Dia tidak tahu takdirnya.

In Malay, dia is usually gender-neutral. It can mean he, she, or sometimes even that person, depending on context.

So:

• Dia tidak tahu takdirnya.
  can mean
  
  • He does not know his destiny.
  • She does not know her destiny.

Malay often leaves gender unspecified unless it is important to mention it.

Tidak is the normal negator for verbs and adjectives in Malay.

Here, tahu = to know, which is a verb, so:

• tidak tahu = does not know

A very useful rule is:

• tidak → used with verbs and adjectives
• bukan → used mainly with nouns and noun phrases

So this sentence uses tidak because tahu is a verb.

Yes. Tak is a very common short form of tidak in everyday speech.

So these are equivalent in meaning:

• Dia tidak tahu takdirnya.
• Dia tak tahu takdirnya.

The version with tidak sounds more neutral or formal in writing, while tak is more conversational.

Tahu means to know or to be aware of.

In this sentence:

• dia tidak tahu = he/she does not know

Malay does not need a form like knows / know / knew in the same way English does. The verb usually stays the same, and time is understood from context or added words.

So tahu does not change for:

• I know
• he knows
• they know

Malay verbs are much less inflected than English verbs.

Takdirnya is made up of:

• takdir = destiny / fate
• -nya = a suffix that can mean his / her / its

So:

• takdirnya = his destiny / her destiny

In this sentence, -nya refers back to dia.

This -nya is very common in Malay. It often works like a possessive ending:

• bukunya = his/her book
• rumahnya = his/her house
• takdirnya = his/her destiny

No. -nya has several uses in Malay, which is why learners often find it tricky.

In this sentence, it is possessive:

• takdirnya = his/her destiny

But in other contexts, -nya can also refer to:

• him/her/it as an object
• a more general or definite sense
• emphasis in certain structures

So here, the safest interpretation is simply his/her.

Malay word order is often similar to basic English word order:

• Subject + Negator + Verb + Object

So here:

• Dia = subject
• tidak = negator
• tahu = verb
• takdirnya = object

That gives:

• Dia tidak tahu takdirnya.

This is a very normal and natural Malay sentence structure.

Malay usually does not use articles like the or a/an the way English does.

So:

• takdirnya already gives the idea of his/her destiny
• you do not need a separate word for the

Also, Malay often expresses possession very compactly with -nya, so there is no need for something like his own destiny unless you specifically want emphasis.

Not usually. Because of -nya, the sentence most naturally means:

• He/She does not know his/her destiny

If you just had:

• Dia tidak tahu takdir

that would sound less specific and less natural in many contexts.

The suffix -nya makes it clear that the destiny belongs to that person.

Takdir means destiny or fate, and it often has a serious, philosophical, or even religious tone.

Depending on context, Malay may also use words like:

• nasib = luck, fate, lot in life
• takdir = destiny, fate, often stronger or more profound

So takdir is a natural word here, especially if the sentence is meant to sound reflective or dramatic.

Yes, you could. Mengetahui is related to tahu, but it sounds more formal or literary.

Compare:

• Dia tidak tahu takdirnya. = more natural, everyday
• Dia tidak mengetahui takdirnya. = more formal, more written-style

For most everyday learning purposes, tahu is the more useful form to remember first.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation guide would be:

• Dia → dee-ah
• tidak → tee-dahk
• tahu → tah-hoo
• takdirnya → tahk-deer-nya

So roughly:

dee-ah tee-dahk tah-hoo tahk-deer-nya

A few notes:

• dia has two clear syllables: di-a
• ny in -nya sounds like the ny in canyon for many English speakers
• Malay pronunciation is usually fairly consistent once you learn the sound-letter patterns

Sometimes, yes, if the context already makes the subject obvious. But by itself, the full sentence:

• Dia tidak tahu takdirnya.

is the clearest and most complete version.

Malay can drop subjects in some contexts, especially in conversation, but learners should generally keep them until they are comfortable with when omission sounds natural.