopan next to it, berani is clearly positive: someone who has courage and good manners.

Can I drop dia and just say Berani dan sopan?

You can, but only in certain contexts.

• In a full normal sentence, you usually keep the subject:

  • Dia berani dan sopan. – standard, complete.

• You might drop dia:

  • in titles, notes, or lists:
    • Berani dan sopan (as a heading describing a person)
  • when the subject is visually obvious (e.g., pointing at a photo and commenting):
    • (Dia) Berani dan sopan. – Brave and polite.

In standard written or spoken sentences, it’s safer and more natural for learners to keep dia:
Dia berani dan sopan.