Teman saya duduk jauh di belakang.

My friend sits far in the back.

Breakdown of Teman saya duduk jauh di belakang.

• teman: the friend
• duduk: to sit
• saya: my
• di belakang: in the back
• jauh: much

Questions & Answers about Teman saya duduk jauh di belakang.

Why is it teman saya and not saya teman, even though in English we say my friend?

In Indonesian, possessive pronouns normally come after the noun they modify:

• teman saya = my friend
• buku saya = my book
• rumah saya = my house

So the natural order is noun + possessor, not possessor + noun as in English.
Saya teman is not correct for “my friend.”

Can teman saya also mean my friends, or is it only singular?

Teman saya is ambiguous by itself. It can mean:

• my friend (singular), or
• my friends (plural)

Indonesian usually does not mark plural on nouns. Context normally tells you whether it’s one friend or more.

If you really want to emphasize plural, people often say:

• teman-teman saya = my friends (definitely plural)
• para teman saya (more formal) = my friends

Could I say temanku instead of teman saya? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say temanku.

• temanku = my friend (using the suffix -ku for “my”)
• teman saya = my friend (using the separate word saya for “I / me / my”)

Differences:

• Formality:
  
  • teman saya is neutral and fine in almost any situation.
  • temanku is more informal / casual and common in writing (messages, social media, personal notes).
• Meaning: They both mean the same thing: “my friend.”

What’s the difference between saya and aku here? Could I say teman aku?

Both saya and aku mean “I / me / my,” but they differ in tone:

• saya: neutral, polite, safe in formal and informal contexts
• aku: informal, used with friends, family, in songs, etc.

So:

• teman saya = my friend (neutral/polite)
• teman aku = my friend (more casual)

Grammar-wise, teman aku is fine, but in more formal writing or when speaking politely, teman saya is preferred.

How do we know if duduk here means “is sitting,” “sits,” or “sat”? There’s no tense marker.

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. Duduk can cover:

• is sitting / sits (present)
• was sitting / sat (past)
• will sit (future, if context indicates)

The time is shown by context or by extra words:

• Teman saya sedang duduk jauh di belakang.
  = My friend is sitting far in the back. (sedang = in the middle of doing)
• Tadi teman saya duduk jauh di belakang.
  = Earlier, my friend sat far in the back. (tadi = earlier)
• Nanti teman saya akan duduk jauh di belakang.
  = Later, my friend will sit far in the back. (akan = will)

Without any marker, you infer the tense from the situation.

In English we say “My friend is sitting…”. Why doesn’t Indonesian use a word for is before duduk?

Indonesian normally does not use a separate “to be” verb before main verbs. The verb alone is enough:

• Teman saya duduk… = My friend is sitting / sits …

You only see something like adalah (often translated as “is”) in special cases, mainly:

• between a subject and a noun or noun phrase:
  Dia adalah guru. = He/She is a teacher.
• in formal definitions or written explanations.

But before action verbs like duduk, you do not add an extra “is.”

What does jauh di belakang literally mean, and why is jauh placed before di belakang?

Literally:

• jauh = far
• di belakang = at the back / behind

So duduk jauh di belakang is like “sit far (away) at the back” or “sit way in the back.”

Jauh is an adverb of distance, and it naturally comes before the place phrase:

• jauh di depan = far in front
• jauh di sini (less common) = far here (usually you’d say jauh dari sini = far from here)

So duduk jauh di belakang is the natural, smooth order.

Can I move jauh to the end and say Teman saya duduk di belakang jauh?

That word order is not natural in Indonesian. Native speakers would almost always say:

• Teman saya duduk jauh di belakang.

Putting jauh after di belakang (…di belakang jauh) sounds odd or ungrammatical in normal speech.
Keep jauh before the location phrase di belakang.

What’s the difference between belakang and di belakang?

• belakang by itself is a noun meaning “back” / “behind.”
• di belakang is a prepositional phrase: di (at / in / on) + belakang (back) → “at the back / behind.”

For locations, you normally use di belakang:

• Teman saya di belakang. = My friend is at the back / behind.
• Dia duduk di belakang. = He/She sits in the back.

Belakang alone would usually need something with it, like:

• bagian belakang = the back part
• pintu belakang = back door

Does jauh di belakang mean “far behind me” specifically, or just “far at the back” in general?

By itself, jauh di belakang is general: “far at the back / far behind (somewhere).” It does not say “behind me” unless you add saya:

• jauh di belakang saya = far behind me
• jauh di belakang kelas = far behind the class

In Teman saya duduk jauh di belakang, without an extra word, it’s understood as “far at the back (of the room / bus / hall, etc.),” depending on context.

Could I drop duduk and just say Teman saya jauh di belakang?

Yes, that’s possible, and it’s grammatical:

• Teman saya jauh di belakang.
  = My friend is far in the back.

The difference:

• With duduk:
  Teman saya duduk jauh di belakang.
  Emphasizes the action / posture: your friend is sitting far in the back.
• Without duduk:
  Teman saya jauh di belakang.
  Focuses more on location: your friend is far in the back (standing, sitting, etc.—unspecified).

Both are correct; choose based on what you want to highlight.