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Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.

Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
He/She likes swimming lessons at school.

Breakdown of Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.

suka
to like
dia
he/she
di
at
sekolah
the school
pelajaran
the lesson
renang
swimming
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Questions & Answers about Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.

Does dia mean he or she in this sentence?

In Indonesian, dia is gender‑neutral. It can mean he, she, or even they (singular), depending on context.

  • If you’re talking about a boy/man: dia = he
  • If you’re talking about a girl/woman: dia = she

Indonesian usually does not mark gender in pronouns. Context (who you are talking about) tells you whether it is he or she.

Why isn’t there a word for a or the in Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah?

Indonesian does not use articles like a/an or the.

  • pelajaran renang can be understood as:
    • a swimming lesson
    • the swimming lesson
    • swimming lessons (in general)

The exact nuance comes from context, not from a separate word like a or the. If you really need to specify, you might add:

  • pelajaran renang itu = that / the swimming lesson
  • sebuah pelajaran renang = a swimming lesson (more formal, less common in speech)
What exactly does pelajaran renang mean? Is it a swimming lesson, a swimming class, or just swimming?

Pelajaran renang literally means swimming lesson(s) or swimming class as a school subject/activity.

  • pelajaran = lesson / subject / class (as in academic learning)
  • renang = swimming (the sport / activity, as a noun)

So Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah focuses on:

  • They like the swimming lessons / swimming class at school, not just the activity of swimming in general.

If you want to say they simply like to swim, not specifically the school subject, you would usually say:

  • Dia suka berenang. = He/She likes swimming / to swim.
What’s the difference between renang and berenang?

  • renang is a noun → swimming (the sport, the activity)

    • pelajaran renang = swimming lesson
    • tim renang = swimming team

  • berenang is a verb → to swim / swimming (as an action)

    • Dia berenang setiap pagi. = He/She swims every morning.

In your sentence, pelajaran renang needs a noun, so renang is correct.
If you replaced it with a verb, it would be wrong:

  • ❌ pelajaran berenang (unusual/wrong as a school subject)
  • ✅ pelajaran renang
Can I say Dia suka renang di sekolah without pelajaran?

You can say Dia suka renang di sekolah, but the meaning shifts slightly.

  • Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
    → He/She likes the swimming lessons / swimming class at school.

  • Dia suka renang di sekolah.
    → He/She likes swimming (the sport/activity) at school.
    This sounds more like they enjoy swimming as an activity at school (maybe during sports, clubs, etc.), not necessarily the formal class/subject.

So if you want to emphasize the school subject/class, keep pelajaran.

Why is the word order pelajaran renang, not renang pelajaran?

In Indonesian, when you have two nouns together, the main thing usually comes first, and the word that describes/specifies it comes after.

  • pelajaran renang = a lesson of swimming → swimming lesson
    • pelajaran = main noun (lesson)
    • renang = describes what kind of lesson

Other examples:

  • buku matematika = math book (book of math)
  • guru bahasa Inggris = English teacher (teacher of English)

So renang pelajaran would be incorrect; the modifier (renang) must follow pelajaran.

How do I know if pelajaran renang here is singular or plural? Is it a swimming lesson or swimming lessons?

Indonesian usually does not mark singular vs plural unless necessary.

Pelajaran renang can mean:

  • a swimming lesson
  • the swimming lesson
  • swimming lessons (in general)

Context decides. If you want to be explicit:

  • satu pelajaran renang = one swimming lesson
  • dua pelajaran renang = two swimming lessons
  • pelajaran-pelajaran renang = swimming lessons (plural, but this kind of repetition is less common in everyday speech for this phrase)

In most natural contexts, pelajaran renang is understood as swimming lessons / swimming class in general.

What does suka exactly mean here? Is it like, love, or enjoy?

Suka is a general verb meaning to like / to be fond of.

  • Dia suka pelajaran renang.
    → He/She likes swimming class.

It can sometimes be translated as enjoys, depending on context:

  • Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
    → He/She enjoys the swimming lessons at school.

If you want to say really likes / loves, you can add intensifiers:

  • Dia sangat suka pelajaran renang. = He/She really likes swimming class.
  • Dia suka sekali pelajaran renang. = He/She likes swimming class very much.
  • Dia cinta renang. = He/She loves swimming (stronger, more emotional, usually about the sport/activity itself, not the class).
How would I say He liked the swimming lessons at school (past tense) instead of He likes?

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. Suka stays suka in past, present, or future. You add time words or context to show tense.

To make it clearly past:

  • Dulu dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
    = He used to like / He previously liked the swimming lessons at school.

  • Waktu kecil, dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
    = When he/she was little, he/she liked the swimming lessons at school.

You can also add tadi (earlier today) or kemarin (yesterday), but usually with a more specific time phrase:

  • Kemarin dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
    (This sounds a bit odd in English literally; in reality you’d specify more context.)

The key point: suka itself does not change; you modify the context, not the verb form.

What does di mean in di sekolah, and how is it different from ke and dari?

Di is a preposition that means at / in / on (location):

  • di sekolah = at school / in school
  • di rumah = at home
  • di taman = in the park

Compare:

  • di = at / in (location)

    • Dia di sekolah. = He/She is at school.

  • ke = to (direction, movement toward)

    • Dia pergi ke sekolah. = He/She goes to school.

  • dari = from (origin)

    • Dia pulang dari sekolah. = He/She comes home from school.

In your sentence, di sekolah tells us where the swimming lessons are: at school.

Could I say di sekolahnya instead of di sekolah? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say di sekolahnya.

  • di sekolah = at school (general; could be any school, or just “at school” in context)
  • di sekolahnya = at his/her/their school

The suffix -nya often means his/her/their/its or that (depending on context).

Examples:

  • Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
    = He/She likes the swimming lessons at school. (general)

  • Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolahnya.
    = He/She likes the swimming lessons at his/her school. (more specific, emphasizes that particular school)

Is Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah formal or informal? Is it okay in everyday conversation?

This sentence is neutral and perfectly fine in both:

  • everyday conversation
  • writing
  • storytelling
  • speaking to adults, teachers, friends

It doesn’t use slang or very formal vocabulary. To make it slightly more casual, you might replace dia with a specific name or with dia plus context, but structurally it’s already natural and normal.

Can I put di sekolah earlier in the sentence, like Di sekolah dia suka pelajaran renang? Is that correct?

Yes, that is grammatically correct.

  • Dia suka pelajaran renang di sekolah.
    → Neutral order. Focus is on what he/she likes.

  • Di sekolah, dia suka pelajaran renang.
    → Slightly emphasizes the location (at school).
    “At school, he/she likes swimming lessons.”

Both are natural. Indonesian word order is fairly flexible, but the original sentence is the most neutral and common for this meaning.