Rapat itu ditunda sehari.

that

Breakdown of Rapat itu ditunda sehari.

• rapat: the meeting
• ditunda: to be postponed
• sehari: a day

Questions & Answers about Rapat itu ditunda sehari.

What does rapat itu mean, and why is itu after the noun?

In Indonesian, itu often means that, and it comes after the noun it modifies.

So:

• rapat = meeting
• rapat itu = that meeting / the meeting

This is normal Indonesian word order. Unlike English, where we say that meeting, Indonesian says meeting that.

In many contexts, itu can also make the noun feel more definite, so rapat itu may be understood as the meeting even if a very literal translation would be that meeting.

Why is it ditunda and not menunda?

Ditunda is a passive form, while menunda is an active form.

• menunda = to postpone, to delay
• ditunda = to be postponed, to be delayed

So:

• Mereka menunda rapat itu. = They postponed the meeting.
• Rapat itu ditunda. = The meeting was postponed.

In your sentence, the meeting is the thing being affected, so Indonesian uses the passive form ditunda very naturally.

What does the prefix di- mean here?