Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.

I want to read more books in the library.

Breakdown of Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.

• buku: the book
• saya: I
• di: in
• membaca: to read
• mau: want
• perpustakaan: the library
• lebih banyak: more

Questions & Answers about Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.

What does mau mean here, and is it more like “want” or “will”?

In this sentence, mau basically means “want to”:

• Saya mau membaca… = I want to read…

However, in everyday Indonesian, mau can also imply a future action, a bit like “going to / will” in English, depending on context:

• Besok saya mau ke Jakarta. = Tomorrow I’m going to Jakarta.

In your sentence, the most natural translation is “I want to read more books at the library.”
It can also be understood as something you plan to do soon, but the core meaning is “want to,” not just “will.”

Why do we say mau membaca and not just membaca?

Membaca by itself just means “to read” or “reading.”

• Saya membaca buku. = I read a book / I am reading a book.

When you add mau in front:

• Saya mau membaca buku. = I want to read a book.

So:

• membaca = the action “to read”
• mau membaca = the desire or intention “want to read”

You need mau here to show that it’s about wanting to do the action, not just doing it.

What is the difference between membaca and baca? Can I say Saya mau baca?

Both are related to the same verb baca = “read,” but:

• baca is the base form (root).
• membaca is the prefixed form with meN-, which is more standard/formal.

In spoken, everyday Indonesian, people very often just use the base form after mau:

• Saya mau membaca. (more formal/complete)
• Saya mau baca. (very common, more casual)

Both are grammatically okay in conversation.
In writing or in more formal speech, membaca is preferred; in casual speech, baca is extremely common.

How do we know that buku here is plural (“books”) and not singular (“book”)?

Indonesian usually does not mark plurals with -s or anything like that.
Buku can mean “book” or “books,” depending on context.

Here, the phrase lebih banyak buku = “more many book” literally, which naturally means:

• lebih banyak buku = “more books”

Because you say lebih banyak (“more, a greater amount”), it must be more than one, so we understand buku as plural: “books.”

If you wanted to be explicitly plural, you could say buku-buku, but you normally don’t need to here; it would sound a bit redundant with lebih banyak.

Why do we use both lebih and banyak? Isn’t one of them enough?

They work together, but they are not the same:

• banyak = many, a lot (quantity)
• lebih = more (comparative marker: “more than before / more than X”)

So:

• banyak buku = many books / a lot of books
• lebih banyak buku = more books (than before / than some other amount)

If you said Saya mau membaca banyak buku, that’s:

• I want to read many books. (large quantity, but not explicitly comparing)

If you say Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku, it implies comparison:

• I want to read *more books* (than I usually do, than last year, etc.)

So lebih banyak = “more (in number)” rather than just “many.”

Can I say lebih banyak buku-buku to really emphasize “more books”?

Normally, no, you would not say lebih banyak buku-buku here.

Reduplication (buku-buku) is often used to mark plural or to give the sense of “various books,” but with lebih banyak, plural is already clear.

• lebih banyak buku is already “more books.”
• lebih banyak buku-buku tends to sound redundant and a bit unnatural.

If you really want emphasis, you’d more naturally stress it with intonation or add another word:

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku lagi.
  (I want to read even more books.)

What is the difference between di perpustakaan and ke perpustakaan?

di and ke are different prepositions:

• di = at / in / on (location, where something is)
• ke = to (direction, movement towards a place)

Your sentence:

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
  = I want to read more books *at the library.* (location)

If you said:

• Saya mau ke perpustakaan.
  = I want to go *to the library.* (movement towards)

So:

• use di when the action happens there,
• use ke when you are going to that place.

Can I move di perpustakaan to the beginning or middle of the sentence? For example: Di perpustakaan saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku?

Yes, Indonesian word order is quite flexible for adverbials like place and time.

All of these are grammatical:

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
• Di perpustakaan saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku.

The main difference is emphasis:

• Starting with Di perpustakaan puts focus on the location:
  • At the library, I want to read more books (as opposed to somewhere else).

The version you suggested like Saya mau di perpustakaan membaca lebih banyak buku is also possible, but it sounds a little more marked and is less common in everyday speech. The most natural options are usually:

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
• Di perpustakaan, saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku.

Can Saya be dropped? Could I just say Mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan?

Yes, Indonesian often drops subject pronouns when the context is clear.

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
• Mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.

Both can mean I want to read more books at the library, if it’s already clear you’re talking about yourself.

However:

• In formal writing or when you need clarity, it’s safer to keep Saya.

• Dropping Saya is very common in casual speech, especially in replies where the subject is understood:

  • A: Kamu mau ngapain besok?
    (What do you want to do tomorrow?)
  • B: Mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
    ([I] want to read more books at the library.)

What is the difference between mau and ingin in this kind of sentence?

Both express wanting, but their tone and usage differ:

• mau

  • Very common in everyday, neutral, and casual speech.
  • Can sound slightly more direct.

• ingin

  • Slightly more formal or “neater” in tone.
  • Feels a bit more like “would like to” or “desire to.”

Compare:

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
  (neutral, everyday)

• Saya ingin membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
  (a bit more formal or thoughtful in tone)

Both are correct. If in doubt, mau is very safe in normal spoken Indonesian; ingin is safer in formal writing or public speeches.

How do we know if this means “I want to read more books” now or in the future? There’s no tense marker.

Indonesian generally does not have verb tenses like English (-ed, will, etc.). Time is understood from:

• Context, and/or
• Time words like sekarang (now), nanti (later), besok (tomorrow), etc.

Your sentence by itself:

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.

could mean:

• I want (in general) to read more books at the library.
• I want to read more books at the library (in the future).

If you want to be explicit:

• Sekarang saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
  = Right now I want to read more books at the library.

• Besok saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
  = Tomorrow I want to read more books at the library.

Is perpustakaan the only way to say “library”? Are there shorter or more casual forms?

Perpustakaan is the standard word for “library.”

There isn’t a widely used everyday short form like “libe” or “library” in English. People usually still say:

• perpustakaan, or
• perpus (an informal shortening used in some schools/universities or casual speech).

For example, students might say:

• Aku ke perpus dulu, ya.
  = I’m going to the library first, okay.

But in proper Indonesian (especially in writing or with people you don’t know well), perpustakaan is the normal form.

How do you pronounce perpustakaan?

Perpustakaan is pronounced with five clear syllables:

• per-pus-ta-ka-an

Some tips:

• Every vowel is pronounced clearly:
  • e as in pErhaps (schwa-like) in per-
  • u like oo in book or put
  • a like a in father (shorter)
• There is usually stress around “-ta-” or “-ka-”, but Indonesian stress is not as strong as in English.

Approximate English-style breakdown:
pər-POOS-tah-KAH-ʔan (the final -an is light; some speakers make a tiny glottal stop before it).

Most importantly, pronounce each syllable clearly; don’t swallow the middle.

Could we say Saya mau membaca lebih banyak di perpustakaan without buku?

Yes, you can, depending on what you mean.

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak buku di perpustakaan.
  = I want to read more books at the library.

• Saya mau membaca lebih banyak di perpustakaan.
  = I want to read more at the library.

The second sentence is more general:
maybe you read articles, notes, websites, not just books. The object (“books”) is not specified.

If your focus is specifically on books, keep buku. If your focus is on reading more in general (anything), dropping buku is fine.