Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.

The teacher’s advice strengthens my self-confidence.

Breakdown of Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.

• guru: the teacher
• saya: my
• nasihat: the advice
• kepercayaan diri: the self-confidence
• menguatkan: to strengthen

Questions & Answers about Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.

What is the word-by-word breakdown of Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya?

Here is the rough breakdown:

• nasihat = advice
• guru = teacher
• nasihat guru = the teacher’s advice / advice from the teacher
  (literally: teacher advice)
• menguatkan = to strengthen, to make (something) stronger
  
  • root: kuat = strong
  • prefix meN-
    • suffix -kan → menguatkan = to strengthen (transitive verb)
• kepercayaan = belief / trust / confidence
  
  • root: percaya = to believe
  • ke- ... -an turns it into a noun → kepercayaan = belief
• diri = self
• kepercayaan diri = self-confidence
• saya = I / me / my (formal-neutral)

So the structure is:

[Nasihat guru] [menguatkan] [kepercayaan diri saya].
Subject – verb – object:

• Subject: nasihat guru (the teacher’s advice)
• Verb: menguatkan (strengthened)
• Object: kepercayaan diri saya (my self-confidence)

Why is it nasihat guru and not nasihat dari guru?

Both are possible, but they feel slightly different:

• nasihat guru

  • Literally: teacher advice
  • Very natural and common.
  • It’s a simple noun + noun combination, which in Indonesian often means possession or close relation: buku guru (teacher’s book), rumah nenek (grandmother’s house).

• nasihat dari guru

  • Literally: advice from (the) teacher
  • Also correct, but it explicitly highlights the source using dari (from).
  • Sounds a bit more explicit or explanatory, e.g. the advice that came from the teacher (as opposed to someone else’s advice).

In everyday speech, nasihat guru is shorter and very natural when the context already makes it clear which teacher you mean.

Is guru here “the teacher” or “a teacher”? How do I know?

Indonesian normally doesn’t use articles like a or the.
guru can mean a teacher, the teacher, or even my teacher, depending on context.

In Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya:

• Most likely interpretation: the teacher’s advice strengthened my self-confidence, especially if you have been talking about a specific teacher.
• If context is very general, it could be understood as a teacher’s advice.

If you want to be very explicit:

• nasihat guru saya = my teacher’s advice
• nasihat seorang guru = a teacher’s advice (indefinite, one teacher)

What exactly does menguatkan mean, and how is it formed?

menguatkan comes from kuat (strong).

Formation:

• kuat = strong
• meN- + kuat + -kan → menguatkan

Function:

• menguatkan is a transitive verb: to strengthen (something/someone).
• It takes an object:
  • Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
  • Olahraga menguatkan otot. (Exercise strengthens the muscles.)

Related forms:

• kuat (adjective): strong
  
  • Dia kuat. (He/She is strong.)
• menguat (intransitive verb, less common in everyday speech): to become stronger
  
  • Hubungan mereka menguat. (Their relationship became stronger.)
• menguatkan: to make something stronger
  
  • Dia menguatkan argumennya. (He/She strengthened his/her argument.)

In your sentence, menguatkan takes kepercayaan diri saya as its object.

What is the difference between kepercayaan diri and percaya diri?

They are related but not the same:

• percaya diri

  • percaya = believe
  • diri = self
  • Together: percaya diri = self-confident (adjective or adjectival phrase)
  • Example:
    
    • Dia sangat percaya diri. = He/She is very self-confident.

• kepercayaan diri

  • kepercayaan = belief / trust / confidence (noun; from percaya with ke- ... -an)
  • kepercayaan diri = self-confidence (noun)
  • Example:
    
    • Kepercayaan diri saya meningkat. = My self-confidence increased.

In your sentence:

• kepercayaan diri saya = my self-confidence (noun phrase, object of the verb)
• If you tried menguatkan percaya diri saya, it would sound wrong in standard Indonesian. You need the noun form kepercayaan diri as the object.

How is kepercayaan diri formed from percaya?

