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Polisi melindungi korban di jalan berbahaya.

Polisi melindungi korban di jalan berbahaya.
The police protect the victim on the dangerous road.
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Questions & Answers about Polisi melindungi korban di jalan berbahaya.

What is the difference between lindung and melindungi? Where does melindungi come from?

The root word is lindung (to shelter / protect).

Indonesian often forms active transitive verbs with the prefix meN-.

  • meN-
    • lindung → melindungi

The final -i is a suffix that typically means “to do X to something/someone” (locative/goal focus).

So:

  • lindung = base/root meaning “protect” (not normally used alone as a finite verb in standard Indonesian)
  • melindungi = “to protect (someone/something)” → the normal dictionary verb used in sentences like this.

You would not say “Polisi lindung korban …” in standard Indonesian; you use melindungi.

Is polisi singular or plural here? Does it mean “the police” or “a policeman”?

By itself, polisi is number-neutral. It can mean:

  • “the police” (as an institution or group)
  • “a policeman / police officer” (one person), depending on context

In this sentence, Polisi melindungi korban… can be understood as:

  • “The police protect the victim(s)…” or
  • “A police officer protects the victim(s)…”

If you really want to make it clearly singular or plural, you can add words:

  • seorang polisi = a (single) police officer
  • para polisi = the police officers (explicit plural, but sounds a bit formal/written)
  • banyak polisi = many police officers
Does korban mean one victim or many victims? How do you show plural?

Like polisi, the noun korban is number-neutral. It can mean:

  • a victim
  • the victim
  • victims / the victims

Context tells you which.

To make it clearly plural, you can say:

  • para korban = (the) victims (formal/collective)
  • korban-korban = victims (reduplication, can feel more concrete/individual)
  • banyak korban = many victims

So you could say, for example:

  • Polisi melindungi para korban di jalan berbahaya. = “The police protect the victims on the dangerous road.”
Why is there no word for “the” or “a” before polisi and korban?

Indonesian does not use articles like English “a/an” or “the”.

Specificity or definiteness is usually clear from context or added words, not from a fixed article. For example:

  • Polisi melindungi korban.
    • Could be: “The police protect a victim / the victim / victims / the victims.”
  • To make it more specific, speakers might add:
    • Polisi itu melindungi korban itu. = “That police officer protects that victim.”
    • Para polisi itu melindungi para korban. = “Those police officers protect the victims.”

So the sentence is naturally a bit vague in number and definiteness unless the larger context makes it clear.

What does di mean in di jalan berbahaya? Could I use pada instead?

di is a preposition meaning “at / in / on” (for location).

  • di jalan berbahaya = “on/at the dangerous road”

pada is also a preposition but is used more for:

  • abstract locations (in texts, in situations)
  • certain fixed expressions
  • slightly more formal style

For physical, concrete locations like a road, di is the natural, everyday choice.
Pada jalan berbahaya is grammatically possible but sounds more formal or unusual in everyday speech. Standard natural Indonesian uses di jalan berbahaya.

Why is it jalan berbahaya and not berbahaya jalan?

In Indonesian, adjectives usually come after the noun:

  • jalan berbahaya = dangerous road (literally “road dangerous”)
  • orang tinggi = tall person
  • rumah besar = big house

Putting the adjective before the noun (e.g. berbahaya jalan) is ungrammatical in standard Indonesian. So you must say jalan berbahaya, not berbahaya jalan.

What is the difference between jalan berbahaya and jalan yang berbahaya?

Both are correct and both can mean “dangerous road”. The difference is nuance:

  • jalan berbahaya

    • Simple noun + adjective
    • Feels more like a basic description: “a dangerous road” (inherent quality)

  • jalan yang berbahaya

    • Noun + yang
      • adjective = a relative clause–like structure
    • Slightly more emphatic or specific: “the road that is dangerous”
    • Often used when you are contrasting or identifying a particular road among others

In your sentence, di jalan berbahaya is perfectly natural.
di jalan yang berbahaya would also be correct, just a bit more explicit or contrastive.

Does di jalan berbahaya describe where the police are, or which victims they protect?

Grammatically, di jalan berbahaya is a locative phrase and can attach to the whole event, just like in English:

  • “The police protect the victims on a dangerous road.”

Typical default reading:

  • The action of protecting happens on the dangerous road, and
  • The victims are very likely also on that road.

If you really wanted to make it modify only the victims, you could make it clearer, for example:

  • Polisi melindungi korban yang berada di jalan berbahaya.
    • “The police protect the victims who are on the dangerous road.”
What tense is melindungi? Is it present, past, or future?

The verb form melindungi itself does not mark tense. Indonesian verbs don’t change form for past/present/future.

The sentence Polisi melindungi korban di jalan berbahaya. could mean, depending on context:

  • “The police protect the victims…” (habitual / general)
  • “The police are protecting the victims…” (present ongoing)
  • “The police protected the victims…” (past)
  • “The police will protect the victims…” (future), if supported by context.

To be more explicit, speakers often add time/aspect markers:

  • sedang = currently/ongoing
    • Polisi sedang melindungi korban… = “The police are protecting the victims…”
  • sudah / telah = already (past/completed)
    • Polisi sudah melindungi korban… = “The police have already protected the victims…”
  • akan = will (future)
    • Polisi akan melindungi korban… = “The police will protect the victims…”
Could this sentence be turned into the passive voice? How would that look?

Yes. Indonesian uses di- for the passive voice of transitive verbs.

  • Active:

    • Polisi melindungi korban di jalan berbahaya.
      • “The police protect the victims on the dangerous road.”

  • Passive:

    • Korban dilindungi (oleh) polisi di jalan berbahaya.
      • Literally: “The victims are protected (by) the police on the dangerous road.”

Notes:

  • dilindungi = di- + lindung + -i (passive form of melindungi)
  • oleh (by) can be omitted in many real sentences:
    • Korban dilindungi polisi… is very natural.
What is the difference between berbahaya and membahayakan?

Both are related to bahaya (danger):

  • berbahaya

    • ber-
      • bahaya
    • Means “dangerous” (adjective-like)
    • Describes something that has the quality of danger
    • Example:
      • Jalan ini berbahaya. = “This road is dangerous.”

  • membahayakan

    • meN-
      • bahaya
        • -kan
    • Means “to endanger / to put (someone) in danger” (verb)
    • Used when something causes danger to someone/something
    • Example:
      • Jalan ini membahayakan pengemudi. = “This road endangers drivers.”

In your sentence, you’re describing the road’s quality, so berbahaya is the correct choice: jalan berbahaya = dangerous road.

Is it okay to omit korban and just say Polisi melindungi di jalan berbahaya?

Not in this case.

melindungi is a transitive verb and normally requires a direct object (someone/something being protected).

  • Polisi melindungi … → listeners expect to hear what / whom the police protect.

If you really want to avoid saying the object explicitly, you generally:

  • either use a more general verb such as menjaga (guard),
  • or make the object clear from previous context.

But alone, Polisi melindungi di jalan berbahaya sounds incomplete or odd, like “The police protect on the dangerous road (protect what?)”.