Keranjang cucian itu berat.

That laundry basket is heavy.

Breakdown of Keranjang cucian itu berat.

• adalah: to be
• itu: that
• keranjang cucian: the laundry basket
• berat: serious

Questions & Answers about Keranjang cucian itu berat.

Why is there no word for “is” in Keranjang cucian itu berat?

Indonesian usually does not use a separate verb like “to be” (is/are/am) before adjectives.

• Keranjang cucian itu berat literally is: “Laundry basket that heavy”
• In Indonesian, berat (heavy) itself works as the predicate (like a verb meaning “to be heavy”).

You would not normally say ✗ Keranjang cucian itu adalah berat.
Adalah is mainly used in more formal contexts before nouns, e.g.:

• Dia adalah guru. = He/She is a teacher.
• But: Dia tinggi. = He/She is tall (no adalah, because tinggi is an adjective).

So here, berat already plays the role of “is heavy.”

What does itu mean here, and why is it at the end?

Itu is a demonstrative that usually corresponds to “that” or sometimes “the” (a specific one you and the listener both know about).

In Keranjang cucian itu berat:

• keranjang cucian = laundry basket
• itu = that (one), that (specific, known)
• berat = heavy

So the structure is: [noun phrase] + itu + adjective

Placing itu after the noun phrase is the normal way to say “that (specific) X”:

• buku itu = that book
• rumah itu = that house