Aku ngidam siomay lagi.

Aku is the informal, everyday word for I. It is common in casual speech, with friends, family, or in relaxed situations.

Saya is more neutral and polite, so it is more common in formal situations, with strangers, at work, or when you want to sound respectful.

So:

• Aku ngidam siomay lagi. = casual / natural in conversation
• Saya mengidam siomay lagi. = more formal, and a bit less conversational

In real spoken Indonesian, aku fits this sentence very naturally.

Yes. Ngidam is the colloquial spoken form of mengidam.

The base idea is to crave strongly, especially food, but it can also be used for other strong desires in some contexts.

In everyday Indonesian, people very often say ngidam rather than mengidam, especially in speech and texting.

So:

• mengidam = more standard / formal
• ngidam = more casual / conversational

That is why Aku ngidam siomay lagi sounds natural in daily life.

No. Although ngidam is very commonly associated with pregnancy, it is not limited to that.

People also use it more generally to mean having a craving, especially for food. So a person can say Aku ngidam siomay even if they are not pregnant.

That said, because of that association, sometimes the word can sound a little stronger or more specific than plain wanting something. It often suggests a real craving, not just a casual preference.

Because in Indonesian, the thing you crave can come directly after the verb.

So:

• ngidam siomay = crave siomay

You do not need a preposition like for the way English often does in crave for or have a craving for.

The structure is simply:

• Aku = subject
• ngidam = verb
• siomay = object
• lagi = adverb

Siomay is the direct object of ngidam.

In other words, it is the thing being craved.

So in:

• Aku ngidam siomay lagi

the sentence pattern is basically:

• I + crave + siomay + again

There is no article like a or the, because Indonesian does not use articles the way English does.

Here, lagi means again.

So the speaker is saying they are craving siomay again, meaning this craving has come back.

This is a very common use of lagi at the end of a sentence.

For example:

• Lapar lagi. = Hungry again.
• Kambuh lagi. = It came back again / it flared up again.
• Ngidam siomay lagi. = Craving siomay again.

In Indonesian, adverbs like lagi often come after the verb or after the part of the sentence they modify.

So:

• Aku ngidam siomay lagi.

is a natural word order.

Putting lagi at the end makes it clear that the whole craving situation is happening again.

This end position is very common and natural in Indonesian conversation.

This is a very important difference.

• Aku ngidam siomay lagi = I’m craving siomay again
• Aku lagi ngidam siomay = I’m currently craving siomay

Even though both sentences contain lagi, the meaning changes depending on position.

1. lagi at the end

• Aku ngidam siomay lagi
• Here lagi means again

2. lagi before the verb

• Aku lagi ngidam siomay
• Here lagi means something like currently / in the middle of

This difference is very common in Indonesian and often confuses learners.

Yes, you could, and it would mean something like:

• I’m currently craving siomay again

The first lagi marks an ongoing situation, and the second lagi means again.

But in normal conversation, this may sound a little repetitive unless the context really needs both ideas. Usually, people would say just one of these:

• Aku lagi ngidam siomay. = I’m craving siomay right now.
• Aku ngidam siomay lagi. = I’m craving siomay again.

Yes, very natural.

Aku ngidam siomay lagi sounds like something a person would casually say in conversation, text messages, or social media.

Why it sounds natural:

• aku is conversational
• ngidam is the common spoken form
• lagi at the end is a normal way to say again

A more formal version would be possible, but less everyday:

• Saya mengidam siomay lagi.

That sounds grammatically fine, but more stiff and less likely in ordinary speech.

Yes, very often, if the context already makes the subject clear.

For example, someone might simply say:

• Ngidam siomay lagi.

This is common in conversation and texting. Indonesian often drops subjects when they are understood from context.

So:

• Aku ngidam siomay lagi. = full sentence
• Ngidam siomay lagi. = more casual, subject omitted

Both are natural, depending on the situation.

The word starts with the ng sound, like the end of English sing, but here it comes at the beginning of the word.

So ngidam is roughly:

• ngi-dam

Many English speakers are not used to ng at the start of a word, but this is very common in Indonesian.

A good way to practice is:

1. Say sing
2. Hold the final ng sound
3. Then add i-dam

So it becomes ng-i-dam.

A more formal or standard version would be:

• Saya mengidam siomay lagi.

Changes:

• aku → saya
• ngidam → mengidam

If you want to make it even more explicitly currently happening, you could say:

• Saya sedang mengidam siomay.

But for ordinary spoken Indonesian, the original sentence is more natural.

A common negative version is:

• Aku nggak ngidam siomay lagi.

This usually means:

• I’m not craving siomay anymore

Notice that lagi with a negative often gives the meaning anymore, not just again.

So:

• Aku ngidam siomay lagi. = I’m craving siomay again.
• Aku nggak ngidam siomay lagi. = I’m not craving siomay anymore.

This is a very useful contrast to learn, because lagi behaves differently in negative sentences.