Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.

I do not want to hurt my friend's feelings.

Breakdown of Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.

• saya: I
• teman: the friend
• tidak: not
• saya: my
• mau: want
• perasaan: the feeling
• menyakiti: to hurt

Questions & Answers about Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.

What is the difference between saya and aku? Could I say Aku tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman aku?

Saya and aku both mean “I / me”, but they differ in formality and context.

• saya: more formal, neutral, polite; safe in almost any context (talking to strangers, at work, in class, etc.).
• aku: more informal, intimate; used with close friends, family, or people of the same age in casual contexts.

Your alternative:

• Aku tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman aku is understandable, but sounds a bit off to many native speakers because of repeating aku.
• More natural casual versions:
  • Aku tidak mau menyakiti perasaan temanku.
  • Aku nggak mau nyakitin perasaan temanku. (very casual, spoken)

So:

• formal/neutral: Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.
• casual: Aku tidak mau menyakiti perasaan temanku.

Why is tidak used here and not bukan?

Indonesian has two main words for “not”:

• tidak negates:

  • verbs: mau, datang, tahu, etc.
    
    • Saya tidak mau. = I don’t want (to).
  • adjectives: besar, bagus, capek, etc.
    
    • Dia tidak capek. = He/She is not tired.

• bukan negates:

  • nouns:
    
    • Dia bukan dokter. = He/She is not a doctor.
  • whole nominal statements:
    
    • Itu bukan rumah saya. = That is not my house.

In Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya, we are negating mau (want), which is a verb, so tidak is correct:

• Saya tidak mau … = I do not want to …

What’s the difference between tidak mau and tidak ingin? Could I say Saya tidak ingin menyakiti perasaan teman saya?

Both are possible, but the nuance is slightly different:

• mau:

  • very common in spoken Indonesian
  • can mean want, be willing, going to (future-ish)
  • Saya tidak mau = I don’t want / I’m not willing.

• ingin:

  • a bit more formal / “bookish”
  • focuses more on desire rather than willingness
  • Saya tidak ingin = I do not wish / I have no desire.

Your alternative:

• Saya tidak ingin menyakiti perasaan teman saya is correct and sounds a bit more formal or thoughtful.
• Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya is more everyday, conversational.

Meaning-wise, in this sentence, they’re almost the same.

Why is it menyakiti, not just sakit or menyakitkan?

All three are from the root sakit (sick / hurt / painful), but their functions differ:

1. sakit

   • adjective / stative verb: sick, in pain
   • Kaki saya sakit. = My leg hurts / is painful.
   • Not used here because we need an action: to hurt someone’s feelings.

2. menyakiti

   • meN-
     • sakit
       • -i
   • transitive verb: to hurt (someone/something) (cause pain to a person or their feelings)
   • menyakiti perasaan teman saya = hurt my friend’s feelings.
   • This is exactly what we need here: causing emotional pain to a person.

3. menyakitkan

   • meN-
     • sakit
       • -kan
   • often means painful / hurtful (causing pain, but often used more like an adjective or describing things/situations)
   • Perkataannya menyakitkan. = His/Her words are hurtful/painful.
   • You wouldn’t usually say menyakitkan perasaan teman saya; that sounds awkward.

So menyakiti is the natural verb when you directly say hurt someone’s feelings.

What do perasaan and rasa mean? Why use perasaan here?

Both come from the root rasa (taste, feeling, sense).

• rasa:
  • concrete: taste
    
    • rasa manis = sweet taste
  • also abstract: sense/feeling of something
    
    • rasa takut = a feeling of fear
• perasaan:
  • specifically feelings, emotions
  • more clearly refers to emotional inner feelings

In menyakiti perasaan teman saya:

• perasaan is used because we specifically mean emotional feelings, like feelings being hurt.
• Saying menyakiti rasa teman saya would be unusual and not idiomatic for “hurt my friend’s feelings.”

How does teman saya work grammatically? Why is it not saya teman?

In Indonesian, possession is usually formed by [thing] + [owner], not [owner] + [thing].

• teman saya = my friend
  
  • literally: friend I
• rumah saya = my house
• mobil dia = his/her car

So:

• Saya teman would just be I [am] a friend (and even that sounds incomplete).
• To say my friend, you must say teman saya.

In the sentence:

• perasaan teman saya = the feelings of my friend / my friend’s feelings
  
  • structure: [feelings] [friend] [I] → feelings of my friend

Is teman saya singular or plural? Does it mean “my friend” or “my friends”?

By default, Indonesian nouns are number-neutral:

• teman can mean friend or friends, depending on context.
• teman saya can be:
  • my friend (one friend)
  • my friends (more than one)

If you want to make it clear:

• singular: often context is enough. You can add seorang:
  • Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan seorang teman saya.
    = I don’t want to hurt the feelings of one of my friends.
• plural: you can emphasize:
  • teman-teman saya = my friends (definitely plural)
  • Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman-teman saya.
    = I don’t want to hurt my friends’ feelings.

Why does menyakiti come before perasaan? Can I change the word order?

Indonesian basic word order is Subject – Verb – Object, similar to English.

• Saya (subject)
• tidak mau menyakiti (verb phrase: do not want to hurt)
• perasaan teman saya (object: my friend’s feelings)

So the natural order is:

• Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.

You cannot move perasaan before menyakiti like:

• ✗ Saya tidak mau perasaan menyakiti teman saya. (wrong / nonsense)
• ✗ Saya tidak mau perasaan teman saya menyakiti. (ungrammatical)

The verb must precede the object, just like hurt comes before my friend’s feelings in English.

What is the difference between tidak mau and jangan when saying “I don’t want to hurt my friend’s feelings”?

• tidak mau = do not want (to)

  • Used to talk about your own desire or willingness.
  • Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.
    = I don’t want to hurt my friend’s feelings. (a statement about yourself)

• jangan = don’t …! (imperative / command)

  • Used to tell someone not to do something.
  • Jangan menyakiti perasaan temanmu.
    = Don’t hurt your friend’s feelings.

So:

• Talking about yourself → use tidak mau.
• Telling someone not to do it → use jangan.

Can I drop saya and just say Tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya?

Yes, in spoken Indonesian, dropping the subject is common when it’s obvious from context.

• Tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.
  = (I) don’t want to hurt my friend’s feelings.

However:

• In writing or in more formal situations (essays, speeches, exams), it is usually better to keep Saya:
  • Saya tidak mau menyakiti perasaan teman saya.

Both are grammatically fine; the version without saya just feels more casual and context-dependent.

How would this sentence sound in very casual everyday speech among friends?

A common very casual version (especially in speech) might be:

• Gue nggak mau nyakitin perasaan temen gue. (Jakarta slang)
• Aku nggak mau nyakitin perasaan temenku. (general casual)

Changes:

• saya → aku / gue (informal I)
• tidak → nggak / gak (informal not)
• menyakiti → nyakitin (spoken reduction)
• teman saya → temenku / temen gue (informal pronunciation + informal possessive)

The original sentence is the neutral, polite, textbook-friendly version.