Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Dia belum berani memakai setrika sendiri karena takut membakar gorden. - She/He doesn’t dare use the iron alone yet because she/he is afraid of burning the curtain.

Dia belum berani... = He/She is not yet brave enough / doesn’t dare (yet) to…
If you said Dia tidak berani..., it would mean He/She doesn’t dare… with no sense that this might change in the future.

Using belum suggests:

The speaker thinks or implies that in the future, this person might become brave enough to do it.

Does “dia” mean “he” or “she”? How do you know the gender?

Dia means “he” or “she”; it is gender‑neutral. Indonesian pronouns normally do not mark gender.

You only know whether dia is “he” or “she” from:

Context,
Previous sentences,
Or additional information (like a name).

In this single sentence, the gender is unknown in Indonesian, even though in English you would be forced to choose he or she.

Why is it “memakai setrika” instead of a verb like “to iron”? Isn’t there a verb form?

Yes, there is a verb form: menyetrika, which means “to iron (clothes)”.

Setrika = an iron (the appliance)
Memakai setrika = “to use an iron”
Menyetrika = “to iron (clothes)” (the action)

In this sentence:

memakai setrika sendiri literally: use an iron by oneself
→ functionally: iron by himself/herself

You could also say:

Dia belum berani menyetrika sendiri karena takut membakar gorden.

Both are correct.
Memakai setrika slightly emphasizes the device,
menyetrika emphasizes the activity of ironing.

What does “sendiri” mean here? Does it mean “alone”, “by herself/himself”, or “her own iron”?

Sendiri is flexible and often means one of:

by oneself / on one’s own (without help)
alone
own (as in “one’s own X”), depending on position and context

In memakai setrika sendiri, it is most naturally understood as:

“to use the iron by herself/himself” (without someone’s help)
Not “her/his own iron” as a possession.

If you wanted to stress possession, you’d normally say:

setrika miliknya / setrikanya sendiri = his/her own iron

But in this context (fear of burning the curtain), the natural reading is doing the action without assistance, not whose iron it is.

Can the position of “sendiri” change? For example, is “Dia belum berani sendiri memakai setrika” OK?

The most natural and common placement is:

Dia belum berani memakai setrika sendiri...

You can move sendiri, but the nuance changes or it can sound a bit odd:

Dia belum berani sendiri memakai setrika.
- Grammatically possible, but sounds a little awkward/marked.
- It draws more focus to dia sendiri = he/she personally, as opposed to others.
Dia sendiri belum berani memakai setrika.
- Natural.
- Means He/She himself/herself is not yet brave enough (emphasizing that this particular person, as opposed to others, is not brave enough).

For a learner, the safest and most natural for this meaning is:

Dia belum berani memakai setrika sendiri...

In “karena takut membakar gorden”, why is there no subject like “dia” again? Who is afraid?

Indonesian often omits repeated subjects when they are clear from context.

The main clause: Dia belum berani memakai setrika sendiri
The reason clause: karena takut membakar gorden

Even though dia is not repeated, it is understood that:

Dia is the one who is takut (afraid),
and dia is the one who might membakar gorden (burn the curtain).

You could say:

... karena dia takut membakar gorden.

This is also correct and maybe a bit clearer for learners, but fluent speech often drops the second dia if it’s obvious.

Why is it “takut membakar gorden” and not “takut kalau dia membakar gorden”?

Both are possible, but they differ in style and structure:

takut membakar gorden
- literally: afraid (of) burning the curtain
- takut + verb is a very common pattern:
  - takut jatuh = afraid of falling
  - takut tersesat = afraid of getting lost
takut kalau dia membakar gorden
- more literally: afraid that he/she will burn the curtain
- Also correct, but a bit longer and more explicit.

The original takut membakar gorden is more natural and concise in everyday Indonesian.

What is the difference between “membakar” and the root “bakar”? Could you say “takut bakar gorden”?

bakar is the root (“burn”),
membakar is the active transitive verb (“to burn [something]”).

In standard Indonesian:

You should say membakar gorden = burn the curtain (deliberately or accidentally).
takut bakar gorden sounds non‑standard or dialectal/slang. Learners should avoid it.

So the normal, correct form is:

takut membakar gorden.

What does “gorden” mean, and is it the only word for “curtain”?

Gorden = curtain (especially cloth window curtains), from Dutch gordijn.

Other words you might see:

tirai – also “curtain”; can sound a bit more general or slightly more formal/literary in some contexts.
korden – a variant spelling you may see informally.

In everyday conversation, gorden is very common and natural:

membakar gorden = burn the curtain(s)

How is tense expressed here? Does this mean “is not yet brave”, “was not yet brave”, or “will not yet be brave”?

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense (past, present, future). Tense is inferred from:

time expressions (kemarin, nanti, sekarang, etc.),
or context.

The sentence:

Dia belum berani memakai setrika sendiri karena takut membakar gorden.

could be translated as:

He/She is not yet brave enough to use the iron by herself/himself... (most typical default)
or, in the right context: He/She was not yet brave enough...

If there is no time marker, English usually defaults to present when translating.

Is the sentence formal, informal, or neutral? Could I use it in everyday speech?

This sentence is neutral and very natural:

Vocabulary: everyday words (dia, belum, berani, memakai, setrika, takut, membakar, gorden).
Grammar: standard, not slangy.

You can use it:

in casual conversation,
in writing,
in narration.

It’s neither especially formal nor especially informal.

Could you rewrite the sentence in a few slightly different but natural ways, and explain if the meaning changes?

Some natural variations:

Dia belum berani menyetrika sendiri karena takut membakar gorden.
- Uses menyetrika instead of memakai setrika.
- Focus slightly more on the action “ironing” than on the device.
Dia belum cukup berani memakai setrika sendiri karena takut membakar gorden.
- cukup berani = “brave enough”.
- Emphasizes degree: not brave enough.
Dia belum berani memakai setrika sendiri karena dia takut membakar gorden.
- Repeats dia for clarity.
- Slightly more explicit, good for learners.

All of these keep the same core meaning:
He/She does not yet dare to use the iron alone because he/she is afraid of burning the curtain.