Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.

Saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan kemarin.
→ I brought a notebook to the library yesterday. (past)
Sekarang saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ Now I am bringing a notebook to the library. (present / continuous)
Nanti saya akan membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ Later I will bring a notebook to the library. (future)

So your sentence can be translated as “I bring / I am bringing / I brought a notebook to the library”, depending on context.

What is the root of membawa, and what does the me- prefix do?

The root verb is bawa (to carry, to bring).

membawa = me- + bawa

The prefix meN- (here it becomes mem- before b) is a very common verb-forming prefix in Indonesian. With bawa, it makes a standard active verb:

bawa – carry / bring (often more colloquial, used in some fixed expressions or imperatives)
membawa – to carry / to bring (neutral, standard form)

Example:

Jangan bawa tas besar.
Don’t bring a big bag. (informal, using the root)
Dia membawa tas besar.
He/She is bringing a big bag. (neutral sentence with meN- verb)

What exactly does buku catatan mean? Is it just “notebook”?

Literally, buku catatan is “book (of) notes”:

buku = book
catatan = notes, written record (from the verb mencatat, to take notes)

Common English equivalents:

notebook
journal (in some contexts)
notepad (if it’s used for taking notes)

Other related words:

buku tulis – school exercise book / notebook (very common in school contexts)
buku harian – diary / journal
catatan by itself – notes

In your sentence, buku catatan is naturally translated as “notebook”.

Is buku catatan singular or plural? How would I say “I brought some notebooks”?

Indonesian nouns usually don’t change form for singular vs plural. So:

buku catatan can mean “a notebook” or “notebooks”, depending on context.

To make it clearly plural, you can add a word that shows quantity:

Saya membawa beberapa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
I brought some notebooks to the library.
Saya membawa dua buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
I brought two notebooks to the library.

Or use reduplication, though this is less common with a compound like buku catatan:

buku-buku catatan – notebooks (more formal/literary in this case)

How do I say “a notebook” more explicitly? Do I need a word like “a/an”?

Indonesian has no direct equivalent of English a/an, and usually just omits it.
However, you can make the “one” idea explicit with sebuah:

Saya membawa sebuah buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
I brought a (single) notebook to the library.

sebuah literally means “one (unit of) …”, but in many contexts it’s close to English a/an.
You don’t have to use it unless you specifically want to emphasize one notebook.

Why is it ke perpustakaan and not di perpustakaan?

ke and di express different ideas:

ke = to, towards (direction / destination)
di = at, in (location)

In your sentence:

Saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ I brought a notebook to the library. (movement towards the library)

If you say:

Saya membawa buku catatan di perpustakaan.

this is interpreted as:

I am carrying a notebook in the library / I bring a notebook while at the library
(not about going to the library, but about the location of the action)

So for a destination, use ke; for a place where something happens or exists, use di.

Can I drop Saya and just say Membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan?

Yes, you can drop the subject pronoun if it’s clear from context. Indonesian often omits pronouns when they’re understood.

(Saya) membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ (I) brought a notebook to the library.

However:

In a standalone sentence (with no context), including Saya makes it clearer.
In a list of instructions or a diary entry, dropping Saya can sound natural.

So it’s grammatically fine, but whether it sounds natural depends on the context.

What is the difference between Saya and Aku here?

Both Saya and Aku mean “I”, but they differ in formality and typical use:

Saya
- More polite / neutral / formal
- Safe for speaking to strangers, older people, in public or professional situations
Aku
- More informal / intimate
- Used with close friends, family, people your own age, in songs, etc.

Your sentence with Aku:

Aku membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ Same core meaning, just more casual/intimate.

Grammar is the same; you just choose based on the relationship and level of formality.

Can I change the word order, like Saya ke perpustakaan membawa buku catatan?

Yes, Indonesian word order is relatively flexible, and:

Saya ke perpustakaan membawa buku catatan.

is possible and understandable. However:

Saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
is the most natural, neutral order here.

When you say Saya ke perpustakaan membawa buku catatan, it can sound a bit more like storytelling, with a slight emphasis on the destination first (“I, to the library, brought a notebook”) or like a casual spoken style.

For learners, it’s best to stick to:

Subject + Verb + Object + Place/Direction
→ Saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.

Is there a difference between membawa and mengambil in this context?

Yes, they express different actions:

membawa = to carry / to bring (focus on transporting something from one place to another)
mengambil = to take / to fetch (focus on picking something up, taking it from somewhere)

Your sentence:

Saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ I brought/took a notebook to the library. (I transported it there.)

If you say:

Saya mengambil buku catatan di perpustakaan.
→ I took / picked up a notebook at the library.
(I got it from the library.)

So membawa … ke … focuses on bringing something to a place.

How do I pronounce perpustakaan?

perpustakaan has 5 syllables:

per-pus-ta-ka-an

Rough pronunciation (using English-like spelling):

per – like “purr”
pus – like “poos”
ta – like “tah”
ka – like “kah”
an – like “ahn” (short, unstressed)

Stress is usually on -ka- or -ta-, but Indonesian stress is relatively light compared to English. Say it smoothly:

per-pus-ta-KA-an (all vowels clearly pronounced)

Could this sentence also mean “I always bring a notebook to the library” (a habit)?

Yes. Because membawa is not tied to a specific tense or aspect, it can describe:

a single event (I brought it once), or
a habit (I always/usually bring it),

depending on context or added adverbs:

Saya selalu membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ I always bring a notebook to the library.
Saya sering membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan.
→ I often bring a notebook to the library.

Without an adverb, Saya membawa buku catatan ke perpustakaan. can be understood as a specific event or a general habit, depending on the situation you’re talking about.