Robot itu bergerak.

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

• robot itu = that robot / sometimes the robot
• buku ini = this book

So Malay says the equivalent of robot that, not that robot in word order.

Literally, itu means that. However, in real usage it can also make a noun feel specific or definite, so robot itu can sometimes be understood a bit like the robot depending on context.

So:

• basic meaning: that robot
• possible natural interpretation in context: the robot

Malay does not have a separate word exactly like the English article the.

Bergerak means to move, to be moving, or to be in motion.

It comes from the root gerak, which is related to movement or motion. The prefix ber- often forms an intransitive verb, meaning the subject does the action itself and there is no direct object.

So:

• gerak = movement / move as a root idea
• bergerak = to move

In this sentence, the robot itself is moving, so bergerak fits well.

Malay does not use is/am/are the same way English does.

In Robot itu bergerak, bergerak is already the main verb move / is moving, so no extra verb like is is needed.

English:

• The robot is moving.

Malay:

• Robot itu bergerak.

This is completely normal in Malay.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Malay verbs usually do not change form for tense the way English verbs do. So bergerak can be understood as:

• moves
• is moving
• sometimes even moved if the context makes that clear

If you want to make the time clearer, Malay often adds time words, for example:

• Robot itu sedang bergerak. = The robot is moving.
• Robot itu akan bergerak. = The robot will move.
• Robot itu telah bergerak. = The robot has moved / moved.

Here, bergerak is intransitive. That means it does not take a direct object.

• Robot itu bergerak. = The robot moves.

If you want to say that someone or something moves something else, Malay usually uses a different form, such as menggerakkan.

For example:

• Dia menggerakkan robot itu. = He/She moves the robot.

So:

• bergerak = move oneself / be in motion
• menggerakkan = move something

Normally, no. The standard word order is:

• Robot itu bergerak.

Malay usually places the demonstrative after the noun, so itu robot is not the normal pattern for that robot in a sentence like this.

So for a beginner, the safe pattern is:

• noun + ini/itu

Examples:

• rumah itu = that house
• kereta ini = this car
• robot itu = that robot

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation is:

ber-guh-rak

A few helpful notes:

• ber- is often pronounced with a quick r
• the e in ber is usually like a weak vowel, similar to the a in about
• the final k in Malay may be unreleased or very soft in many accents

So you may hear something close to bər-gə-rak.

In this sentence, robot itu is normally understood as one specific robot.

Malay does not have to mark plural the way English does. If needed, plural can be shown by:

1. context
2. number words
3. reduplication

For example:

• robot-robot itu bergerak = those robots are moving
• dua robot itu bergerak = the two robots are moving

But if the context already makes it clear, Malay often leaves nouns unmarked.

Yes. If you want to make the ongoing action clearer, you can say:

• Robot itu sedang bergerak.

This more explicitly means:

• The robot is moving
• The robot is in the process of moving

Without sedang, Robot itu bergerak is still perfectly correct and natural, just slightly more neutral about aspect.

Only because it is at the beginning of the sentence here.

In general, robot is a common noun, so it is normally written in lowercase unless it begins a sentence or is part of a name.

So:

• Robot itu bergerak. = capitalized because it starts the sentence
• Saya nampak robot itu. = lowercase in the middle of a sentence