Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis.

The coach draws a line on the board.

Breakdown of Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis.

• sebuah: a
• di: on
• papan tulis: the board
• pelatih: the coach
• menggambar: to draw
• garis: the line

Questions & Answers about Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis.

What does pelatih mean exactly? Is it “teacher,” “coach,” or something else?

Pelatih most commonly means coach or trainer—someone who trains others in sports, skills, or certain activities (e.g. a football coach, a swimming coach, a job skills trainer).

It is not the usual word for a school teacher. A school teacher is usually guru.

So:

• pelatih sepak bola = football/soccer coach
• pelatih renang = swimming coach
• pelatih (alone, in the right context) = the coach / trainer

Why is there no word for “the” or “a” in Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis?

Indonesian normally does not use separate words for “a/an” or “the” the way English does.

Whether the sentence means:

• “A coach draws a line on a board”, or
• “The coach draws a line on the board”

depends entirely on the context, not on special articles.

If you really need to make it more specific, you can add words like:

• itu = that / the (known and specific)
  
  • pelatih itu = that coach / the coach
  • papan tulis itu = that board / the board

But in normal Indonesian, leaving articles out is completely natural.

What is the difference between gambar and menggambar?

Gambar on its own can be a noun (“picture, drawing, image”) or sometimes a verb (“to draw”), depending on context.

Menggambar is clearly a verb: “to draw” or “drawing (something).”

• gambar (noun):
  
  • Ini gambar kucing. = This is a drawing of a cat.
• menggambar (verb):
  
  • Saya suka menggambar. = I like drawing / I like to draw.

In Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis, menggambar is a verb: “draws / is drawing.”

How can this one form menggambar mean “draws,” “is drawing,” “drew,” or “will draw”? Where is the tense?

Indonesian does not change the verb form for tense (past, present, future) the way English does.

The verb menggambar always stays the same; the time is understood from context or from time words:

• Kemarin pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis.
  = Yesterday the coach drew a line on the board.

• Sekarang pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis.
  = Now the coach is drawing a line on the board.

• Besok pelatih akan menggambar garis di papan tulis.
  = Tomorrow the coach will draw a line on the board.

So, menggambar itself does not show tense; you add words like kemarin (yesterday), sekarang (now), besok (tomorrow), or akan (will) to be explicit.

Why is it menggambar garis, not menggambar sebuah garis for “draw a line”?

Sebuah roughly means “a(n) / one (piece of)” and is often used with countable objects, especially in more formal or explicit contexts.

However, in everyday Indonesian, people often omit words like sebuah when it’s obvious from context.

• Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis.
  = The coach draws a line on the board. (natural, normal)

You can say:

• Pelatih menggambar sebuah garis di papan tulis.

This sounds a bit more explicit or formal, like emphasizing one single line, but it’s not necessary for a normal sentence.

Does garis have to be singular? Could this mean “draws lines” (plural)?

Indonesian usually does not mark plural in the same way English does. Garis can mean “a line” or “lines”, depending on context.

If you want to clearly show plural, you can:

• Reduce (double) the noun:
  
  • garis-garis = lines
• Add a quantifier:
  
  • banyak garis = many lines
  • beberapa garis = several lines

Examples:

• Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis.
  = The coach draws a line / (possibly) lines (context-dependent).

• Pelatih menggambar garis-garis di papan tulis.
  = The coach draws lines (clearly plural).

What does papan tulis literally mean? Is it “blackboard” or “whiteboard”?

Literally:

• papan = board / plank
• tulis = write / writing

So papan tulis literally means “writing board.”

In practice, papan tulis is a general term that can refer to:

• a blackboard (with chalk)
• a whiteboard (with markers)

If you need to be very specific, you can add extra words (though this is less common in everyday speech):

• papan tulis hitam = blackboard
• papan tulis putih = whiteboard

Why is the preposition di used here? Does di mean “on,” “in,” or “at”?

Di is a general location preposition and can translate to “in,” “on,” or “at” in English, depending on the noun that follows and the context.

• di papan tulis = on the board
• di sekolah = at school
• di rumah = at home / in the house

So in di papan tulis, English prefers “on the board,” but Indonesian still uses di with no extra word for “on.”

Is papan tulis one word or two? Is it considered one noun?

It is written as two words: papan + tulis.

However, together they form a compound noun meaning “(writing) board / blackboard / whiteboard.” Native speakers treat papan tulis as one concept, even though it’s two words.

Word order is still:

• Noun (pelatih) – Verb (menggambar) – Object (garis) – Location phrase (di papan tulis)

Could this sentence be made passive, like “A line is drawn on the board by the coach”? How would that look?

Yes. Indonesian has a common passive pattern:

• Object + di-verb + (oleh) + agent

For this sentence:

• Garis digambar pelatih di papan tulis.
  = A line is drawn by the coach on the board.

Here:

• digambar = di- (passive prefix) + gambar (root)
• oleh (“by”) is often optional, especially with agents like pelatih, guru, etc.

You could also say:

• Garis digambar oleh pelatih di papan tulis. (more explicit, more formal)

How would I say “the coach is drawing a line on the board (right now)” more explicitly?

To emphasize that the action is in progress right now, Indonesian often uses sedang before the verb:

• Pelatih sedang menggambar garis di papan tulis.
  = The coach is drawing a line on the board (right now).

Structure:

• Pelatih (subject)
• sedang (marker for ongoing action, “be doing”)
• menggambar (verb)
• garis (object)
• di papan tulis (location)

If I wanted to make “the board” very specific, how could I change di papan tulis?

You can add itu or a possessive marker to make it more specific:

• di papan tulis itu
  = on that board / on the board (specific, known in the context)

• di papan tulisnya
  = on his/her/their board, or “on the board” (contextual “the”)

Examples:

• Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulis itu.
  = The coach draws a line on that (particular) board.

• Pelatih menggambar garis di papan tulisnya.
  = The coach draws a line on his/her board (or “the board” belonging to someone, depending on context).

Does pelatih say anything about gender? Do I need different words for a male or female coach?

Pelatih is gender-neutral. It can refer to a male or female coach.

If you need to specify gender, you add extra words:

• pelatih pria / pelatih laki-laki = male coach
• pelatih wanita / pelatih perempuan = female coach

But in most cases, pelatih alone is enough, and you don’t need to mark gender.