Questions & Answers about Tirai menutupi jendela.
The structure is simple S–V–O (Subject–Verb–Object), just like in English.
- Subject (S): Tirai – the curtain(s)
- Verb (V): menutupi – covers
- Object (O): jendela – the window(s)
So literally: Tirai (subject) menutupi (verb) jendela (object).
Indonesian normally does not mark singular vs plural on the noun itself.
- tirai can mean a curtain, the curtain, curtains, or the curtains, depending on context.
If you need to be explicit:
- sebuah tirai – one curtain (more formal)
- satu tirai – one curtain (colloquial, using the number)
- beberapa tirai – several curtains
- tirai-tirai – curtains (plural emphasized by repetition)
In normal conversation, tirai menutupi jendela is usually understood as the curtain(s) cover(s) the window.
Indonesian does not use articles like English a/an or the.
- tirai can mean a curtain or the curtain
- jendela can mean a window or the window
The sentence Tirai menutupi jendela can therefore be translated as:
- The curtain covers the window
- A curtain covers a window
The exact English article depends on context, not on extra words in Indonesian.
The root word is tutup, which means roughly to close / to cover.
menutupi is formed like this:
- meN- (prefix for active verbs)
- tutup (root: close / cover)
- -i (suffix often meaning “to do X to something / some surface / some place”)
So menutupi literally means to cover (a surface / area) or to cover something completely / to hide it.
In Tirai menutupi jendela, it means The curtain covers the window (often implying the window is fully or largely covered).
Both are grammatically possible, but there’s a nuance.
- menutup: to close / to cover (more general)
- menutupi: to cover the surface / area of something, often implying a more complete or “blanketing” cover
In this sentence:
- Tirai menutupi jendela – natural, and suggests the curtain covers the window area (very common phrasing).
- Tirai menutup jendela – grammatical, but sounds slightly more like the curtain closes the window (focusing on the function of closing rather than covering the surface).
In everyday speech, many people would still understand Tirai menutup jendela as The curtain covers the window, but menutupi fits the idea of covering more precisely here.
Yes, menutupi is normally transitive, so it takes a direct object:
- Tirai menutupi jendela. – menutupi
- jendela (object)
- Awan menutupi matahari. – Clouds cover the sun.
Saying just Tirai menutupi. without an object sounds incomplete in normal contexts. Usually you specify what is being covered.
You’d usually use a passive or a stative form:
Passive (focus on the thing being acted on):
- Jendela ditutupi tirai. – The window is (being) covered by the curtain.
Stative (describing the state/result):
- Jendela tertutup tirai. – The window is closed/covered (by curtains).
Tirai menutupi jendela focuses on the curtain as the subject (what does the curtain do?).
Jendela ditutupi tirai focuses on the window as the thing that is covered.
Jendela tertutup tirai describes the state of the window (it ends up closed/covered).
Both can describe something that is covered, but they emphasize different things:
ditutupi
- Form: di- (passive) + tutupi
- Focuses on the action done to something
- Often translates as is covered (by X)
- Example: Jendela ditutupi tirai. – The window is covered by curtains.
tertutup
- Form: ter-
- tutup
- Often describes a state / result rather than the action
- Often translates as is closed or is in a closed/covered state
- Example: Jendela tertutup rapat. – The window is tightly closed.
- Form: ter-
So:
- Jendela ditutupi tirai – you’re thinking about the curtain doing the covering.
- Jendela tertutup tirai – you’re describing the window’s state (as a result of the curtain).
Yes, that meaning is possible.
menutupi can mean:
- to cover physically, and/or
- to hide / conceal from view
So Tirai menutupi jendela can be understood as:
- The curtain covers the window.
- The curtain hides the window (from view).
Context will tell you whether the emphasis is just on covering, or on hiding/concealing.
Tirai menutupi jendela is neutral.
- It’s perfectly fine in written Indonesian (stories, descriptions).
- It’s also fine in everyday spoken Indonesian.
There is no slang or special politeness marker here; it’s just a plain descriptive sentence.
Yes, there are some synonyms or near-synonyms, depending on region and style:
- tirai – general word for curtain / drape, a bit more formal/standard
- gorden / korden – very common in everyday speech (from Dutch gordijn)
So in everyday conversation, people often say:
- Gorden menutupi jendela.
In standard written Indonesian, tirai is very common.
Approximate English-friendly pronunciation (Indonesian vowels are pure, not diphthong-heavy like English):
- tirai – tee-rai
- ti like tea
- rai like rye
- menutupi – muh-noo-too-pee
- me like meh / muh (unstressed)
- nu like noo
- tu like too
- pi like pee
- jendela – juhn-DAY-lah
- je like juh
- nde like day (but shorter)
- la like lah
Stress is usually light and fairly even, often slightly stronger on the second-to-last syllable:
ti-RAI me-nu-TU-pi jen-DE-la.
To keep the same meaning, you would normally switch to a passive or stative construction:
- Jendela ditutupi tirai. – The window is covered by the curtain.
- Jendela tertutup tirai. – The window is (in a state of being) covered by the curtain.
Simply moving jendela to the front like Jendela tirai menutupi would be ungrammatical. Indonesian doesn’t allow free reordering of S–V–O without changing the verb form (active vs passive) or the meaning.