Tugas itu mustahil tanpa bantuan.

That task is impossible without help.

Breakdown of Tugas itu mustahil tanpa bantuan.

• itu: that
• tanpa: without
• tugas: the task
• bantuan: the help

Questions & Answers about Tugas itu mustahil tanpa bantuan.

What does itu mean here?

In this sentence, itu comes after tugas and points to a specific task: that task.

So:

• tugas = task, duty, assignment
• tugas itu = that task

In Malay, demonstratives like ini (this) and itu (that) usually come after the noun, not before it.

• buku itu = that book
• rumah ini = this house

In many contexts, itu can also feel a bit like the, because it helps make the noun specific.

Why is there no word for is in the sentence?

Malay often leaves out the verb to be in simple statements.

So English:

• That task is impossible without help

Malay:

• Tugas itu mustahil tanpa bantuan

There is no need to add a word meaning is here. This is completely normal in Malay.

You may sometimes see adalah, but it is usually not needed in simple sentences like this.

Why does mustahil come after tugas itu?