Gas itu meletup.

In this sentence, itu is a demonstrative word, usually meaning that. So gas itu literally looks like that gas.

In natural translation, though, gas itu can also be understood as the gas, depending on context. Malay often uses itu after a noun to point to something already known, identified, or specific.

So gas itu can mean:

• that gas
• the gas

That is normal Malay word order.

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

• gas ini = this gas
• gas itu = that gas

This is different from English, where this and that come before the noun.

Meletup is a verb meaning to explode or to blow up.

In Gas itu meletup, it works as the main verb of the sentence:

• Gas itu = the gas / that gas
• meletup = exploded / explodes / is exploding, depending on context

So the structure is basically:

subject + verb

• Gas itu
  • meletup

The me- part is a very common Malay verbal prefix. It often forms active verbs.

Here, the base is letup, which is related to bursting or exploding.
So:

• letup = burst / explosion-related base form
• meletup = to explode

For a learner, the easiest practical point is: meletup is the normal verb form you will often see in sentences.

Here it is intransitive.

That means the subject does the action or undergoes the event, and there is no direct object:

• Gas itu meletup. = The gas exploded.

There is nothing after the verb receiving the action.

Malay verbs do not usually change form for tense the way English verbs do.

So meletup by itself does not tell you whether the action is present, past, or future. The time usually comes from:

• context
• time words
• extra markers

For example:

• Gas itu meletup semalam. = The gas exploded yesterday.
• Gas itu sedang meletup. = The gas is exploding.
• Gas itu akan meletup. = The gas will explode.

So Gas itu meletup could mean the gas exploded or the gas explodes, depending on context.

No. Nothing is missing.

Malay does not need a word like English is in this kind of sentence. The sentence is complete as it is:

• Gas itu meletup.

Since meletup is already a verb, there is no need for a separate is.

Yes. Gas is commonly used in Malay.

Like many Malay words, it is a borrowing, but it is fully normal in modern usage. A learner should treat it as an ordinary vocabulary item.

So gas itu is perfectly natural Malay.

Yes, very often.

This is a common thing that confuses English speakers. Malay does not have articles exactly like the and a/an. Because of that, itu sometimes helps make a noun sound definite or specific.

So in real context:

• gas itu may be translated as that gas
• but it may also be best translated as the gas

The best English translation depends on the situation, not just the words by themselves.

Yes, you could.

• Gas meletup = gas explodes / gas exploded / gas is exploding
• Gas itu meletup = that gas / the gas exploded

Adding itu makes the noun more specific. Without itu, the sentence can sound more general or less clearly tied to a particular gas that both speaker and listener know about.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation is:

gas itu meletup
gahs ee-too muh-luh-toop

Very roughly:

• gas = like English gass, with a clear g
• itu = ee-too
• meletup = muh-luh-toop

Malay pronunciation is generally quite regular, and the spelling usually gives you a good guide.

The pattern is:

Noun phrase + verb

So:

• Gas itu = subject noun phrase
• meletup = verb

This is a very common Malay sentence type:

• Budak itu menangis. = The child cried / is crying.
• Kereta itu berhenti. = The car stopped.
• Gas itu meletup. = The gas exploded.

So this sentence is structurally very straightforward.