Saya melihat sarang semut di halaman belakang.

I see an ant nest in the backyard.

Breakdown of Saya melihat sarang semut di halaman belakang.

• sebuah: a
• saya: I
• di: in
• halaman belakang: the backyard
• melihat: to see
• semut: the ant
• sarang: the nest

Questions & Answers about Saya melihat sarang semut di halaman belakang.

What’s the difference between saya and aku? Could I use aku here instead of saya?

Both saya and aku mean I.

• saya = neutral / polite, good for talking to strangers, older people, or in formal situations.
• aku = informal / intimate, used with close friends, family, or children.

You can say Aku melihat sarang semut di halaman belakang, but it sounds more casual than the original with saya.

Why is it melihat and not just lihat?

The base verb is lihat (to see).
The prefix me- turns it into an active verb: melihat = to see / saw / am seeing (depending on context).

• melihat is used in normal sentences with a subject: Saya melihat ...
• Bare lihat is common in commands: Lihat! = Look!

So with saya, you need melihat, not bare lihat.

How do I know this sentence is in the past and not present or future? There’s no tense marker.

Indonesian verbs don’t change form for past/present/future. melihat can mean see / saw / will see, depending on context.

To be explicit, speakers add time words:

• tadi / kemarin → past
• sekarang → present
• nanti / besok → future

So the tense is understood from context, not from the verb form.

Why is it sarang semut and not semut sarang?

In Indonesian, the main noun usually comes first, and the modifier or “owner” comes after it.

• sarang = nest
• semut = ant

So sarang semut literally = nest (of) ants.
semut sarang is ungrammatical as “ant nest” and sounds wrong.

Does sarang semut mean specifically an ant hill, or any kind of ant nest?

sarang semut is a general term for an ant nest — it could be:

• an anthill in the ground,
• a nest in wood,
• a nest in leaves, etc.

If you really want to emphasize the mound shape, people might say gundukan semut (mound of ants) or describe it more specifically, but sarang semut is the normal phrase.

Is sarang semut singular or plural? How would I say “ant nests” (plural)?

By default, sarang semut is number-neutral: it can mean an ant nest or ant nests, depending on context.

To make plural explicit, you can say:

• banyak sarang semut = many ant nests
• sarang-sarang semut = ant nests (reduplication to show plural)

But often speakers don’t mark the plural if it’s already clear.

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

di = at / in / on (location, static)

• di halaman belakang = in/at the backyard

ke = to / toward (movement to a place)

• ke halaman belakang = to the backyard

dari = from (movement away from a place)

• dari halaman belakang = from the backyard

Sometimes I see di attached to a word (like dibaca). Here di is separate. What’s the difference?

There are two different “di” in Indonesian:

1. di as a preposition (separate word):

   • di rumah, di halaman belakang
     It shows location and is always written separately.

2. di- as a prefix (attached):

   • dibaca = is read / was read
     This is the passive prefix and must be joined to the verb.

In your sentence, di is the locative preposition, so it stands alone.

In halaman belakang, which word is the main noun? What does each word mean?

• halaman = yard, garden, or page (depending on context; here: yard)
• belakang = back, behind

The main noun is halaman, and belakang modifies it, so halaman belakang = back yard / back garden.
The pattern is [noun] + [modifier].

Why is it halaman belakang, not belakang halaman? What would belakang halaman mean?

Normal order is noun + modifier/location word:

• halaman belakang = the backyard (the back part of the yard)

belakang halaman flips it:

• literally “the back (area) of the yard” or “behind the yard”
  → this would be interpreted as a place behind the yard, not the yard itself.

So to say the backyard (part of the house area), use halaman belakang, not belakang halaman.

Could I say di belakang rumah instead of di halaman belakang? Is the meaning the same?

They’re related but not identical:

• di halaman belakang = in the backyard (implies a defined yard area)
• di belakang rumah = behind the house (could be yard, could be just any space behind the building)

Sometimes they overlap in real usage, but di halaman belakang focuses on the yard area, while di belakang rumah focuses on position relative to the house.

Is it necessary to say saya, or can Indonesian drop the subject like Spanish sometimes does?

You can drop the subject in Indonesian if it’s clear from context.

For example:

• Melihat sarang semut di halaman belakang.

This could mean I/you/we saw an ant nest in the backyard, depending on context.
However, learners are usually safer keeping the subject (Saya melihat ...) until they’re comfortable with inference from context.

How are adjectives or descriptive words usually placed in Indonesian? Is belakang acting like an adjective here?

Most descriptive words come after the noun they describe:

• rumah besar = big house
• baju merah = red shirt
• halaman belakang = back yard

So yes, belakang here is functioning like an adjective/modifier and it correctly follows halaman.

How should I pronounce halaman belakang and sarang semut? Anything tricky for English speakers?

A few points:

• halaman: ha-LA-man
  
  • all a like the “a” in father; each syllable is clearly pronounced.
• belakang: be-LA-kang
  
  • e in be- is like the e in taken; ng is a single sound as in sing.
• sarang: SA-rang
• semut: se-MUT
  
  • e in se- is again like the e in taken; u like oo in book, but shorter.

Stress is typically on the second-to-last syllable: ha-LA-man, be-LA-kang, SA-rang, se-MUT.