Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.

Dokter tadi memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= The doctor gave me antibiotics earlier.
Dokter sudah memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= The doctor has already given me antibiotics.
Dokter akan memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= The doctor will give me antibiotics.
Setiap hari dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= Every day the doctor gives me antibiotics.

Without extra words, Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya is time‑neutral; context decides.

What’s the function of kepada here? Can I just say Dokter memberi saya antibiotik?

Kepada marks the recipient (usually a person) and is somewhat formal.

Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= The doctor gave antibiotics to me (more formal, explicit).

You can also say:

Dokter memberi saya antibiotik.
= The doctor gave me antibiotics.

Both are correct. Differences:

...kepada saya
- more formal / careful
- common in written language, official contexts
...saya antibiotik
- very common in speech
- sounds more neutral / everyday

In casual spoken Indonesian, Dokter memberi saya antibiotik will often sound more natural.

What’s the difference between memberi and memberikan?

Both come from the root beri (to give).

memberi
- Often used with a recipient and/or a thing:
- Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
- Dokter memberi saya antibiotik.
memberikan
- Tends to highlight the thing being given, and is felt as a bit more formal.
- Often used as: memberikan [thing] kepada [person]
- Dokter memberikan antibiotik kepada saya.

In everyday modern Indonesian:

memberi and memberikan are often interchangeable here.
Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya and
Dokter memberikan antibiotik kepada saya are both acceptable.

Stylistically, memberikan sounds a bit more formal or written; memberi is slightly shorter and more neutral.

Why is the verb memberi used instead of just beri?

Beri is the root, memberi is the prefixed verb:

beri = give (root; often used in commands)
- Beri saya antibiotik! = Give me antibiotics!
memberi = to give (full verb form, neutral/formal)

In a normal declarative sentence like:

Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.

memberi sounds natural and standard.
Using Dokter beri antibiotik kepada saya is possible, but sounds more informal and is less typical in careful speech or writing.

Why is saya used for “me” here? I thought saya meant “I”.

Indonesian doesn’t have separate subject and object forms like English I / me.

saya = I / me (formal or neutral)
aku = I / me (informal)
Anda = you (polite)
kamu = you (informal)

So:

Saya sakit. = I am sick.
Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya. = The doctor gave antibiotics to me.

Same word saya, different role, decided by position in sentence, not by its form.

In more informal contexts, you might also hear:

Dokter memberi antibiotik ke aku.
Dokter ngasih aku antibiotik. (very colloquial)

Could the pronouns or nouns be dropped? For example, can I omit saya or dokter?

Yes, Indonesian often drops things that are obvious from context.

Depending on what’s already known in the conversation, you might say:

Dokter memberi antibiotik.
= The doctor gave antibiotics.
(Recipient understood from context, or not important)
Dia memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= He/She gave me antibiotics. (Doctor already mentioned)
Saya diberi antibiotik.
= I was given antibiotics. (Doctor not mentioned, or irrelevant)

If it’s already clear who the doctor is and who “I” am, you might shorten the sentence to what’s needed.
But as an isolated example, Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya is fully explicit and clear.

Why does antibiotik look singular even though in English we say “antibiotics” (plural)?

Indonesian usually doesn’t mark plural with an ending like English -s.

antibiotik can mean:
- an antibiotic
- the antibiotic
- antibiotics (one or more doses, pills, etc.)

Plurality is normally understood from context, or clarified with other words:

banyak antibiotik = many antibiotics
beberapa antibiotik = several antibiotics
satu antibiotik / satu jenis antibiotik = one antibiotic / one type of antibiotic

So Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya very naturally corresponds to “The doctor gave me antibiotics.”

Can I say ke saya instead of kepada saya?

You can hear ke saya, but kepada is preferred when the object is a person and the meaning is “to (someone)” as a recipient.

Rough guide:

kepada
- more formal
- often used with people as recipients
- e.g. memberi obat kepada pasien (give medicine to the patient)
ke
- basic preposition for movement to a place
- e.g. pergi ke rumah sakit (go to the hospital)

In everyday speech, some people do say ngasih obat ke saya, but in standard Indonesian, with memberi, the most natural is:

memberi antibiotik kepada saya
or drop the preposition and say: memberi saya antibiotik

Is there a more casual or colloquial way to say this sentence?

Yes. In everyday spoken Indonesian, people often use kasih / ngasih instead of memberi, and may drop kepada:

Dokter ngasih saya antibiotik.
Dokter kasih saya antibiotik.

These sound more casual, especially ngasih.

Formal / neutral:

Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
Very casual Jakarta-style:
Dokter ngasih gue antibiotik. (with gue = “me/I”)

How would I say this in the passive voice, like “I was given antibiotics by the doctor”?

The passive form uses diberi (from di- + beri):

Saya diberi antibiotik (oleh dokter).
= I was given antibiotics (by the doctor).

Notes:

oleh dokter (“by the doctor”) is optional, especially if the agent is obvious.
Indonesian uses the passive very frequently, often more than English in similar contexts.
A very natural version in a hospital context is simply:
- Saya diberi antibiotik. = I was given antibiotics.

Active: Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
Passive: Saya diberi antibiotik (oleh dokter).

How do you pronounce dokter, memberi, antibiotik, kepada, and saya?

Very roughly using English-like syllables:

dokter → dok-ter
- dok like dock
- ter with a short, neutral vowel (like the first syllable of about), not like English “tear”
memberi → mem-be-ri
- mem like “mem” in memory
- be like beh (short e)
- ri like ree
antibiotik → an-ti-bi-o-tik
- each vowel is clear: a-n-tee-bee-oh-teek
kepada → ke-pa-da
- ke with a short neutral e (like the a in about)
- pa like pa in pasta
- da like da in data (short)
saya → sa-ya
- sa like sa in safari
- ya like ya in yacht but with a clear “a” sound

Stress is usually fairly even, with a slight emphasis near the second-to-last syllable: DÓK-ter, mem-BÉ-ri, anti-bI-O-tik, ke-PÁ-da, SÁ-ya (approximation).

Could I say Seorang dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya? What does seorang add?

Yes, that is correct. Seorang means “one person / a (certain) person who is X.”

Dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= A doctor / the doctor gave me antibiotics. (article not specified)
Seorang dokter memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= A doctor (one doctor, not necessarily known) gave me antibiotics.

You use seorang when you want to emphasize:

that this is one individual (not many doctors), and/or
that the doctor is non-specific / not previously known.

For a specific, known doctor, you’re more likely to say:

Dokter itu memberi antibiotik kepada saya.
= That/the (particular) doctor gave me antibiotics.