Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Dia meminta kami membaca instruksi dengan cermat agar tidak salah, lalu bertanya apakah kami sudah memberi perhatian penuh. - He/She asks us to read the instructions carefully so we don’t make mistakes, then asks whether we have given full attention.

Without "untuk": a bit more compact and common in spoken and informal written Indonesian.
- Dia meminta kami membaca instruksi.
With "untuk": often feels slightly clearer or more formal, and is very common too.
- Dia meminta kami untuk membaca instruksi.

So the sentence omits "untuk" simply because it’s not required; the meaning is the same: He/She asked us to read the instructions.

What is the exact function of "agar" in "agar tidak salah"?

"agar" is a conjunction meaning "so that", "in order that", or "so as to".

"agar tidak salah" = so that (we) don’t make a mistake / to avoid being wrong.

You can think of the pattern as:

[do something] agar [result/goal]
- membaca instruksi dengan cermat agar tidak salah
  = read the instructions carefully so that you don’t get it wrong.

You could replace "agar" with "supaya" (very similar meaning):

...membaca instruksi dengan cermat supaya tidak salah.

Both are natural; "agar" is often felt as a bit more formal or written.

Why is it just "salah" in "agar tidak salah" and not something like "tidak melakukan kesalahan"?

In Indonesian, the adjective/verb "salah" is very flexible and often used where English needs a whole phrase:

salah = wrong, incorrect, to be mistaken, to make a mistake.

So:

agar tidak salah literally: so (we) are not wrong, but understood as so we don’t make a mistake / don’t get it wrong.

A longer version is possible:

agar tidak melakukan kesalahan = so as not to make a mistake (more formal / explicit).

But everyday Indonesian prefers the shorter "agar tidak salah" if the context is clear.

What is the role of "dengan" in "dengan cermat"? Could it be "secara cermat" instead?

Both are possible, but they differ slightly in feel.

dengan cermat = carefully, literally with care/accuracy.
secara cermat = also carefully, literally in a careful way.

Usage:

dengan + adjective is very common and sounds natural in everyday and formal Indonesian:
- dengan cepat (quickly), dengan hati-hati (carefully), dengan cermat (carefully).
secara + adjective is often a bit more formal, technical, or written:
- secara resmi (officially), secara bertahap (gradually), secara cermat (carefully).

In this sentence, "dengan cermat" is the more natural-sounding choice, but "secara cermat" is also grammatically fine.

In "lalu bertanya", what exactly does "lalu" mean? How is it different from "kemudian" or "terus"?

"lalu" is a conjunction/adverb meaning "then" or "after that", marking the next action in a sequence.

Dia meminta kami membaca..., lalu bertanya...
= He/She asked us to read..., then asked...

Comparison:

lalu – neutral, common in both spoken and written language.
kemudian – similar meaning; can feel a bit more formal or written.
terus – very common in casual speech; often feels more colloquial:
- ...terus dia bertanya apakah...

Here, "lalu" nicely links two actions in a narrative, in a neutral style.

How does "apakah" work in "bertanya apakah kami sudah memberi perhatian penuh"? Is it like "if" or "whether"?

Yes. In this sentence, "apakah" functions like "whether" / "if" introducing an indirect yes/no question.

Pattern:

bertanya apakah ... = ask whether / ask if ...

Example from the sentence:

Dia ... bertanya apakah kami sudah memberi perhatian penuh.
= He/She then asked whether we had given full attention.

Other examples:

Saya ingin tahu apakah dia datang.
I want to know whether/if he’s coming.
Mereka belum memutuskan apakah akan pergi.
They haven’t decided whether to go.

So here, "apakah" is not the question word at the start of a direct question, but a linker for an embedded question clause.

Why is it "kami" instead of "kita" in this sentence?

Indonesian distinguishes between two kinds of "we/us":

kami = we/us (not including the listener).
kita = we/us (including the listener).

In "Dia meminta kami..." and "apakah kami sudah...", "kami" implies:

The group being talked about does not include the person being spoken to (the listener).
It’s “us” in contrast to “you”.

If the speaker wanted to include the listener in the group, they would use "kita":

Dia meminta kita membaca instruksi...
= He/She asked us (you and me) to read the instructions...

What exactly does "memberi perhatian penuh" mean, and how is it different from "memperhatikan"?

memberi perhatian penuh literally: to give full attention.
- memberi = to give
- perhatian = attention
- penuh = full

So "sudah memberi perhatian penuh" = have (already) given full attention.

"memperhatikan" is a single verb meaning "to pay attention (to something)", "to notice", "to observe".

Comparison:

Dia tidak memperhatikan instruksi.
He/She didn’t pay attention to the instructions.
Apakah kami sudah memberi perhatian penuh?
Have we given full attention? (more abstract, focusing on the degree of attention)

You could rephrase with "memperhatikan":

Dia bertanya apakah kami sudah memperhatikan dengan sungguh-sungguh.

But "memberi perhatian penuh" puts more emphasis on the completeness (fullness) of the attention.

Why is it "perhatian penuh" and not "penuh perhatian"? Don’t they both look like “full attention”?

They look similar but actually mean different things:

perhatian penuh = full attention
- perhatian (attention) + penuh (full)
- noun + adjective (describing the noun).
penuh perhatian = attentive / caring / considerate (as an adjective).
- penuh (full) + perhatian (attention)
  = full of attention → attentive.

Examples:

Dia mendengarkan dengan perhatian penuh.
He/She listened with full attention.
Dia adalah orang yang penuh perhatian.
He/She is an attentive / thoughtful person.

So in the sentence, "perhatian penuh" is correct because we’re talking about how much attention was given, not about a person’s character.

Is "instruksi" singular or plural here? How would you say “the instructions” in Indonesian?

Indonesian usually does not mark plural with a special ending the way English does. "Instruksi" can mean:

instruction (singular), or
instructions (plural),

depending on context.

In this sentence, "membaca instruksi dengan cermat" naturally translates as “read the instructions carefully” because that’s what English would normally say in this context.

If you want to make the plural idea more explicit, you can:

add a number: dua instruksi (two instructions),
add a plural marker (for emphasis): instruksi-instruksi (instructions),
or use a more common word: petunjuk / petunjuk-petunjuk (instructions, guidance).

But most of the time, plain "instruksi" is enough; the plural meaning is understood from the situation.

Does "Dia" mean specifically “he” or “she” here? How do you show gender in Indonesian?

"Dia" is gender-neutral; it can mean he, she, or even it (for some contexts). Indonesian pronouns generally do not mark gender:

dia = he / she
mereka = they (no gender info)
saya / aku = I (no gender info)

If you really need to show gender, you usually rely on:

context (e.g. you already know who you’re talking about),
or explicit nouns:
- pria itu (that man),
- wanita itu (that woman),
- ayah (father), ibu (mother), etc.

So in this sentence, "Dia" could be either he or she; English forces you to choose, but Indonesian does not.