Semakin lama gangguan bekalan elektrik berlaku, semakin banyak premis terjejas.

long

Breakdown of Semakin lama gangguan bekalan elektrik berlaku, semakin banyak premis terjejas.

• berlaku: to happen
• banyak: many
• semakin: increasingly

Questions & Answers about Semakin lama gangguan bekalan elektrik berlaku, semakin banyak premis terjejas.

What does the semakin ..., semakin ... pattern mean?

It means the more ..., the more ... or the longer ..., the more ..., depending on the words used.

In this sentence:

• Semakin lama ... = The longer ...
• semakin banyak ... = the more ...

So this is a very common Malay structure for showing a change that increases together with another change.

A few similar examples:

• Semakin tinggi harga, semakin sedikit pembeli.
  = The higher the price, the fewer the buyers.
• Semakin rajin dia belajar, semakin baik keputusannya.
  = The harder he studies, the better his results.

Why is lama used here? Does it literally mean long?

Yes. Lama means long or for a long time.

In semakin lama, it means longer and longer or the longer.

So:

• lama = long
• semakin lama = longer / increasingly long / the longer

Here it refers to the duration of the power disruption.

What does gangguan bekalan elektrik mean exactly?