Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan bagi kami. - Watching the campus band's concert becomes entertainment for us.

In this sentence, the whole chunk “Menonton konser band kampus” is being used as the subject of the sentence, so in English we translate it more naturally as “Watching the campus band concert(s)”.

In Indonesian, you don’t change the verb form to make a “-ing” noun (a gerund). You just use the verb directly, and context shows that it functions like “watching …” rather than “(to) watch …”.

Why is there no subject pronoun like kami before menonton?

Here, “Menonton konser band kampus” itself is the subject of the sentence. It doesn’t describe what we do in a specific event; it names an activity:

Menonton konser band kampus = Watching campus band concerts
… menjadi hiburan bagi kami = … becomes/serves as entertainment for us.

If you added kami before it, like Kami menonton konser band kampus, that would be a complete sentence: “We watch the campus band concert.” That’s a different structure (a normal clause) and no longer works as the subject of menjadi hiburan in the same way.

What part of speech is “menonton konser band kampus” in this sentence?

Grammatically, it’s a verb phrase functioning as a noun phrase (the subject of the sentence).

Core verb: menonton (to watch)
Object: konser band kampus (campus band concert)

Together they describe an activity. This is very similar to an English gerund phrase:

English: Watching campus band concerts is entertainment for us.
Indonesian: Menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan bagi kami.

Indonesian doesn’t change the verb’s form; instead, the position and function in the sentence tell you it’s acting like a noun.

What does “konser band kampus” mean exactly? Who is performing?

Konser band kampus literally means “campus band concert”.

konser = concert
band = band
kampus = campus

In Indonesian, a structure like band kampus means “a band that belongs to / is from the campus”, i.e., a student band or university band.
So konser band kampus is a concert performed by the campus band (student band), not just any random band performing on a campus.

Why is it band kampus and not kampus band?

In Indonesian, the usual order in a noun phrase is:

Head noun + modifier

Here:

band = head noun
kampus = modifier

So band kampus = “the band of the campus” → “campus band”.

Putting kampus before band (kampus band) would be ungrammatical in standard Indonesian. If you want to be more explicit, you could also say:

band kampus kami = our campus band
band universitas = university band

Could you break down the structure of the whole sentence?

Yes, structurally it’s:

Subject (S): Menonton konser band kampus
Predicate (P): menjadi hiburan
Oblique / Beneficiary (O): bagi kami

So you can map it like this:

Menonton konser band kampus (S) menjadi (linking verb) hiburan (complement) bagi kami (for us).

What does menjadi add here? Could I use adalah instead?

Menjadi literally means “to become”, but in sentences like this it often means “serve as / act as / function as”.

… menjadi hiburan bagi kami
= “… serves as entertainment for us.”

You can say:

Menonton konser band kampus adalah hiburan bagi kami.

This is grammatically correct and means “Watching campus band concerts is entertainment for us.”

Nuance:

menjadi – emphasizes the role or function: this activity functions as entertainment.
adalah – more neutral “is” (equative), slightly more formal/written.

Both are acceptable; menjadi feels very natural with hiburan.

What exactly is hiburan? Is it “fun”, “entertainment”, or something else?

Hiburan is a noun meaning “entertainment” or “amusement”.

From the verb menghibur = to entertain / to cheer someone up.
hiburan = something that entertains; entertainment.

In this sentence, a very natural translation would be:

“Watching campus band concerts is entertainment for us.”
or more freely: “Watching campus band concerts is something fun for us.”

What’s the difference between bagi kami, untuk kami, and buat kami?

All three can often translate as “for us”, but they differ in style:

bagi kami – somewhat formal / written or abstract (“for us / in our view”).
untuk kami – neutral, general “for us”.
buat kami – more colloquial / spoken.

In this sentence:

Menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan bagi kami.
Menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan untuk kami.
Menonton konser band kampus jadi hiburan buat kami. (more casual overall)

All are understandable; the first is slightly more formal/neutral written style.

How do we know what tense this sentence is (past, present, future)?

Indonesian verbs don’t change form for tense. There is no equivalent of English -ed or will built into the verb.

Menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan bagi kami.
By itself, this most naturally expresses a general/habitual idea:

“Watching campus band concerts is (generally) entertainment for us.”

Context or extra words give you time information:

Dulu, menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan bagi kami.
→ In the past, it used to be entertainment for us.
Nanti, menonton konser band kampus akan menjadi hiburan bagi kami.
→ In the future, it will be entertainment for us.

Could we say Pergi ke konser band kampus menjadi hiburan bagi kami instead? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say that, and it’s understandable:

Pergi ke konser band kampus = going to campus band concerts
Menonton konser band kampus = watching campus band concerts

Subtle difference:

pergi ke focuses on the act of going/attending.
menonton focuses on the act of watching the performance itself.

Both can function as “entertainment,” but menonton is often more directly tied to enjoying the show.

Is the word order “hiburan bagi kami” fixed, or can I move bagi kami?

The usual, neutral order is:

[Predicate] + [Complement] + [Prepositional phrase]
menjadi hiburan bagi kami

You can move bagi kami to the front for emphasis or contrast:

Bagi kami, menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan.
(For us, watching campus band concerts is entertainment.)

This gives more emphasis to “for us”—maybe implying it might not be entertainment for others.

I often hear nonton instead of menonton. What’s the difference?

Nonton is a colloquial / spoken shortening of menonton. The meaning is the same: “to watch”.

In casual speech or informal writing (chat, messages) you might say:

Nonton konser band kampus jadi hiburan buat kami.

In more formal or standard writing (essays, news articles, exams), menonton is preferred:

Menonton konser band kampus menjadi hiburan bagi kami.

Is this sentence formal, informal, or neutral? How would it sound in very casual speech?

As written, it’s neutral, slightly leaning towards standard/written because of:

menonton (full form)
bagi kami (slightly formal/neutral)

A casual spoken version might be:

Nonton konser band kampus itu hiburan buat kami.
- nonton instead of menonton
- itu added (like “that kind of thing / it”)
- buat kami instead of bagi kami

Meaning stays the same; only style and tone change.