Kami menutup makanan di meja supaya lalat tidak hinggap.

Because kami means we, but not you (the listener is excluded).

• kami = we excluding the person being spoken to
• kita = we including the person being spoken to

So if the speaker is talking about what their group did, and the listener was not part of it, kami is correct.

Example:

• Kami menutup makanan... = We covered the food... (not including you)
• Kita menutup makanan... = We covered the food... (including you)

Menutup is the active verb form built from the root tutup.

• tutup = root word, related to close / cover
• menutup = to close / to cover in an active sentence

Indonesian often uses the meN- prefix to form active verbs.

So:

• Kami menutup makanan = We cover / covered the food

If you just said kami tutup makanan, that can sometimes be heard in casual speech, but kami menutup makanan is the more standard full form.

The meN- prefix usually marks an active verb, especially when the subject is doing something to an object.

Here:

• root: tutup
• active verb: menutup

So the pattern is:

• Kami menutup makanan
• subject: kami
• verb: menutup
• object: makanan

A useful idea for learners is:

• meN- often gives you a verb meaning to do X
• the exact shape changes depending on the first sound of the root

For tutup, meN- becomes men-, giving menutup.

Because makanan means food, while makan means to eat.

• makan = eat / to eat
• makanan = food

The ending -an often creates a noun.

So:

• Kami menutup makanan = We cover the food not
• We cover eating

This is a very common pattern in Indonesian:

• minum = drink
• minuman = a drink / beverage

In this sentence, di meja most naturally describes makanan: the food on the table.

So the phrase is understood as:

• makanan di meja = the food on the table

Full structure:

• Kami menutup makanan di meja supaya lalat tidak hinggap.
• We cover the food on the table so that flies do not land on it.

In real usage, context usually makes this clear. Grammatically, Indonesian can sometimes leave this kind of attachment slightly open, but here the most natural reading is that di meja goes with makanan.

Because these are two different di words.

1. di as a preposition = in / on / at

   • written separately
   • example: di meja = on the table

2. di- as a passive verb prefix

   • written attached
   • example: ditutup = is closed / is covered

So:

• di meja = preposition + noun
• ditutup = prefix + verb root

This is one of the most important spelling differences in Indonesian.

Yes. Supaya means so that / in order that.

In this sentence:

• supaya lalat tidak hinggap = so that flies do not land

You could also use:

• agar — very similar, often a bit more formal or neutral
• biar — more colloquial in many contexts, depending on region and style

So these are all possible:

• ... supaya lalat tidak hinggap
• ... agar lalat tidak hinggap
• ... biar lalat tidak hinggap

For many learners, supaya and agar are the safest general choices.

Because tidak negates verbs and adjectives, while bukan usually negates nouns or noun phrases.

Here, hinggap is a verb:

• lalat tidak hinggap = flies do not land

So tidak is correct.

Compare:

• Dia tidak makan. = He/She does not eat.
• Itu bukan makanan. = That is not food.

A simple rule:

• tidak
  • verb/adjective
• bukan
  • noun

Hinggap means to land, to perch, or to alight, especially for birds, insects, and similar creatures.

In this sentence:

• lalat tidak hinggap = flies do not land / do not settle

It is a very natural verb for flies. It suggests a fly coming down and resting on a surface.

Examples:

• Burung hinggap di pohon. = A bird perched in a tree.
• Lalat hinggap di makanan. = A fly landed on the food.

For this context, hinggap is more precise than a general verb like datang (come).

It can be either singular or plural, depending on context.

Indonesian nouns do not automatically change form for singular vs. plural the way English nouns often do.

So lalat can mean:

• a fly
• flies

In this sentence, the natural English meaning is plural:

• so that flies do not land

If you want to make plurality more explicit, Indonesian can use reduplication:

• lalat-lalat = flies

But very often Indonesian leaves number unstated unless it matters.

Because Indonesian does not have articles like the or a/an in the same way English does.

So:

• makanan can mean food, the food, or sometimes some food
• lalat can mean a fly or flies, depending on context

The listener figures it out from the situation.

That is why one Indonesian sentence can match several English versions:

• We cover the food on the table so that flies do not land.
• We covered the food on the table so that the flies would not land on it.

English requires more explicit choices; Indonesian often does not.

No. Indonesian verbs usually do not change form for tense the way English verbs do.

So menutup itself does not mean specifically:

• cover
• are covering
• covered
• have covered

The time is understood from context or from time words such as:

• sekarang = now
• tadi = earlier
• kemarin = yesterday
• besok = tomorrow

So Kami menutup makanan di meja supaya lalat tidak hinggap could mean different things in English depending on context, though a common translation would be:

• We covered the food on the table so that flies would not land on it or
• We cover the food on the table so that flies do not land on it

Yes, but the nuance can change a little.

• menutup = to close / to cover
• menutupi = often to cover over, to cover something up, or to cover a surface/object more fully

In many contexts, both can work, but menutup makanan is very natural for covering food.

Compare:

• Kami menutup makanan = We cover the food
• Kami menutupi makanan = We cover over the food

The second can sound a bit more focused on the object being covered thoroughly or on the surface being covered. For a learner, menutup makanan is the safer basic choice here.

Yes, it is natural and correct.

It sounds like standard Indonesian and clearly expresses:

• the subject: kami
• the action: menutup
• the object/location: makanan di meja
• the purpose: supaya lalat tidak hinggap

A very slightly more explicit version could be:

• Kami menutup makanan yang ada di meja supaya lalat tidak hinggap.

That version spells out the food that is on the table, but the original sentence is already normal and natural.