Di perpustakaan, ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja.

In the library, there is a special shelf of comics for teenagers.

Breakdown of Di perpustakaan, ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja.

• sebuah: a
• di: in
• untuk: for
• khusus: special
• perpustakaan: the library
• ada: there is
• rak: the shelf
• remaja: the teenager
• komik: the comic

Questions & Answers about Di perpustakaan, ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja.

What does di mean here, and how is it different from pada?

Di is a preposition meaning “in / at / on” when talking about location.

• Di perpustakaan = at/in the library
• Di rumah = at home
• Di meja = on the table

Pada is also a preposition, but it’s:

• often used in more formal writing,
• used with time expressions and sometimes with abstract things.

Examples:

• Pada hari Senin = on Monday
• Pada saat itu = at that time

In everyday speech, for physical locations like a library, di is the normal, natural choice.
Pada perpustakaan would sound odd in this context.

Why is there no word for “the” or “a” in di perpustakaan?

Indonesian doesn’t use articles like “a / an / the”.

Perpustakaan by itself can mean:

• “a library”
• “the library”

The exact meaning depends on context. In this sentence, if the context is clear (e.g., you’re talking about a specific library building), di perpustakaan is naturally understood as “at the library”.

If you really want to specify:

• sebuah perpustakaan = a library (one library, non-specific)
• perpustakaan itu = that/the library (specific one already known)

But in normal speech, people just say di perpustakaan and let context do the work.

What does ada do in this sentence? Is it like “is” or “have”?

In this sentence, ada is an existential verb, meaning “there is / there are”.

• Di perpustakaan, ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja.
  ≈ At the library, there is a special comics shelf for teenagers.

Common uses of ada:

1. To say something exists / is present

   • Di sini ada toilet. = There is a toilet here.
   • Di kelas ada 20 siswa. = There are 20 students in the class.

2. To say someone has something (more informal)

   • Saya ada uang. = I have money.
   • Dia ada mobil. = He/She has a car.

But:

• “To have” is more literally punya / memiliki.
• In this sentence, ada is clearly “there is”, not “has”.

Can I say perpustakaan ada rak khusus komik instead of using ada at the beginning?

You can say something like:

• Perpustakaan itu punya rak khusus komik untuk remaja.
  = That library has a special comics shelf for teenagers.

But keeping ada as the main verb and putting location first is more natural for “there is / there are” statements:

• Di perpustakaan, ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja.
• Di perpustakaan ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja. (comma optional)

The pattern is: > [Location], ada [thing].
> At [location], there is [thing].

If you put perpustakaan as the subject, you normally change ada to punya or memiliki:

• Perpustakaan itu punya/memiliki rak khusus komik untuk remaja.

What exactly does rak mean, and how is it different from lemari?

Rak = shelf / rack
Lemari = cupboard / cabinet / wardrobe

• Rak is usually open, with visible shelves:

  • rak buku = bookshelf
  • rak sepatu = shoe rack

• Lemari is usually a closed piece of furniture with doors:

  • lemari pakaian = wardrobe
  • lemari es = refrigerator (literally “ice cupboard”)

In a library, it’s natural to say rak for the shelves where books or comics are placed.

How does rak khusus komik untuk remaja break down? Which word modifies which?

The structure is:

• rak = shelf (head noun)
• khusus = special
• komik = comics
• untuk remaja = for teenagers

The most natural way to understand it is:

rak [khusus komik] [untuk remaja]
a shelf that is special for comics, (and) for teenagers

In English we’d say:

• “a special comics shelf for teenagers”
• or “a special shelf of comics for teenagers”

Key points:

• In Indonesian, adjectives and most modifiers come after the noun:
  • rak khusus = special shelf
  • rak komik = comics shelf
• Multiple modifiers just stack after the noun:
  • rak khusus komik = shelf (that is) special (for) comics
  • then untuk remaja further specifies the target group.

Where does khusus go in relation to the noun? Could I say rak komik khusus instead?

Khusus usually comes after the noun it modifies:

• rak khusus = special shelf
• program khusus = special program

In rak khusus komik, it’s like saying:

• shelf (that is) special (for) comics

You can say rak komik khusus, but the nuance can shift slightly:

• rak khusus komik sounds like the shelf is specifically set aside for comics.
• rak komik khusus can sound more like a “special comics shelf” (a shelf of special comics), depending on context.

In practice, Indonesians might use either in casual speech, but:

• For “a special shelf of comics”, rak khusus komik is very natural and clear.

Is komik singular or plural here? How do you say “a comic” vs “comics”?

Indonesian nouns don’t change form for singular vs plural. Komik can mean:

• a comic
• the comic
• comics

Context tells you which.

Ways to be explicit:

• sebuah komik = a comic (one comic book)
• banyak komik = many comics
• beberapa komik = some comics
• komik-komik = comics (reduplication to emphasize plurality)

In rak khusus komik, it’s naturally understood as “(a) shelf (for) comics”, i.e. more than one comic.

What does untuk mean, and can I use bagi instead?

Untuk usually means “for” in the sense of:

• purpose: alat untuk memotong = tool for cutting
• recipient: hadiah untuk kamu = a gift for you
• target group: kursus untuk pemula = course for beginners

In this sentence:

• untuk remaja = for teenagers (the target audience)

You can often replace untuk with bagi:

• rak khusus komik bagi remaja

Nuance:

• untuk is more common and neutral in everyday speech and writing.
• bagi can sound slightly more formal or bookish, and is often used in written Indonesian (e.g., in announcements, news, instructions).

Here, untuk remaja is the most natural choice in normal conversation.

What does remaja mean exactly? Is it the same as “teenager”?

Remaja means “adolescent / teenager”, roughly people from about 13 to 19 years old.

It’s the standard, neutral word for that age group. Some related words:

• anak-anak = children (roughly under 12)
• remaja = adolescents / teenagers
• dewasa = adults

Other informal words:

• anak muda = young people (teens and twenties)
• ABG (slang) = Anak Baru Gede (“newly grown-up kid”), often for early teens

In this sentence, remaja matches English “for teenagers” well.

Why does the sentence start with Di perpustakaan and then have a comma? Could I say it another way?

Starting with Di perpustakaan puts the location first, as the topic:

• Di perpustakaan, ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja.
  = At the library, there is a special comics shelf for teenagers.

The comma just marks a pause; it’s optional in everyday writing:

• Di perpustakaan ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja. (also correct)

Other natural word orders:

• Ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja di perpustakaan.
  (Focus on the shelf first, then say where it is)

All of these are grammatical. The original version simply highlights the location before telling what exists there.

Is this sentence formal, informal, or neutral?

The sentence:

• Di perpustakaan, ada rak khusus komik untuk remaja.

is neutral and suitable for:

• spoken conversation,
• signs or information in a library,
• textbooks,
• general writing.

There’s no slang and no very formal vocabulary. It’s standard, everyday Indonesian.

How is perpustakaan formed? Is there a root word?

Yes. Perpustakaan comes from the root pustaka, which originally means “book / writing / literature”.

The pattern is:

• per- + pustaka + -an → perpustakaan

The prefix per- and suffix -an together often form place nouns, meaning "a place related to X":

• sepak bola (football) → persepakbolaan (things related to football)
• pustaka (books/literature) → perpustakaan (library, place of books)

So perpustakaan literally is something like “place of books”, which matches the idea of a library.