Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Di studio seni sekolah, beberapa murid melukis binatang kebun binatang seperti gajah dan jerapah dengan banyak detail. - In the school art studio, some students paint zoo animals such as elephants and giraffes with a lot of detail.

Indonesian puts the main noun first, then its modifiers:
- studio (main noun)
- modified by seni → studio seni (art studio)
- that whole phrase is then modified by sekolah → studio seni sekolah (school art studio)

You don’t need a word like “of” or “’s” (as in “school’s”) in Indonesian; the order of nouns already shows the relationship.

Why does the sentence say binatang kebun binatang? Why is binatang repeated?

It looks like repetition, but the two binatang have different roles:

First binatang = animals
kebun binatang together = zoo
- kebun = garden / park
- binatang = animals

So binatang kebun binatang literally means “animals [of the] zoo”, or more naturally, “zoo animals.”

In English, you show that relation with “of the” or with a compound like “zoo animals.”
In Indonesian, you usually just put nouns next to each other:

binatang kebun binatang = animals (of the) zoo → zoo animals
murid sekolah = students (of the) school → school students
guru bahasa Inggris = teacher (of) English → English teacher

If you want to avoid the two binatang right next to each other, you could also say:

binatang di kebun binatang = animals in the zoo

What does kebun binatang literally mean, and is it always just “zoo”?

Literally:

kebun = garden / plantation / park
binatang = animal(s)

So kebun binatang is literally “animal garden/park”, which is the normal Indonesian word for a zoo.

It’s used very broadly, like “zoo” in English:

Kami pergi ke kebun binatang. = We went to the zoo.

There are some more formal or alternative terms (like taman satwa), but kebun binatang is the everyday, standard word you’ll hear most often.

What’s the difference between melukis and menggambar? Why use melukis here?

Both are about making pictures, but there’s a typical distinction:

melukis
- usually: to paint (with paint, watercolour, etc.)
- can also imply making a more artistic, often coloured picture
menggambar
- usually: to draw (with pencil, pen, etc.)
- often used for line drawings or sketches

In this sentence:

beberapa murid melukis binatang…

This suggests the students are painting animals, which fits well with di studio seni (in the art studio).

In everyday speech, especially with kids, some people do use them loosely, but the textbook distinction is:

melukis = painting
menggambar = drawing

What is the nuance of beberapa murid? How is it different from saying murid-murid?

murid = student
beberapa = some / several
murid-murid = students (plural, by repetition)

Differences:

beberapa murid
- Means “some students / several students”
- Focuses on quantity: not all, just a subset
- Plurality comes from beberapa, so you don’t also repeat the noun:
  - ❌ beberapa murid-murid (unnatural)
  - ✅ beberapa murid
murid-murid
- Means “the students / students (plural in general)”
- Emphasizes plural, but not a specific number
- Could refer to all students in context, or just “students” in general.

In this sentence, beberapa murid tells you not all students in the school or class are painting—just some of them.

How should I understand the structure binatang kebun binatang seperti gajah dan jerapah? What modifies what?

Break it into parts:

binatang kebun binatang = zoo animals
seperti gajah dan jerapah = such as elephants and giraffes

So the structure is:

[binatang kebun binatang] [seperti gajah dan jerapah]
zoo animals such as elephants and giraffes

seperti gajah dan jerapah is describing what kinds of zoo animals they are painting.

It does not mean “animals like a zoo, such as elephants and giraffes.”
The main noun is binatang; kebun binatang modifies it (zoo animals), and then seperti… further specifies examples of those animals.

How does seperti work here? What’s the difference between seperti and sebagai?

In this sentence:

seperti gajah dan jerapah = like/such as elephants and giraffes

seperti is used to compare or give examples:

Dia berlari seperti kuda. = He runs like a horse.
Buah-buahan tropis, seperti mangga dan pisang… = Tropical fruits, such as mangoes and bananas…

sebagai is different; it means “as (in the role/function of)”:

Dia bekerja sebagai guru. = He works as a teacher.
Saya berbicara sebagai teman. = I’m speaking as a friend.

So in your sentence, seperti is correct because elephants and giraffes are examples of the zoo animals, not roles they are playing.

How do we know if melukis here means “are painting” or “painted”? Where is the tense?

Indonesian does not mark tense on the verb the way English does.

melukis by itself can mean:
- paint / paints
- is/are painting
- was/were painting
- painted

The time is usually clear from:

Context, or
Time words:
- kemarin (yesterday)
- tadi (earlier)
- sekarang (now)
- besok (tomorrow)

You can also add:

sedang to show “in the middle of doing”:
- beberapa murid sedang melukis… = several students are painting…
sudah to stress completion:
- beberapa murid sudah melukis… = several students have already painted…

In this sentence, with no extra marker, it can be translated naturally as “are painting” or “painted” depending on the wider context.

What does dengan banyak detail literally mean, and is this a natural way to say “with a lot of detail”?

Literally:

dengan = with
banyak = many / a lot of
detail = detail(s) (a borrowed word from English)

So dengan banyak detail = “with many details” or “with a lot of detail.”

Yes, this is a natural phrase. Some similar options:

dengan sangat detail = very detailed(ly)
dengan detail yang rumit = with complicated details
dengan detail yang bagus = with good/nice detail

But dengan banyak detail is straightforward and perfectly acceptable.

Why isn’t there a word for “the” in this sentence? How do Indonesians express “the students,” “the zoo animals,” etc.?

Indonesian doesn’t use articles like a/an/the.

So:

beberapa murid can be translated as:
- some students, or
- some of the students, depending on context.
binatang kebun binatang can mean:
- zoo animals, or
- the zoo animals, if a specific group is meant.

Whether you translate it as “the” or not in English depends purely on context, not on any special word in Indonesian.

If speakers need to be very specific, they may add things like:

itu = that / those
- binatang kebun binatang itu = those zoo animals / the zoo animals
para (formal plural marker for people)
- para murid = the students (all of them, more formal)

But in many everyday sentences, context alone tells you whether to read it as “the” or just a bare plural in English.