Anak laki-laki itu melompat di padang rumput kecil.

That boy jumps on the small grass field.

Breakdown of Anak laki-laki itu melompat di padang rumput kecil.

• itu: that
• kecil: small
• di: on
• anak laki-laki: the boy
• melompat: to jump
• padang rumput: the grass field

Questions & Answers about Anak laki-laki itu melompat di padang rumput kecil.

Why do we say anak laki-laki to mean boy? Can’t we just say anak or laki-laki?

In Indonesian:

• anak = child (gender-neutral)
• laki-laki = male, man (adult male in most contexts)

To say boy, Indonesian usually combines them:

• anak laki-laki = male child = boy

If you say only:

• anak → could be a boy or a girl; just child
• laki-laki → usually understood as man / male person, not specifically a child

So anak laki-laki is the natural way to specify that the child is male.

What does itu mean here, and why does it come after anak laki-laki?

Itu is a demonstrative. Its basic meaning is that (as opposed to ini = this).

In Indonesian noun phrases, ini and itu usually come after the noun:

• anak laki-laki itu = that boy / the boy
• padang rumput itu = that meadow / the meadow

In many contexts, itu works like an English the with a slight nuance of that (one we know / mentioned / can see).

So:

• anak laki-laki itu → that boy or simply the boy (a specific boy, already known from context).

Does melompat mean jumps, is jumping, or jumped? Where is the tense?

Indonesian verbs usually do not change form for tense.
Melompat is a general active verb meaning to jump.

It can be translated as:

• jumps (simple present)
• is jumping (present continuous)
• jumped (past)
• even will jump (future), depending on context

Tense is shown by:

• time words:
  
  • tadi (earlier), kemarin (yesterday), besok (tomorrow), etc.
• or just the context of the story.

Examples:

• Anak laki-laki itu melompat di padang rumput kecil tadi.
  → The boy jumped in the small meadow earlier.
• Sekarang anak laki-laki itu melompat di padang rumput kecil.
  → Now the boy is jumping in the small meadow.

What is the difference between lompat and melompat?

The root is lompat (jump).
Melompat is meN- + lompat, a common active verb pattern.

General idea:

• lompat
  
  • bare root
  • often used in commands or short phrases:
    
    • Lompat! = Jump!
  • can appear after certain auxiliaries / in casual speech
• melompat
  
  • normal active verb form
  • used as the main verb in a sentence:
    
    • Anak itu melompat. = The child jumps / is jumping.

In many everyday sentences, you’ll hear both, but melompat is the standard full verb form here.

Could this sentence also mean The boys are jumping in the small meadow? How do plurals work?

Yes, Indonesian does not automatically mark singular vs plural, so:

• anak laki-laki itu melompat...
  could be understood as the boy jumps or the boys jump, depending on context.

To make it clearly plural, you can:

1. Reduplicate anak:

   • anak-anak laki-laki itu = those boys / the boys

2. Add a plural word like para (more formal, used for people):

   • para anak laki-laki itu = those boys

Without extra markers, anak laki-laki itu is number-neutral (boy/boys). Context usually makes it clear.

Why is the adjective kecil (small) at the end, instead of before the noun like in English?

In Indonesian, adjectives normally come after the noun they modify:

• buku baru = new book
• rumah besar = big house
• padang rumput kecil = small meadow

So the structure here is:

• padang = field
• rumput = grass
• padang rumput = grass field / meadow
• padang rumput kecil = small meadow

Putting kecil at the end is the standard word order:
[noun / noun phrase] + [adjective].

What exactly does padang rumput mean? Could I just say rumput?

Breaking it down:

• padang = open field / plain
• rumput = grass

Together, padang rumput means grass field, grassland, or meadow — an open area covered with grass.

If you say only rumput, it just means grass (the plant), not the place:

• di rumput → on the grass (more literally on the grass surface)
• di padang rumput → in the meadow / in the grass field (the whole area)

So di padang rumput kecil is about being in a small grass field / meadow, not just touching the grass.

Why do we use di here, and not ke or pada?

Quick comparison:

• di = at / in / on (location, no movement)
• ke = to / towards (movement to a place)
• pada = at / to (more abstract or for people, time, etc.)

In the sentence:

• melompat di padang rumput kecil
  → the jumping is happening in/at/on the small meadow (location only).

If you talked about movement to the meadow, you’d use ke:

• Anak laki-laki itu berlari ke padang rumput kecil.
  → The boy runs to the small meadow.

Pada would not be natural here; it’s used more with times and people:

• pada hari Senin (on Monday)
• pada guru (to the teacher, in some contexts)

Could I also say di padang rumput yang kecil? What is the difference from di padang rumput kecil?

Both are grammatically correct, but the nuance is slightly different:

• di padang rumput kecil
  → neutral: in a small meadow
• di padang rumput yang kecil
  → a bit more specific / contrastive, like the meadow that is small (as opposed to another meadow that is bigger, for example)

Yang often introduces a relative clause or adds focus to the description.

In everyday speech, if you’re just describing without contrast, people usually say padang rumput kecil (no yang).

Why is there a hyphen in laki-laki? Is it important?

Yes, the hyphen is part of Indonesian spelling rules for reduplication.

• laki by itself isn’t used to mean man.
• laki-laki (with hyphen) is the proper word meaning male / man.

Reduplication (writing the word twice with a hyphen) is used for:

• forming some basic words:
  
  • laki-laki (male)
• forming plurals:
  
  • anak → anak-anak (children)

In casual texting people may omit the hyphen (lakilaki, laki2), but in correct standard Indonesian, laki-laki with the hyphen is the proper form.