Saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi.

I like watching sports matches on television.

Breakdown of Saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi.

• saya: I
• suka: to like
• televisi: the television
• menonton: to watch
• di: on
• pertandingan: the match
• olahraga: the exercise

Questions & Answers about Saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi.

Why does the sentence use saya? What’s the difference between saya and aku?

Saya and aku both mean “I / me.”

• Saya is neutral–polite and safe in almost all situations: with strangers, in formal contexts, in writing, in class, etc.
• Aku is more informal/intimate, used with close friends, family, people your own age or younger (depending on region and relationship).

So Saya suka menonton… is a polite, standard way to say it. Among friends you might more naturally hear:

• Aku suka nonton pertandingan olahraga di TV.

Does suka mean “like” or “like to”? Why is there a verb after it?

Suka means “to like” (to have a preference for something).

It can be followed by:

1. A noun:

   • Saya suka kopi. – I like coffee.

2. A verb (in the meN- form):

   • Saya suka menonton. – I like watching.
   • Saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga. – I like watching sports matches.

So suka + menonton is like “like to watch” or “like watching” in English. You do not need untuk here (✗ Saya suka untuk menonton is not natural).

What is the difference between menonton and nonton? And why not melihat?

• Menonton = to watch (usually something on a screen or a performance).

• Nonton is the informal/shortened form, common in speech:

  • Aku suka nonton bola. – I like watching football.

• Melihat = to see / to look at, more general:

  • Saya melihat burung. – I see a bird.

For TV, films, matches, shows, menonton/nonton is the natural verb.
Saya suka melihat pertandingan olahraga di televisi is understandable, but sounds less natural; it feels more like “I like seeing sports matches” rather than “I like watching (as a viewer)”.

What exactly does pertandingan olahraga mean? Why are there two nouns?

• Pertandingan = match, game, contest, competition.
• Olahraga = sport.

In Indonesian, you often put two nouns together where English uses “of” or a compound noun:

• Pertandingan olahraga = literally “match (of) sport” → “sports match” or “sporting contest.”

The head noun comes first (pertandingan), and the second noun (olahraga) narrows down what kind of match it is.

Does this sentence mean “a sports match” or “sports matches” (singular or plural)? How do you show plural in Indonesian?

Indonesian usually does not mark plural on the noun.
Pertandingan olahraga can mean:

• a sports match
• sports matches
• sports matches in general

Which one it is depends on context, not on noun form.

To make plural clearer, you can use:

• Number or quantifier:
  
  • banyak pertandingan olahraga – many sports matches
  • dua pertandingan olahraga – two sports matches
• Reduplication (sometimes):
  
  • pertandingan-pertandingan olahraga – matches (emphatic plural, more common in writing).

But in a general preference sentence like Saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi, you can understand it as “sports matches (in general).”

What does olahraga really mean? Is it “sport” or “exercise”?

Olahraga can mean both:

1. Sport / sports (as in games you watch or play):

   • Saya suka olahraga. – I like sports.

2. Exercise / physical exercise:

   • Saya harus olahraga setiap hari. – I should exercise every day.

Context decides the meaning. In pertandingan olahraga, it clearly means “sport(s)” because pertandingan (match) tells you we’re talking about sports competitions, not just general exercise.

Why do we use di in di televisi? Is it like “in TV” or “on TV”?

Di is the basic preposition for location and is often translated as “in / at / on” depending on context.

In di televisi:

• di televisi = “on television”, i.e., the medium you’re using to watch.
• Similar patterns:
  • di TV – on TV
  • di radio – on the radio
  • di bioskop – at the cinema

So di is correct and natural here; English says “on TV,” but Indonesian uses di televisi.

Can I say di TV instead of di televisi? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say:

• di televisi – more neutral/standard (common in writing and speech)
• di TV – very common in everyday speech, slightly more informal

Meaning is the same: “on TV / on television.”
You will very often hear di TV in conversation:

• Aku suka nonton pertandingan olahraga di TV.

Can I remove menonton and just say Saya suka pertandingan olahraga di televisi?

You can say it, but the meaning changes.

• Saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi.
  → I like watching sports matches on TV. (You enjoy the activity of watching.)

• Saya suka pertandingan olahraga di televisi.
  → I like sports matches on TV. (Focus on liking the matches themselves, not explicitly the activity of watching.)

In practice, to express the natural English idea “I like watching…,” Indonesians strongly prefer to keep menonton (or informal nonton).

Can I drop Saya and just say Suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi?

Yes, in informal spoken Indonesian, speakers often drop the subject if it’s obvious from context:

• (Saya) suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi.

Without saya, it still means “I like watching sports matches on TV”, as long as the listener knows you’re talking about yourself (for example, answering a question like “Kamu hobi apa?” – “What are your hobbies?”).

In writing or in more formal speech, it’s clearer and more natural to include Saya.

What is the basic word order in this sentence? Can I move di televisi to another position?

The normal word order is:

• Subject – Verb – Object – (Adverbial/Place/Time)
• Saya (subject)
• suka menonton (verb phrase)
• pertandingan olahraga (object)
• di televisi (place/medium phrase)

You can move di televisi to the front for emphasis, but it sounds a bit marked:

• Di televisi, saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga.

This is still grammatically correct, but the neutral, most common order is the original one.

How would I say “I am watching a sports match on TV (right now)” instead of “I like watching…”?

To express an action happening right now, Indonesian often uses sedang (progressive marker):

• Saya sedang menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi.
  – I am watching a sports match on TV (now).

Compare:

• Saya suka menonton pertandingan olahraga di televisi.
  – I like watching sports matches on TV. (general preference)

So suka = like (habit/preference),
sedang + verb = doing something at this moment.

How would this sentence look in more casual everyday speech?

A common casual version would be:

• Aku suka nonton pertandingan olahraga di TV.

Changes:

• Saya → Aku (more informal pronoun)
• menonton → nonton (colloquial shortened verb)
• televisi → TV (informal, very common)

Meaning stays the same; the style becomes friendlier and more conversational.