Ibu merebus brokoli sebentar, lalu menaruhnya di piring untuk makan malam.

Ibu literally means mother, but in Indonesian it is also a very common polite form of address for an adult woman, similar to Mrs., ma’am, or madam depending on context.

In this sentence, Ibu most naturally means Mother/Mom if it is talking about someone’s mother. But without more context, it could also refer politely to a woman.

A useful comparison:

• Ibu sedang memasak. = Mother is cooking / The lady is cooking
• Selamat pagi, Ibu. = Good morning, ma’am

The base word is rebus, which relates to boiling.
When Indonesian forms an active verb, it often adds the prefix meN-. With rebus, this becomes merebus.

So:

• rebus = boil / boiled / boiling, as a root or command depending on context
• merebus = to boil, to be boiling something

In this sentence, merebus is the normal active verb form because the subject Ibu is doing the action.

Compare:

• Ibu merebus brokoli. = Mother boils/is boiling the broccoli.
• Rebus brokoli itu! = Boil that broccoli!

Indonesian often omits words that are already clear from context. Once Ibu is introduced as the subject, you do not need to repeat a pronoun like she.

So:

• Ibu merebus brokoli sebentar, lalu menaruhnya di piring...

is completely natural, and Indonesian listeners automatically understand that Ibu is still the one doing the second action.

English often repeats the subject:

• Mother boils the broccoli briefly, then she puts it on a plate...

Indonesian usually does not need to:

• Ibu ... lalu menaruhnya ...

Sebentar means for a moment, briefly, or for a short time.

Here it tells you that the broccoli is boiled only for a short time:

• merebus brokoli sebentar = boil the broccoli briefly

It does not give an exact number of minutes. It just suggests a short duration.

Other examples:

• Tunggu sebentar. = Wait a moment.
• Dia duduk sebentar. = He/She sat for a while.

In Indonesian, adverbs like sebentar often come after the verb phrase, and putting it after the object is very normal.

So:

• Ibu merebus brokoli sebentar

is natural and means Mother boils the broccoli briefly.

You may also see slightly different word order in other contexts, but this sentence sounds normal as written. Indonesian word order is often more flexible than English, especially with adverbs.

Yes. Lalu means then, after that, or next. It connects two actions in sequence.

In this sentence:

• merebus brokoli sebentar, lalu menaruhnya di piring means:
• boils the broccoli briefly, then puts it on a plate

It is a very common way to show that one action happens after another.

Similar connectors include:

• kemudian = then / afterwards (a bit more formal)
• terus = then / and then (more informal, conversational)

Menaruhnya has two parts:

• menaruh = to put/place
• -nya = it / him / her / his / her / its, depending on context

Here, -nya means it, and it refers to the broccoli.

So:

• menaruhnya di piring = put it on a plate

A few important points:

• The root is taruh = put/place
• With the active prefix meN-, it becomes menaruh
• Adding -nya gives menaruhnya = put it

In this sentence, -nya is an object pronoun attached directly to the verb.

Indonesian di covers meanings that English often separates into in, on, or at, depending on context.

So:

• di piring literally uses di
  • plate
• in natural English, this becomes on a plate

Indonesian does not need a special separate word for on here. The noun tells you the spatial relationship:

• di meja = on the table
• di kursi = on the chair
• di piring = on the plate
• di rumah = at home / in the house

With menaruh (to put/place), Indonesian usually uses di to mark where something is placed.

So:

• menaruhnya di piring = put it on a plate

Here, di marks the resulting location.

Ke usually emphasizes motion to/toward a destination:

• pergi ke pasar = go to the market
• lari ke luar = run outside

For put/place, di is the normal choice:

• taruh buku itu di meja = put that book on the table

No. Makan malam is a fixed expression meaning dinner or literally eat at night/evening meal.

So:

• untuk makan malam = for dinner

Here untuk expresses purpose or intended use. The idea is that the broccoli is put on a plate for dinner.

Compare:

• untuk sarapan = for breakfast
• untuk makan siang = for lunch
• untuk makan malam = for dinner

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense the way English verbs do.
So merebus and menaruhnya do not by themselves tell you whether the action is past, present, or habitual.

This sentence could mean different things depending on context, for example:

• Mother boiled the broccoli briefly, then put it on a plate for dinner.
• Mother boils the broccoli briefly, then puts it on a plate for dinner.

Time is usually understood from context or from extra words such as:

• kemarin = yesterday
• sekarang = now
• besok = tomorrow
• sedang = marks an ongoing action in some contexts

Indonesian does not use articles like a, an, and the the way English does.

So:

• brokoli can mean broccoli, the broccoli, or some broccoli
• piring can mean a plate or the plate

The exact meaning comes from context.

If speakers want to be more specific, they can add words such as:

• sebuah piring = a plate (more explicit)
• piring itu = that plate / the plate
• brokoli itu = that broccoli / the broccoli

Indonesian nouns usually do not change form for singular vs. plural. So brokoli could refer to broccoli in a general or mass-noun sense.

In this sentence, English would most naturally treat it as broccoli rather than trying to force a singular/plural count distinction.

If Indonesian needs to make plurality very clear, it can use repetition or other words, but that is not necessary here:

• buku = book/books
• buku-buku = books very clearly

With food words like brokoli, the distinction is often not important unless context makes it important.