Morphologically:

• percaya (verb): to believe
• Add ke- ... -an → kepercayaan (noun): belief, trust, confidence
• Add diri (self) → kepercayaan diri: self-confidence

Pattern:

• ke- + [adjective/verb] + -an often makes an abstract noun:
  • baik → kebaikan, goodness
  • adil → keadilan, justice
  • percaya → kepercayaan, belief/trust

Then diri specifies the target: self → kepercayaan diri (self-confidence).

Why is saya at the end of kepercayaan diri saya instead of before, like in English (my self-confidence)?

Indonesian usually puts the possessive pronoun after the noun:

• buku saya = my book
• rumah mereka = their house
• teman kamu = your friend

So:

• kepercayaan diri saya = my self-confidence
  (literally: self-confidence my)

Other possible possessive forms:

• kepercayaan diriku = my self-confidence (using the suffix -ku, more personal / informal in many contexts)
• kepercayaan diri Anda = your self-confidence (formal Anda)

But placing saya before the noun (saya kepercayaan diri) is ungrammatical.

Can I leave out saya and just say Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri?

You can, but the meaning changes and the sentence feels more general:

• Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
  → The teacher’s advice strengthened my self-confidence (specifically mine).

• Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri.
  → The teacher’s advice strengthens self-confidence (in general, people’s self-confidence).
  It sounds more like a general statement or slogan.

If you want it clearly about yourself, keep saya.

How would I say this in the passive voice?

You can make kepercayaan diri saya the subject and use a passive verb:

1. Kepercayaan diri saya dikuatkan oleh nasihat guru.

   • Literally: My self-confidence was strengthened by the teacher’s advice.
   • dikuatkan = passive form (di- ... -kan) of menguatkan.

2. More natural spoken Indonesian often drops oleh:

   • Kepercayaan diri saya dikuatkan nasihat guru.

The original active sentence:

• Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
  Subject = nasihat guru
  Object = kepercayaan diri saya

Passive sentence:

• Kepercayaan diri saya dikuatkan (oleh) nasihat guru.
  Subject = kepercayaan diri saya

How is tense expressed here? How do I know if it is past, present, or future?

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. Menguatkan stays the same.

Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya could mean:

• The teacher’s advice strengthened my self-confidence. (past)
• The teacher’s advice strengthens my self-confidence. (present, general)
• The teacher’s advice will strengthen my self-confidence. (future, depending on context)

To be explicit, you can add time words or aspect markers:

• Kemarin nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
  (Yesterday, the teacher’s advice strengthened my self-confidence.)
• Nasihat guru akan menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
  (The teacher’s advice will strengthen my self-confidence.)
• Selalu … to show habitual:
  • Nasihat guru selalu menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
    (The teacher’s advice always strengthens my self-confidence.)

What is the difference between saya and aku here? Could I say kepercayaan diri aku?

saya and aku both mean I / me, but they differ in formality and typical usage:

• saya
  
  • Neutral–formal, polite.
  • Suitable for talking to teachers, older people, strangers, in writing, etc.
• aku
  
  • Informal, used with friends, family, or people of the same age / close relationship.

In this sentence, you would usually say:

• kepercayaan diri saya (standard, polite)
• kepercayaan diriku (more natural with aku as -ku; sounds personal, often used in writing, songs, or intimate contexts)

kepercayaan diri aku is understandable but feels awkward in standard Indonesian; natives would prefer kepercayaan diriku if they are in an aku-style context.

Is there any difference between nasihat and saran?

Yes, they overlap but are not identical:

• nasihat

  • advice that often has a moral, emotional, or mentorship nuance.
  • Common between teacher–student, parent–child, elder–younger.
  • Example:
    
    • Ayah memberi saya nasihat. (Father gave me advice.)

• saran

  • suggestion, recommendation, often more neutral or practical.
  • Used in discussions, meetings, problem-solving.
  • Example:
    
    • Saya punya beberapa saran untuk proyek ini.
      (I have some suggestions for this project.)

You could say:

• Nasihat guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
  (sounds like emotional/character guidance)

Versus:

• Saran guru menguatkan kepercayaan diri saya.
  (still correct, but focuses more on practical suggestions that helped your confidence)