Breakdown of Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik.
Questions & Answers about Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik.
Indonesian does not use a separate verb like “to be” before action verbs.
- Saya duduk literally is “I sit,” but in context it usually means “I am sitting.”
- The verb duduk already carries the meaning of “to sit / be sitting,” so you don’t add anything like am.
- You do not say Saya adalah duduk. The word adalah is used mainly between noun phrases (e.g. Dia adalah dokter – “He/She is a doctor”), not before verbs.
Both Saya and Aku mean “I,” but they differ in formality and usage.
- Saya: neutral/formal; safe in almost all situations (to strangers, older people, in writing, at the clinic, etc.).
- Aku: informal; used with friends, family, or people your own age in casual situations.
You can grammatically say Aku duduk di ruang tunggu klinik, but in a real clinic context, Saya sounds more polite and is usually preferred when speaking to staff or people you don’t know well.
You can omit Saya if the subject is clear from context, but it slightly changes the feeling:
- Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik. – Clearly “I am sitting…”
- Duduk di ruang tunggu klinik. – Literally “(Am) sitting in the clinic waiting room.”
This can sound like:- A short note or caption you write about yourself.
- A fragment in casual speech (“[I’m] sitting in the clinic waiting room right now.”).
In normal, complete sentences—especially when you first mention this information—learners should keep Saya.
You can add sedang and/or a time word like sekarang.
- Saya sedang duduk di ruang tunggu klinik.
→ “I am (currently) sitting in the clinic waiting room.” - Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik sekarang.
→ “I am sitting in the clinic waiting room now.” - Saya sedang duduk di ruang tunggu klinik sekarang.
→ very explicit about the action happening right now.
Sedang marks an action that is in progress, roughly like English “am …-ing.”
Ruang tunggu klinik is a noun phrase built like this:
- ruang = room / space
- tunggu = to wait
- ruang tunggu = waiting room
- klinik = clinic
When you put them together as ruang tunggu klinik, it means “the clinic’s waiting room” or “the waiting room of the clinic.”
In Indonesian, modifiers usually follow the main noun, so:
- ruang tunggu (main noun) + klinik (modifier)
→ the waiting room that belongs to / is associated with a clinic.
Indonesian noun order is generally:
main noun + modifier
So:
- ruang (room) is the main noun
- tunggu (wait) modifies ruang → ruang tunggu (waiting room)
- klinik modifies ruang tunggu → ruang tunggu klinik (clinic waiting room)
Therefore di ruang tunggu klinik is the natural order.
- di klinik ruang tunggu sounds wrong; it breaks the main+modifier pattern.
- di ruang tunggu di klinik is grammatically okay and means “in the waiting room at the clinic,” but it’s longer and usually only used if you want to emphasize “at the clinic” separately. The shorter di ruang tunggu klinik is more typical when it’s clearly the clinic’s waiting room.
Di is a general preposition of location and can correspond to English “in,” “at,” or sometimes “on,” depending on context.
In this sentence:
- di ruang tunggu klinik can be translated as either:
- “in the clinic waiting room”
- “at the clinic waiting room”
Indonesian does not make a strict distinction like English does between “in” and “at” for places. You just use di for a location, and then choose the most natural preposition when translating to English.
Yes, you can say:
- Saya di ruang tunggu klinik.
This means “I am in/at the clinic waiting room” (it’s about your location only).
Compare:
- Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik.
→ Focus on the action/position: “I am sitting in the clinic waiting room.” - Saya di ruang tunggu klinik.
→ Focus on where you are: “I am at the clinic waiting room.” (Maybe standing, sitting, walking around, etc.)
Both are natural; use duduk when you specifically want to say you’re seated.
Indonesian verbs usually do not change form for past, present, or future. You keep duduk the same and add time words if needed.
Examples:
- Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik tadi.
→ “I was sitting in the clinic waiting room earlier.” - Kemarin saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik.
→ “Yesterday I was sitting in the clinic waiting room.” - In context, just Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik can be understood as past if the conversation is already about past events.
So tense is shown by context or by adding time expressions, not by changing the verb.
Indonesian normally has no articles like “a” or “the,” so klinik by itself can mean either “a clinic” or “the clinic,” depending on context.
To make it clearly specific, you can add demonstratives:
- klinik itu = that clinic / the clinic (already known to both speakers)
- klinik ini = this clinic (near the speaker)
Examples:
- Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik itu.
→ “I am sitting in the waiting room of that clinic.” - Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik ini.
→ “I am sitting in the waiting room of this clinic.”
Ruang and kamar both relate to “room,” but they’re used differently:
- ruang: more general/formal; used for functional/public spaces, offices, school rooms, waiting rooms, etc.
- ruang tunggu (waiting room)
- ruang kelas (classroom)
- ruang tamu (living room / guest room)
- kamar: usually private rooms, especially at home or in accommodation.
- kamar tidur (bedroom)
- kamar mandi (bathroom)
Kamar tunggu klinik would sound odd; the natural phrase is ruang tunggu klinik.
Yes, it is completely acceptable and neutral-polite.
- Saya is the polite, standard first-person pronoun.
- The vocabulary (duduk, ruang tunggu, klinik) is standard and appropriate for any setting.
- You might add something if you’re explaining yourself, for example:
- Maaf, saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik tadi. – “Sorry, I was sitting in the clinic waiting room earlier.”
- Sekarang saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik. – “Now I am sitting in the clinic waiting room.”
But as a standalone sentence, Saya duduk di ruang tunggu klinik is natural and polite.