Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.

That small research is carried out in the small laboratory.

Breakdown of Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.

• itu: that
• di: in
• kecil: small
• penelitian: the research
• laboratorium: the laboratory
• dilakukan: to be carried out

Questions & Answers about Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.

What is the literal, word‑by‑word breakdown of Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium kecil?

Here’s a simple gloss:

• Penelitian – research / study
• kecil – small
• itu – that / the (demonstrative that often works like a definite article)
• dilakukan – is done / was done / is carried out (passive verb)
• di – in / at (preposition of location)
• laboratorium – laboratory
• kecil – small

So structurally:

• Penelitian kecil itu – that small research / that small study
• dilakukan – was carried out
• di laboratorium kecil – in a small laboratory

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Why do kecil (small) and itu come after the noun instead of before it, like in English?

In Indonesian, the normal order is:

Noun + Adjective + Demonstrative

So:

• penelitian kecil itu
  
  • penelitian = research
  • kecil = small (adjective, comes after the noun)
  • itu = that / the (comes at the end of the noun phrase)

Compare to English:

• that small research / that small study
  
  • demonstrative + adjective + noun

Some patterns:

• buku baru = new book
• buku baru itu = that new book / the new book
• rumah besar = big house
• rumah besar itu = that big house / the big house

Putting kecil before the noun, like kecil penelitian, is wrong in normal Indonesian. Adjectives almost always follow the noun they modify.

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What exactly does itu mean here? Is it “that”, “the”, or something else?

Itu is a demonstrative that literally means that, but in real usage it often works like the in English.

In penelitian kecil itu:

• It could be translated as that small study (referring to a specific one already known in the context),
• but in many contexts English would more naturally say the small study.

So:

• penelitian kecil itu ≈ that/the small study
• laboratorium kecil itu ≈ that/the small laboratory

Key idea: itu points to something specific, already known or identifiable to the speaker and listener.

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Why is kecil repeated? Could I just say Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium without the second kecil?

The two kecil modify two different nouns:

• penelitian kecil itu – that small study
• laboratorium kecil – (a) small laboratory

If you say:

• Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → The small study was done in a small laboratory.

If you drop the second kecil:

• Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium.
  → The small study was done in a laboratory (size not specified).

So yes, you can omit the second kecil, but then you are no longer saying that the laboratory is small. You’re only describing the study as small, not the lab.

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What does dilakukan mean grammatically, and what is its base form?

Dilakukan is a passive verb form. It comes from the base verb melakukan (“to do / to carry out [something]”).

Morphology:

• Root: laku (related to “to act / to do / to be in effect”)
• Active transitive: me- + lakukan → melakukan = to do / to carry out
• Passive: di- + lakukan → dilakukan = to be done / to be carried out

So:

• melakukan penelitian = to carry out research
• penelitian dilakukan = the research is/was carried out

In your sentence:

• Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan …
  → That small study was carried out … (passive voice).

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Why is the passive form dilakukan used instead of an active form like melakukan?

Indonesian uses the passive voice very naturally, often more than English does.

• Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → The small study was carried out in a small laboratory.
  (focus on the study, not on who did it)

If you want an active sentence, you’d normally introduce an agent (the doer):

• Para peneliti melakukan penelitian kecil itu di laboratorium kecil.
  → The researchers carried out that small study in a small laboratory.

Difference in focus:

• Passive (dilakukan): Topic/subject is the research; the doer is omitted or not important.
• Active (melakukan): Topic/subject is the person/people doing it.

In Indonesian, it’s perfectly natural (and very common) to use the passive when the agent is unknown, unimportant, or obvious from context.

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Is di in dilakukan the same as di in di laboratorium kecil?

No, they are different things that just happen to look the same.

1. di- in dilakukan

   • This is a prefix attached to a verb root.
   • It marks the passive voice.
   • It is written together with the verb: dilakukan, dibaca, ditulis.

2. di in di laboratorium kecil

   • This is a preposition meaning in / at / on.
   • It is written separately from the following word: di rumah, di sekolah, di laboratorium kecil.

Spelling rule to remember:

• di- (no space) = passive prefix on verbs → dilakukan
• di (with space) = preposition of location/time → di laboratorium

They sound the same but function differently.

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How do we know this sentence is past tense (“was done”) if there’s no tense marker in Indonesian?

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. Dilakukan itself is tenseless; it can correspond to:

• is done / is being done
• was done
• will be done

The actual time is usually clear from context or from time words you add:

• Penelitian kecil itu sudah dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → That small study has already been done in a small laboratory.

• Penelitian kecil itu sedang dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → That small study is being done in a small laboratory (right now).

• Penelitian kecil itu akan dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → That small study will be done in a small laboratory.

If the sentence appears in a past‑time context (e.g. in a report about finished work), “was done” is the natural English translation, even though Indonesian doesn’t change the verb form.

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Can I change the word order, for example putting di laboratorium kecil at the beginning?

Yes, Indonesian word order is fairly flexible, especially for moving prepositional phrases like di laboratorium kecil.

Possible variants:

1. Penelitian kecil itu dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
   – Neutral order; subject first.

2. Di laboratorium kecil, penelitian kecil itu dilakukan.
   – Fronts the location for emphasis: “In a small laboratory, that small study was carried out.”

3. Penelitian kecil itu di laboratorium kecil dilakukan.
   – Grammatically possible but sounds more marked and less neutral; often used for emphasis or in more literary/formal styles.

The safe, most natural version is the original: Subject – Verb – (Place phrase):

Penelitian kecil itu (subject) dilakukan (verb) di laboratorium kecil (place).

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Is penelitian singular or plural here? How would I say “some small studies” instead of “that small study”?

Penelitian itself has no explicit singular/plural marking. It can mean research (in general), a study, or studies, depending on context.

In your sentence, penelitian kecil itu is best taken as that small study (one specific piece of research), because:

• It’s modified by itu (that/the), pointing to a specific item.

To make things clearly singular, you can add a classifier, often sebuah:

• Sebuah penelitian kecil itu – not quite right; sebuah and itu don’t usually both appear in the same spot like that. Better:
• Sebuah penelitian kecil dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → A small study was carried out in a small laboratory.

For plural like some small studies, you have options:

• Beberapa penelitian kecil dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → Several/some small studies were carried out in a small laboratory.

• Banyak penelitian kecil dilakukan di laboratorium kecil.
  → Many small studies were carried out in a small laboratory.

So, number (singular/plural) is usually indicated by words like sebuah, satu, beberapa, banyak, not by changing the noun form.