Kami bertanya sama ada sketsa itu parodi atau improvisasi.

In Malay, both kami and kita can mean we, but they are not interchangeable.

• kami = we, excluding the listener
• kita = we, including the listener

So Kami bertanya... means that the speakers asked something, but the person being spoken to was not part of that we.

This is a very important distinction in Malay and one that English does not normally make.

Tanya is the root word meaning ask or question.

Bertanya is a common standard verb built from that root with the prefix ber-. In this sentence, it means to ask / to inquire.

So:

• tanya = root, often used casually in speech
• bertanya = more standard/formal verb

A casual version might be:

Kami tanya sama ada sketsa itu parodi atau improvisasi.

But the sentence you were given is perfectly natural and slightly more polished.

Sama ada means whether.

It introduces an indirect question, especially one involving alternatives or uncertainty.

So in this sentence, sama ada introduces the idea of asking whether the sketch belongs to one category or another.

You will often see it in patterns like:

• sama ada ... atau ... = whether ... or ...
• tidak pasti sama ada ... = not sure whether ...
• bertanya sama ada ... = ask whether ...

It is a very useful expression in formal and neutral Malay.

Not really in this sentence.

Even though ada often means exist, there is, or have, in sama ada you should treat the whole phrase as a set expression meaning whether.

So it is better not to analyze it word by word here. For learners, the safest approach is:

• memorize sama ada as one expression
• use it when you want to say whether

In Malay, demonstratives like ini and itu usually come after the noun.

So:

• sketsa itu = that sketch / the sketch
• buku ini = this book
• rumah itu = that house

This is normal Malay word order.

In many contexts, itu can also make the noun feel definite, so sketsa itu can mean not just that sketch, but also something close to the sketch, depending on context.

Malay often leaves out the verb to be in sentences like this.

So a structure like:

• sketsa itu parodi
• dia guru
• rumah itu besar

is completely normal.

In English, you need is, but Malay often does not.

A more formal linking word can sometimes appear, especially in careful writing:

• Sketsa itu ialah parodi...

But in everyday Malay, leaving it out is very common and natural.

Yes, it is a very common pattern.

It works like whether ... or ... in English.

So here:

• sama ada sketsa itu parodi atau improvisasi

means that the question is between two possibilities:

• parodi
• improvisasi

This pattern is very common when presenting alternatives.

You can also use sama ada without explicitly stating both options if the alternatives are understood from context.

Often, yes.

Both atau and ataupun can mean or, though atau is the simpler and more basic choice.

So these are both possible:

• sama ada sketsa itu parodi atau improvisasi
• sama ada sketsa itu parodi ataupun improvisasi

The version with atau is straightforward and very natural.

They are loanwords, but they are fully normal in Malay.

• parodi = from parody
• improvisasi = from improvisation / improvisasi-type international form

Malay uses many borrowed words, especially for artistic, academic, and technical concepts. These words behave like regular Malay nouns in the sentence.

So in this sentence, they are just noun labels for two types of performance.

Yes, sometimes.

You could say:

Kami bertanya apakah sketsa itu parodi atau improvisasi.

This is also grammatical and fairly formal.

But there is a slight difference in feel:

• sama ada strongly matches English whether
• apakah often feels like a more direct question marker, especially in formal language

For this sentence, sama ada is an excellent choice because the sentence is clearly about uncertainty between alternatives.

It sounds neutral to slightly formal.

The features that make it feel a bit more standard are:

• bertanya rather than casual tanya
• sama ada rather than a looser spoken alternative like kalau

A more casual spoken version might be:

Kami tanya kalau sketsa itu parodi atau improvisasi.

But the original sentence is natural, standard, and appropriate in writing or careful speech.