Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.

We like talking about vacation plans in the living room.

Breakdown of Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.

• suka: to like
• di: in
• kami: we
• tentang: about
• ruang tamu: the living room
• berbicara: to talk
• rencana liburan: the vacation plan

Questions & Answers about Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.

What is the difference between kami and kita, and why does this sentence use kami?

Indonesian has two words for we:

• kami = we (but not you) → the listener is excluded
• kita = we (including you) → the listener is included

The sentence uses kami because it implies that:

• we (the speakers) like talking about vacation plans
• but the person being spoken to is not part of that group

If the listener is part of the group that likes to talk about vacation plans, you would say:

• Kita suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.
  → We (including you) like talking about vacation plans in the living room.

Does suka mean like or like to? How should I understand suka berbicara?

Suka basically means to like or to enjoy.

When suka is followed by a verb, like berbicara, it means like to [do something] or enjoy [doing something]:

• suka berbicara = like to talk / enjoy talking

In everyday English you could translate:

• Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan... as
  We like talking / We like to talk about vacation plans...

There is no difference in meaning between like to talk and like talking here; both fit suka berbicara.

Why is berbicara used here instead of bicara or ngomong? Are they all correct?

All three exist, but they differ in style and formality:

• berbicara
  
  • More formal or neutral.
  • Common in writing, presentations, news, polite speech.
• bicara
  
  • Slightly more casual, common in everyday speech.
  • Often used the same way as berbicara in conversation.
• ngomong
  
  • Colloquial/slangy, very informal.
  • Used among friends, in casual chat.

In your sentence:

• Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.
  Sounds neutral and correct in both spoken and written Indonesian.

You could also hear:

• Kami suka bicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu. (more casual)
• Kami suka ngomongin rencana liburan di ruang tamu. (very informal, with ngomongin = ngomong
  • -in)

What does the prefix ber- in berbicara do?

The prefix ber- is a very common verb-forming prefix in Indonesian. In berbicara, it:

• turns the root bicara (speech/talk) into a verb berbicara (to talk, to speak)
• usually makes an intransitive verb (no direct object without a preposition)

Other common examples:

• bekerja (from kerja) = to work
• berjalan (from jalan) = to walk
• bermain (from main) = to play

So berbicara literally feels like to be in the state of speaking / to speak.

Is tentang necessary after berbicara? Could I say Kami suka berbicara rencana liburan?

You need a preposition like tentang here.

Kami suka berbicara rencana liburan is ungrammatical.

To express “talk about vacation plans”, you say:

• berbicara tentang rencana liburan

Other acceptable, natural options:

• berbicara mengenai rencana liburan
• berbicara soal rencana liburan (more casual)

But you cannot directly attach rencana liburan to berbicara without a preposition.

What is the difference between tentang, mengenai, and soal when talking about topics?

All three can mean about / regarding, but with slight nuance:

• tentang
  
  • Very common and neutral.
  • Works in both formal and informal contexts.
  • Good default choice.
• mengenai
  
  • Slightly more formal.
  • Common in writing, documents, official contexts.
• soal
  
  • More informal and conversational.
  • Feels like about or on the subject of in everyday speech.

In your sentence, all three are possible:

• Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan... (neutral)
• Kami suka berbicara mengenai rencana liburan... (a bit more formal)
• Kami suka berbicara soal rencana liburan... (more casual)

How does the noun phrase rencana liburan work? Why does rencana come before liburan?

In Indonesian, a common pattern is:

• Head noun + modifying noun

Here:

• rencana = plan
• liburan = vacation/holiday

So rencana liburan literally is:

• plan (for) vacation → vacation plan(s)

English often flips the order (vacation plans), but Indonesian keeps the main noun first:

• rencana liburan = vacation plans
• tiket pesawat = plane ticket(s)
• rencana kerja = work plan

So rencana comes before liburan because plan is the main noun.

Is liburan a noun or a verb here? How is it different from berlibur?

In this sentence, liburan is a noun:

• rencana liburan = vacation plan(s)

Liburan can be:

• a noun: holiday, vacation
• sometimes, in casual speech, used like to go on vacation, but that’s less standard

Berlibur is clearly a verb meaning to go on vacation / to take a holiday:

• Kami mau berlibur. = We want to go on vacation.

So:

• rencana liburan = vacation plans (noun phrase)
• rencana untuk berlibur = plans to go on vacation (includes the verb berlibur)

Does Kami suka berbicara... mean a habitual action, or something happening right now?

By itself, Indonesian does not mark tense in the verb, so Kami suka berbicara... can mean:

• a general habit: We like (in general) to talk about vacation plans...
• something true at the present time: Right now / these days, we like to talk about vacation plans...

Context decides whether it feels more habitual or situational.

To make time clearer, you can add adverbs:

• Dulu kami suka berbicara... = We used to like talking...
• Sekarang kami suka berbicara... = Now we like talking...
• Nanti kami suka berbicara... is unusual; you’d normally change the structure (e.g. Nanti kami akan berbicara...).

Can the word order change? Can I say Di ruang tamu, kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan?

Yes, that word order is perfectly natural.

Both are correct:

• Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.
• Di ruang tamu, kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan.

Putting Di ruang tamu at the beginning:

• emphasizes the location (the living room)
• is common in both spoken and written Indonesian

The comma after Di ruang tamu is optional in everyday writing, but often used.

Why do we use di in di ruang tamu? Could we use pada or ke instead?

Di is the basic preposition for in / at / on (location).

• di ruang tamu = in the living room / at the living room

You cannot replace it with:

• ke → means to (a place) (movement), e.g. ke ruang tamu = to the living room
• pada → more formal/abstract at / on, often used with time or abstract objects (e.g. pada hari Senin, pada kesempatan ini)

So for a static location in/at the living room, you should use:

• di ruang tamu, not ke ruang tamu or pada ruang tamu.

Is there any article like the in ruang tamu? How do we know it means the living room and not a living room?

Indonesian has no articles like a/an or the.

So ruang tamu by itself can mean:

• a living room
• the living room

The exact meaning comes from context. In most real-life contexts, if people say di ruang tamu, they mean in the living room of the house being talked about (often their own house).

If you really want to specify:

• di ruang tamu itu = in that living room / in the living room (more specific)
• di sebuah ruang tamu = in a living room (more clearly indefinite, but sebuah is often not needed)

Can we drop the subject kami and just say Suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu?

Yes, Indonesian often allows dropping the subject when it is clear from context.

So in a conversation where it’s clear you’re talking about us, you might just say:

• Suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.

Listeners will understand that kami (or kita, or some other subject) is implied from context.

However:

• In a standalone sentence (like in a textbook or on its own), it’s clearer and more natural to keep Kami:
  • Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.

If I want to say I like to talk about vacation plans in the living room, how would the sentence change?

You just change the subject pronoun:

• Saya suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu. (neutral / slightly formal)
• Aku suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu. (more informal/intimate)

Everything else remains the same because the verb doesn’t change with person.

Is it okay to replace berbicara with mengobrol here? Is there a nuance difference?

Yes, you can say mengobrol, but the nuance changes slightly.

• berbicara = to talk/speak (neutral, can be formal or informal)
• mengobrol = to chat, to have a casual conversation (informal, relaxed)

So:

• Kami suka berbicara tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.
  → We like to talk about vacation plans in the living room. (neutral)

• Kami suka mengobrol tentang rencana liburan di ruang tamu.
  → We like to chat about vacation plans in the living room. (more clearly casual and friendly)

Both are correct; choose based on whether you want a neutral or clearly casual feel.