Saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.

I set the phone alarm before sleeping.

Breakdown of Saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.

• saya: I
• sebelum: before
• tidur: to sleep
• alarm telepon: the phone alarm
• menyetel: to set

Questions & Answers about Saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.

What does menyetel mean exactly, and how is it formed?

Menyetel means “to set / to adjust” (an alarm, volume, TV channel, etc.).

It comes from the base verb setel (to set/adjust) plus the prefix meN-, which makes an active verb.

• meN- + setel → menyetel
  The N in meN- changes to ny before s, and the s of setel disappears.
  Spelled: menyetel
  Pronounced roughly: mən-ye-tel

So Saya menyetel alarm telepon = “I set / I adjust the phone’s alarm.”

Can I say mengatur instead of menyetel? Is there a difference?

You can say mengatur alarm telepon, and people will understand you.

Nuance:

• Menyetel = more technical / mechanical “set, tune, adjust”
  
  • set an alarm, set the TV channel, tune a radio, adjust volume
• Mengatur = “arrange, organize, regulate” (broader and more general)
  
  • arrange a schedule, regulate something, set up rules, manage settings

In this sentence, menyetel alarm telepon sounds a bit more natural and specific, but mengatur alarm telepon is also acceptable and common, especially when talking about “settings” in general.

Why is it alarm telepon and not telepon alarm?

In Indonesian, when you join two nouns, the main noun comes first, and the noun that explains or modifies it comes after.

• alarm telepon = literally “alarm (of the) phone”
  → the alarm is the main thing, and telepon tells you which alarm

If you said telepon alarm, it would sound like “an alarm phone,” which is not how Indonesians express this idea.

So the pattern is:

• Noun + Noun = “NOUN of NOUN”
  
  • alarm telepon = phone alarm
  • rumah sakit = hospital (literally “sick house”)
  • kartu kredit = credit card

Where is the possession in alarm telepon? How do we know it’s my phone alarm?

In Indonesian, possession is often understood from context and not always said explicitly.

Alarm telepon literally just says “phone alarm.” It doesn’t explicitly say “my” or “your,” but because the subject is Saya (I), people will naturally interpret it as “my phone’s alarm” in this context.

If you want to be very explicit, you can say:

• Saya menyetel alarm telepon saya sebelum tidur.
  = I set my phone’s alarm before going to sleep.
• Saya menyetel alarm di telepon saya sebelum tidur.
  = I set the alarm on my phone before going to sleep.

All of these are correct; the original just keeps it short and natural.

Is Saya necessary? Can I just say Menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur?

Grammatically, you can drop Saya:

• Menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.

This sentence is still understandable, but it sounds like:

• A note in a diary
• An instruction / list of steps
• A caption or fragment

In normal full sentences, Indonesian usually includes the subject pronoun, especially in neutral/formal style.

• Saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.
  = a clear, complete statement

So for normal speech and writing, keep Saya.

Does this sentence mean “I set the alarm (every night)” or “I set the alarm (once, last night)” or “I will set the alarm (later)”?

Indonesian does not mark tense the way English does. The bare verb menyetel can refer to past, present, or future. The exact meaning comes from:

• Context
• Time expressions (like tadi malam, nanti, setiap malam)

Your sentence without extra time words is neutral:

• Saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.
  could mean:
  • I set the phone alarm before sleeping (a habit).
  • I set the phone alarm before I went to sleep (describing yesterday).
  • I’ll set the phone alarm before I go to sleep (talking about tonight).

To make it clearer, you could add a time word:

• Tadi malam saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur. (last night)
• Nanti malam saya akan menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur. (tonight)
• Setiap malam saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur. (every night, habit)

Why is it sebelum tidur and not sebelum saya tidur?

Both are possible:

• sebelum tidur
• sebelum saya tidur

Sebelum tidur is shorter and very natural; it’s like English “before sleeping” or “before bed”, where the subject is understood from context.

Adding saya:

• Sebelum saya tidur = “before I sleep”
  → sounds a bit more explicit and slightly more formal or emphatic.

Meaning-wise, in this sentence, they are basically the same. Most native speakers would say sebelum tidur in casual and neutral speech.

Is tidur a noun here (“before sleep”) or a verb (“before sleeping”)?

Grammatically, tidur is a verb (“to sleep”), but Indonesian doesn’t need an extra ending like -ing to turn it into a kind of verb phrase.

After sebelum, you can put:

• a verb:
  
  • sebelum tidur (before sleeping)
  • sebelum makan (before eating)
• or a clause:
  
  • sebelum saya tidur (before I sleep)
  • sebelum dia pulang (before he/she goes home)

So sebelum tidur literally feels like “before sleep (happens),” but grammatically, tidur is just the plain verb.

Why is there no word like “to” or “in order to” before tidur?

In English you might think of something like “before to sleep” or “before going to sleep,” but in Indonesian, you don’t add a word like untuk here.

• sebelum tidur is already correct and complete.
• sebelum untuk tidur is wrong.

The pattern is:

• sebelum + verb
  
  • sebelum makan
  • sebelum mandi
  • sebelum belajar
  • sebelum tidur

What’s the difference between saya and aku in a sentence like this?

Both saya and aku mean “I / me”, but they differ in formality and context:

• saya
  
  • neutral to formal
  • safe in almost all situations (speaking to strangers, elders, in public, in writing)
• aku
  
  • informal / intimate
  • used with close friends, family, romantic partners, in songs, etc.

Your sentence with aku:

• Aku menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.

This is fine if you’re talking to someone close to you and your relationship style is casual.

Could I say Saya memasang alarm telepon sebelum tidur instead? Is memasang okay?

Yes, memasang is also possible and understandable.

• memasang literally means “to install / to put on / to attach / to set up”.

Nuance differences:

• menyetel alarm → focus on adjusting/setting the time of an alarm
• memasang alarm → focus more on turning it on / activating it / setting it up

For a phone alarm, all of these are heard:

• menyetel alarm
• mengatur alarm
• memasang alarm

All are acceptable; menyetel feels slightly more “precise” about the time/setting itself.

Is telepon always a noun here? Can it also be a verb?

In this sentence, telepon is clearly a noun (phone).

But in Indonesian, telepon can also be used as a verb, especially in informal speech:

• Saya telepon dia nanti.
  = I’ll call him/her later.

As a noun:

• telepon = phone (can be landline or mobile, but nowadays often mobile by context).

To say “phone call” more explicitly, you can also hear:

• panggilan telepon = phone call

Is the sentence formal, informal, or neutral?

The sentence:

• Saya menyetel alarm telepon sebelum tidur.

is neutral:

• Saya → neutral/formal pronoun
• menyetel → standard verb
• No slang, no regional words

You can safely use it in spoken and written Indonesian in almost any context.