Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah. - This place is right in front of the school.

…but that only works if it’s already very clear from context that “this” refers to a place or location. Tempat ini makes it explicit that you’re talking about a place (spot, location), not an object or something else.

What exactly does ini do in tempat ini? Is it like “this place” in English?

Yes. Ini after a noun works like a demonstrative, similar to “this” / “this … here” in English.

Tempat ini = “this place” / “this place here”
Structure: [noun] + ini → “this [noun]”

So:

sekolah ini = “this school”
rumah ini = “this house”

Don’t confuse ini with di sini:

ini = “this” (modifies a noun, or stands alone as “this one”)
di sini = “here” (location adverb)

So you cannot replace tempat ini with di sini inside the sentence; they behave differently grammatically.

What is the role of tepat here? Is it necessary, and what nuance does it add?

Tepat here functions like an adverb, and it adds the idea of exactly / directly / right.

Tempat ini di depan sekolah.
→ “This place is in front of the school.” (neutral)
Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah.
→ “This place is right in front of the school.” / “exactly in front of the school.”

So tepat is not required for the sentence to be grammatical; it just strengthens the location, emphasizing precision.

Common near-synonyms in this usage:

persis → almost the same nuance as tepat (“exactly”)
pas (informal) → “right / exactly”

Examples:

Rumahnya persis di depan sekolah.
Rumahnya pas di depan sekolah.

All convey a similar “right in front of” meaning.

Why is there no word for “is” in this sentence? Where is the verb?

Indonesian often does not use a separate verb “to be” (like is/am/are) in simple descriptive or locative sentences.

In Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah:

Tempat ini = subject (“this place”)
tepat di depan sekolah = predicate (“[is] right in front of the school”)

The linking “is” is simply omitted; it’s understood from context. This is normal Indonesian structure.

You could insert adalah in some nominal sentences, but in this kind of locative sentence, adalah is usually not used:

✔ Tempat ini di depan sekolah. (normal, natural)
✖ Tempat ini adalah di depan sekolah. (feels odd / non‑native)

So there is no explicit “is” because Indonesian doesn’t require one here. The sentence is complete as it is.

What exactly is depan? Is it a preposition like “in front of”?

Depan is originally a noun meaning “front”.
In location phrases, Indonesian uses:

di + [location noun]

So:

di depan = “at (the) front / in front”
di belakang = “at the back / behind”
di atas = “on top / above”
di bawah = “under / below”

Then you add the reference point:

di depan sekolah = “in front of the school”
(literally: “at the front [of] school”)

So depan itself is not a standalone preposition like “of”. The whole phrase di depan sekolah together expresses “in front of the school”.

Why is it di depan and not ke depan or something else?

di is a static location preposition: at / in / on (where something is).
ke is a direction / movement preposition: to / towards (where something is going).

In the sentence, we’re describing where the place is, not where something is moving:

Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah.
→ “This place is right in front of the school.” (static position)

Compare with a movement example:

Dia berjalan ke depan sekolah.
→ “He/She walks to the front of the school.” (movement toward the front)

So di depan is correct because we’re talking about the current location, not movement.

Why is it just sekolah and not sekolah ini or sekolah itu? How do I choose?

Indonesian often leaves nouns bare (with no word for “the” or “a/an”). Whether it’s “the school” or “a school” is usually decided by context, not by an article.

In di depan sekolah:

It can mean “in front of the school” if both speaker and listener know which school is meant.
It can also be more general “in front of a school”, if no specific school is in mind.

If you need to be explicit:

sekolah ini = “this school (here)”
sekolah itu = “that school (over there / already mentioned)”

Examples:

Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah itu.
→ This place is right in front of that (specific) school.
Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah ini.
→ This place is right in front of this school (we’re at now).

So sekolah alone is very natural; you only add ini/itu when you need to clarify which school.

Could I say Tempat ini ada tepat di depan sekolah? What’s the difference if I add ada?

Yes, Tempat ini ada tepat di depan sekolah is grammatical, but the nuance changes slightly:

Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah.
→ Simple description of location.
Tempat ini ada tepat di depan sekolah.
→ Slightly more emphasis on existence: “This place exists right in front of the school.”

More natural uses of ada in this context:

Ada tempat tepat di depan sekolah.
→ “There is a place right in front of the school.” (introducing the existence of a place)

In everyday speech, for a known place, Indonesians normally just say:

Tempat ini di depan sekolah.
or
Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah.

Ada is most typical when you want to say “there is / there are”.

Is the word order fixed? Could I move tepat or di depan sekolah around?

The natural word order is:

[Subject] + [adverb/modifier] + [locative phrase]
Tempat ini + tepat + di depan sekolah

Possible variations and their feel:

Tempat ini di depan sekolah.
→ perfectly natural; just drops tepat (no “right/exactly”).
Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah.
→ natural, with emphasis on “right/exactly”.

Less natural / odd:

✖ Tempat ini di depan sekolah tepat.
✖ Tepat tempat ini di depan sekolah. (possible in poetry or special emphasis, but not neutral speech)

So in normal speech and writing, you should keep it as in the original:

Tempat ini (subject) + tepat (adverb) + di depan sekolah (location).

Is the sentence formal, informal, or neutral? Are there more formal alternatives?

Tempat ini tepat di depan sekolah. is neutral in style—fine for both everyday conversation and most written contexts.

More formal alternatives might use words like lokasi or berada:

Lokasi ini berada tepat di depan sekolah.
→ “This location is situated right in front of the school.”
Tempat ini terletak tepat di depan sekolah.
→ “This place is located right in front of the school.”

More informal speech might drop tepat, or use pas:

Tempat ini di depan sekolah.
Tempat ini pas di depan sekolah. (informal)

But the original sentence is acceptable and natural in most contexts.