Begitu saya mendapat uang receh, saya menaruhnya di celengan kecil.

In this sentence, begitu means as soon as or once.

So Begitu saya mendapat uang receh, ... means something like:

• As soon as I get some small change, ...
• Once I get some coins/change, ...

This is a common pattern in Indonesian:

• Begitu saya sampai, saya menelepon dia. = As soon as I arrived, I called him.

So here begitu is not the literal like that / that way meaning that you may have seen in other contexts.

Indonesian often repeats the subject in each clause for clarity.

So in:

• Begitu saya mendapat uang receh, saya menaruhnya di celengan kecil.

the first saya belongs to mendapat, and the second saya belongs to menaruhnya.

In English, we also usually repeat the subject:

• As soon as I get change, I put it in a small piggy bank.

If you left out the second saya, the sentence could sound incomplete or less clear in standard Indonesian.

Dapat by itself often means can / be able to, but it can also mean get in some contexts.

Mendapat clearly means to get / obtain / receive.

So here mendapat uang receh means:

• to get some change
• to receive coins/small money

Using mendapat avoids confusion with the modal meaning of dapat (can).

Uang receh means small change, especially coins or low-value money.

• uang = money
• receh = small change / loose change / low-value money

In everyday use, uang receh often suggests:

• coins
• spare change
• small denominations

So it does not have to refer only to coins in a strict technical sense, but that is often the idea.

In menaruhnya, the ending -nya means it or them, referring back to uang receh.

Breakdown:

• menaruh = to put
• -nya = it / them

So menaruhnya means put it or put them.

Even though uang receh may refer to several coins, Indonesian often does not force you to mark singular vs. plural the way English does. So -nya can still refer to that whole group naturally.

You could also say:

• saya menaruh uang receh itu di celengan kecil

But menaruhnya is smoother and more natural once the object has already been mentioned.

Taruh is the base word, and menaruh is the active verb form built with the meN- prefix.

• taruh = put, place
• menaruh = to put / to place

In standard Indonesian, when the subject is actively doing the action, the meN- form is very common:

• Saya menaruh buku itu di meja. = I put the book on the table.

In casual speech, people often say taruh instead of menaruh, but menaruh sounds more standard and careful.

This happens because of a common sound change with the meN- prefix.

When meN- is added to some roots beginning with t, the t disappears:

• taruh → menaruh
• tulis → menulis
• tanya → menanya or more commonly bertanya in real usage

So menaruh is the expected standard form.

With menaruh, Indonesian commonly uses di to show the place where something is put:

• menaruh sesuatu di meja
• menaruh sesuatu di tas
• menaruhnya di celengan kecil

Here di marks the location: in/on/at depending on context.

If you want to emphasize movement into something, Indonesian often uses a different verb, such as:

• memasukkannya ke dalam celengan kecil = put it into the small piggy bank

So menaruh ... di ... is very natural here.

Celengan means a piggy bank or money box, something used to store coins and small savings.

It does not have to be shaped like a pig. It is just the normal Indonesian word for a container for saving loose money.

So:

• celengan kecil = a small piggy bank / a small money box

In Indonesian, adjectives usually come after the noun.

So:

• celengan kecil = small piggy bank
• rumah besar = big house
• uang receh = small change

This is one of the most basic word-order differences from English.

Indonesian usually does not require nouns to be marked clearly as singular or plural.

So uang receh can mean:

• small change in general
• some coins
• loose change

The exact number depends on context.

That is why menaruhnya can be translated as either:

• put it
• put them

depending on how natural the English translation is.

No, not directly.

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense the way English verbs do. So:

• mendapat
• menaruh

do not themselves mean specifically got, get, was getting, or will get.

The time is understood from context. This sentence could describe:

• a habit: Whenever/As soon as I get small change, I put it in a small piggy bank
• a past event, if the larger context is in the past
• even a future situation, depending on context

Not exactly.

All three can connect clauses about time, but the nuance is different:

• begitu = as soon as / once
• ketika = when
• saat = when / at the time when

So begitu usually emphasizes immediacy: one thing happens right after the other.

Compare:

• Begitu saya mendapat uang receh, saya menaruhnya di celengan kecil.
  As soon as I get change, I put it in the piggy bank.

• Ketika saya mendapat uang receh, saya menaruhnya di celengan kecil.
  This is possible, but it sounds more like when rather than immediately after getting it.

So begitu is a good choice if the idea is a quick, regular reaction.

Yes. Mendapat and mendapatkan can both work here.

• mendapat = get / obtain
• mendapatkan = get / obtain, sometimes slightly more formal or heavier

In this sentence, mendapat sounds simple and natural.
Mendapatkan is not wrong, but it can sound a little more elaborate than necessary for a basic everyday action.

Yes, depending on style.

More casual possibilities include:

• Begitu saya dapat uang receh, saya taruh di celengan kecil.
• Kalau saya dapat uang receh, saya taruh di celengan kecil.

These sound more conversational, but the original sentence is perfectly good standard Indonesian:

• Begitu saya mendapat uang receh, saya menaruhnya di celengan kecil.

The original is a bit more textbook-like and grammatically explicit, which is often helpful for learners.