Saya pilek sejak tadi malam.

I have had a cold since last night.

Breakdown of Saya pilek sejak tadi malam.

• adalah: to be
• saya: I
• tadi malam: last night
• sejak: since
• pilek: having a cold

Questions & Answers about Saya pilek sejak tadi malam.

What exactly does pilek mean here? Is it a noun like “a cold” or an adjective like “having a cold”?

Pilek refers to the common cold (runny/stuffy nose, etc.), but grammatically it behaves more like an adjective / state word in Indonesian.

• Saya pilek.
  Literally: I am cold-ish / I am in a cold state.
  Natural English: I have a cold.

Other examples with similar pattern:

• Saya lapar. – I’m hungry.
• Saya capek. – I’m tired.
• Saya pusing. – I’m dizzy.

So you can think of pilek as: “to be down with a cold”, used the same way as sick / hungry / tired in English, not as “I have a cold” with a separate verb.

Is Saya the only way to say “I” here? Could I say Aku pilek sejak tadi malam?

You can absolutely say:

• Aku pilek sejak tadi malam.

The difference is formality and relationship:

• Saya

  • More formal or neutral.
  • Used with strangers, older people, in polite situations, at work, etc.

• Aku

  • More informal/intimate.
  • Used with close friends, family, people the same age or younger.

The rest of the sentence stays the same. So:

• To a doctor: Saya pilek sejak tadi malam. (more polite)
• To a close friend: Aku pilek sejak tadi malam. (more casual)

What does sejak mean, and how is it different from dari?

Sejak means since (from a point in time up to now).
Dari mainly means from (origin, starting point).

In time expressions:

• Sejak tadi malam = since last night (the situation started then and is still true now).
• Dari tadi malam can also be heard in everyday speech with a similar meaning, but:
  • Sejak is more precise for “since (then) up to now” and sounds a bit more standard.
  • Dari is broader and also used for places:
    
    • Dari Jakarta ke Bandung – from Jakarta to Bandung.

So:

• Saya pilek sejak tadi malam. – Correct, standard.
• Saya pilek dari tadi malam. – Common in spoken Indonesian, especially informally; still acceptable.

In English we say “I’ve had a cold since last night” (present perfect). How is that tense expressed in Saya pilek sejak tadi malam?

Indonesian does not mark tense the same way English does. There is no verb ending like “-ed” or a helping verb like “have”.

• Saya pilek sejak tadi malam.
  Literally: “I cold since last night.”
  The combination of:

  • pilek (state)
  • sejak tadi malam (time phrase)

  automatically conveys:
  I’ve had a cold since last night and I still have it now.

You don’t need to add a word like have or a tense marker. The time expression gives the time frame, and Indonesians infer the aspect (ongoing state) from context.

Could I say Saya sedang pilek sejak tadi malam? What does sedang add?

You could say it, but it sounds a bit redundant or heavy in everyday speech.

• Sedang indicates an action/state is in progress right now, similar to “am/are/is _-ing”.

Compare:

• Saya pilek sejak tadi malam. – I’ve had a cold since last night.
• Saya sedang pilek. – I am (currently) having a cold / down with a cold.
• Saya sedang pilek sejak tadi malam. – Grammatically okay, but people rarely say it this way; sejak tadi malam already implies duration up to now.

Most natural options:

• Saya pilek sejak tadi malam. (with the time)
• Saya lagi pilek. (very colloquial; “I’m having a cold right now.”)

Is Saya pilek sejak tadi malam something people really say, or is there a more natural spoken version?

It is natural and correct, especially in neutral or slightly formal speech (e.g., to a doctor, at work).

In more casual, spoken Indonesian, many people will say:

• Aku lagi pilek dari tadi malam.
• Aku udah pilek dari tadi malam.

Notes:

• lagi = currently, in the middle of doing/experiencing something.
• udah/sudah = already.

But your original sentence:

• Saya pilek sejak tadi malam.

is perfectly natural, especially in polite or written contexts and when speaking “textbook” Indonesian.

Can I change the word order to Sejak tadi malam saya pilek? Does that sound natural?

Yes, that is also correct:

• Sejak tadi malam, saya pilek.

Differences:

• Saya pilek sejak tadi malam.

  • Neutral order.
  • Common, straightforward.

• Sejak tadi malam, saya pilek.

  • Puts slight emphasis on “since last night” (the time).
  • Useful in storytelling, like:
    
    • Sejak tadi malam, saya pilek, demam, dan batuk.
      Since last night, I’ve had a cold, a fever, and a cough.

Both are acceptable; it’s mainly a matter of emphasis and style.

What’s the difference between tadi malam, malam tadi, and kemarin malam?

All can refer to “last night”, but with slightly different habits and nuance.

• tadi malam

  • Very common for last night (the night that has just passed).
  • Neutral, standard.

• malam tadi

  • Also used, but less common in many regions.
  • Often interchangeable with tadi malam in casual speech.

• kemarin malam

  • Literally yesterday night.
  • Also means “last night” from today’s perspective.

In everyday practice, many speakers will treat tadi malam and kemarin malam as the same: the most recent night. Usage can vary by region. For your sentence, tadi malam is perfect.

Could I drop saya and just say Pilek sejak tadi malam?

Yes, in the right context.

Indonesian often drops pronouns when they’re obvious from context. For example:

• As a status / caption:
  
  • Pilek sejak tadi malam. (A bit like “Down with a cold since last night.”)
• In a conversation where it’s already clear you’re talking about yourself, you might say:
  
  • Iya, pilek sejak tadi malam. – “Yeah, (I’ve been) having a cold since last night.”

However, in a full, clear sentence, especially when starting a topic, it’s more natural to keep saya:

• Saya pilek sejak tadi malam.

Is Saya kena pilek or Saya masuk angin the same as Saya pilek?

They’re related but not identical.

• Saya pilek.

  • I have a cold (runny/stuffy nose, mild cold symptoms).

• Saya kena pilek.

  • Literally: I got/contracted a cold.
  • Emphasizes the idea of getting the illness; can sound a bit more formal/story-like.

• Saya masuk angin.

  • A culturally specific concept: feeling unwell from “wind entering the body” (chills, bloating, mild fever, aches).
  • Not exactly the same as a Western “cold”, though symptoms can overlap.
  • A very common phrase in Indonesia.

So:

• With a runny nose: Saya pilek.
• If you want to say you caught a cold: Saya kena pilek.
• If you have vague “under the weather” symptoms: Saya masuk angin.