Biarpun anak itu nakal, nenek bilang dia tidak jahat; dia hanya butuh diarahkan.

Biarpun means even though, although, or despite the fact that.

In this sentence, Biarpun anak itu nakal means:

Even though the child is naughty

It introduces a contrast:

• the child is nakal
• but the grandmother says the child is not jahat

Other common Indonesian words with a similar meaning are meskipun and walaupun.
Biarpun is very natural in everyday speech and writing.

This is one of the most important vocabulary points in the sentence.

• nakal = naughty, mischievous, sometimes badly behaved
• jahat = evil, mean, cruel, malicious

So nakal is often used for children who misbehave, break rules, tease people, or make trouble. It does not automatically mean they are morally bad.

jahat is much stronger. It suggests bad intentions or bad character.

So the sentence is making a clear distinction:

• The child may be naughty
• but the child is not evil or malicious

That contrast is very natural in Indonesian.

Because jahat is an adjective, and in Indonesian, adjectives are usually negated with tidak, not bukan.

So:

• tidak jahat = not bad / not evil / not mean

Use bukan mainly to negate:

• nouns
• noun phrases
• identity/classification

For example:

• Dia tidak jahat. = He/She is not evil.
• Dia bukan dokter. = He/She is not a doctor.

A helpful rule:

• tidak for verbs and adjectives
• bukan for nouns

Anak itu means that child or the child, depending on context.

• anak = child
• itu = that

But in natural translation, anak itu often becomes the child if the child is already known in the conversation.

So this phrase can feel either:

• specific and slightly pointing: that child
• or simply definite: the child

Indonesian often uses itu where English would just use the.

Yes. Bilang commonly means say, tell, or state, depending on context.

• nenek = grandmother / grandma
• bilang = say / tell

So nenek bilang dia tidak jahat means:

Grandma says he/she is not evil

A useful point: in everyday Indonesian, bilang is very common and natural. It is often less formal than mengatakan.

Examples:

• Dia bilang capek. = He/She said he/she was tired.
• Ibu bilang jangan pergi. = Mom said not to go.

Because Indonesian often omits bahwa when introducing a reported statement.

So both of these are possible:

• Nenek bilang dia tidak jahat.
• Nenek bilang bahwa dia tidak jahat.

They both mean roughly: Grandma says that he/she is not evil.

In everyday Indonesian, leaving out bahwa is very common and usually sounds more natural unless you want a slightly more formal or explicit style.

Both instances of dia most naturally refer to anak itu.

So the meaning is:

Even though the child is naughty, grandmother says the child is not evil; the child just needs to be guided.

A key point for English speakers:

• dia can mean he or she
• Indonesian does not normally mark gender here

So without extra context, you cannot tell whether the child is male or female.

Also, because dia appears twice, English may repeat he/she, but Indonesian is perfectly natural this way.

Hanya means only or just.

So:

• dia hanya butuh diarahkan = he/she just needs to be guided

It softens the judgment. The idea is:

• the child is not evil
• the child simply needs guidance

This helps the sentence sound compassionate rather than harsh.

Literally:

• butuh = need
• diarahkan = be directed / be guided

So butuh diarahkan means:

needs to be guided
or
needs direction

The overall idea is that the child needs help, correction, or proper guidance—not punishment or condemnation.

Because the focus is on what the child needs to receive, not on who will do it.

• mengarahkan = to direct / guide someone
• diarahkan = to be directed / to be guided

So:

• Dia butuh diarahkan = He/She needs to be guided.

This passive structure is very common in Indonesian, especially when:

• the doer is unknown
• the doer is unimportant
• the focus is on the person affected

In English, passive is also natural here: needs to be guided.

Good question. Traditionally, butuh is very often followed by a noun phrase, such as:

• butuh bantuan = need help
• butuh waktu = need time
• butuh arahan = need guidance/direction

But in everyday Indonesian, butuh followed by a passive verb is also common and understandable:

• butuh diperbaiki = needs to be fixed
• butuh dibersihkan = needs to be cleaned
• butuh diarahkan = needs to be guided

So this sentence sounds natural.

That said, some alternatives are:

• dia hanya butuh arahan
• dia hanya perlu diarahkan

These may sound slightly smoother to some speakers, but butuh diarahkan is still normal.

Yes. Arah relates to direction, so mengarahkan can literally mean to direct.

But depending on context, diarahkan may be better translated as:

• guided
• given direction
• steered
• shown the right way

In this sentence, guided is probably the best English choice, because it fits the idea of helping a child behave better.

Yes. Indonesian is flexible.

The original: Biarpun anak itu nakal, nenek bilang dia tidak jahat; dia hanya butuh diarahkan.

A possible reordering: Nenek bilang anak itu tidak jahat, biarpun dia nakal; dia hanya butuh diarahkan.

The original version is very natural because it sets up the contrast first:

• Even though the child is naughty...
• grandma says...

That structure gives the sentence a nice rhetorical flow.

The semicolon links two closely related independent clauses:

1. nenek bilang dia tidak jahat
2. dia hanya butuh diarahkan

It shows that the second clause supports or explains the first one.

In simpler punctuation, many people might also write:

• ..., nenek bilang dia tidak jahat, dia hanya butuh diarahkan.
• ..., nenek bilang dia tidak jahat. Dia hanya butuh diarahkan.

So the semicolon is not the only possible choice, but it works well to connect the ideas clearly.

Usually, yes, nenek means grandmother or grandma.

But like some kinship words in Indonesian, it can also be used more broadly in certain contexts:

• to refer to an elderly woman
• as a respectful form of address in some situations

In this sentence, though, the most natural reading is simply grandmother / grandma.

It is very natural and understandable Indonesian.

It sounds like a compassionate comment about a child’s behavior:

• the child may misbehave
• but the grandmother thinks the child is not fundamentally bad
• the child just needs guidance

That kind of distinction—between nakal and jahat—is especially natural in Indonesian when talking about children.