Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota. - I am still looking for a job in the city.

Saya mencari pekerjaan di kota.
→ I am looking for a job in the city. (neutral: just stating the action)
Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota.
→ I am still looking for a job in the city. (implies it has been going on and hasn’t succeeded yet)

You can omit masih, but you will lose the nuance that this has been an ongoing, unfinished process.

Why is there no word for “for” in mencari pekerjaan (like “looking for a job”)?

In Indonesian, many verbs don’t need a preposition like for.

mencari = to look for / to search for (the idea of “for” is already inside the verb)

So:

mencari pekerjaan = looking for a job
(literally “search job”, but understood as “search for a job”)

If you try to say mencari untuk pekerjaan, it sounds unnatural or wrong. Just use mencari + object.

What’s the difference between pekerjaan and kerja?

Both relate to work / job, but:

kerja
- As a verb: to work
  - Saya kerja di bank. = I work at a bank. (colloquial; more formal: bekerja)
- As a noun in informal speech: work
  - Banyak kerja hari ini. = A lot of work today.
pekerjaan (noun, more formal/standard)
- Means job, employment, task, work (as a thing)
  - Saya mencari pekerjaan. = I’m looking for a job.
  - Pekerjaan saya guru. = My job is (being a) teacher.

In this sentence, pekerjaan is better than kerja because you’re talking about a job as a noun. Colloquially, people also say:

Saya masih cari kerja di kota. (more casual)

Is the word order fixed? Can I say “Masih saya mencari pekerjaan di kota”?

The natural word order in Indonesian is usually:

Subject – (aspect word) – Verb – Object – Place

So:

Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota.
- Saya (subject)
- masih (aspect: “still”)
- mencari (verb)
- pekerjaan (object)
- di kota (place)

Putting masih before saya (→ Masih saya mencari…) is not natural in everyday Indonesian and may sound like poetry or very unusual emphasis.

In normal speech and writing, keep masih before the verb, after the subject: Saya masih mencari …

Can I drop Saya and just say Masih mencari pekerjaan di kota?

Yes, you can. Indonesian often drops the subject when it’s clear from context.

(Saya) masih mencari pekerjaan di kota.

If the listener already knows you’re talking about yourself, dropping Saya is natural and common in conversation, text messages, etc.

However, in more formal writing or when you need clarity (e.g., among several people), it’s safer to keep Saya.

Does mencari show tense? How do I know if this is present, past, or future?

Indonesian verbs like mencari do not change form for tense. Context and time words tell you when the action happens.

Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota could mean:

I am still looking for a job in the city (now).
I was still looking for a job in the city (at that time).
I will still be looking for a job in the city (at that future time).

To be clearer about time, you add time expressions:

Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota sekarang.
Dulu saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota.
Besok saya masih akan mencari pekerjaan di kota.

What’s the difference between masih mencari and sedang mencari?

Both relate to ongoing actions, but they focus on different things:

sedang mencari = in the middle of looking, focusing on the ongoing action right now
- Saya sedang mencari pekerjaan di kota.
  → I am (currently) looking for a job in the city.
masih mencari = still looking, focusing on the fact that the action has not finished yet; it’s continuing from before.
- Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota.
  → I am still looking for a job in the city. (implies it’s taking time / not successful yet)

You can combine them:

Saya masih sedang mencari pekerjaan di kota.
Grammatically possible but rarely used; usually just one of masih or sedang is enough.

Is pekerjaan singular or plural? Does it mean “a job” or “jobs”?

Indonesian nouns usually don’t change form for singular vs plural. Pekerjaan can mean:

a job (singular)
jobs (plural)

Context decides which is meant.

In this sentence, in normal English we would say a job, but it could also be understood as “(some) work” or “job(s)” in a general sense.

If you really want to emphasize plural, you can use:

banyak pekerjaan = many jobs / a lot of work
pekerjaan-pekerjaan = jobs (reduplication for plural emphasis; more formal or written)

Could I say di sebuah kota or di kota ini instead of di kota? What’s the difference?

Yes, and each option has a different nuance:

di kota
- General: “in the city / in a city” (context decides which)
- Often implies an urban area, not a specific named city.
di sebuah kota
- Literally: “in a city”
- Emphasizes one unspecified city, like “in a (certain) city”.
di kota ini
- “in this city” (specific, near to speaker in context)
di kota itu
- “in that city” (specific, but a bit more distant or already known to both speaker and listener)

So you choose based on how specific you want to be.

Why mencari and not cari? When do I use the me- form?

cari is the base form (root) of the verb.
mencari is the me- verb form, which is the standard active verb form in neutral/standard Indonesian.

Both can appear, but:

mencari
- More neutral/standard
- Common in writing, formal speech, and also normal conversation
- Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota. (standard)
cari
- Very common in conversation, especially after a subject
- More casual:
  - Saya masih cari pekerjaan di kota. (casual)
  - Dia lagi cari kerja.

In many everyday situations, using cari after the subject is perfectly natural. For learners, mencari is a safe, correct default in standard sentences.

Is Saya formal or informal? Could I use Aku instead?

Saya
- Neutral and polite
- Safe in almost all situations: formal, semi-formal, and even casual.
Aku
- More informal / intimate
- Used with friends, family, or people the same age or younger, depending on local norms.

So:

Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota.
- Neutral/polite; good with strangers, in interviews, written Indonesian.
Aku masih mencari pekerjaan di kota.
- Sounds closer, more personal; use with people you are comfortable with.

As a learner, when in doubt, use Saya.

Is di kota always “in the city”? Could it ever mean just “in town”?

Yes, di kota can be translated both as:

in the city
in town

Indonesian doesn’t strictly separate “city” vs “town” the same way English does. Kota means an urban area (city/town), and the best English translation depends on context.

So Saya masih mencari pekerjaan di kota could also be understood as:

I’m still looking for a job in town.

depending on what sounds more natural in the English context.