Pengubahsuaian pakaian ini diperlukan.

Pengubahsuaian means alteration, modification, or adjustment. In the context of pakaian, it usually suggests clothing alterations, such as making something shorter, tighter, looser, or better fitted.

It is a fairly formal noun. In everyday English, the whole sentence is often expressed more naturally as something like These clothes need altering or This clothing needs alterations.

It comes from the base ubah suai, which means to modify or to alter.

The noun pengubahsuaian is formed by adding:

• peng-
• the base ubah suai
• -an

This turns the action into a noun:

• ubah suai = to alter / modify
• pengubahsuaian = alteration / modification

So it works a bit like English modify becoming modification.

Malay often puts two nouns together where English would use of.

So:

• pengubahsuaian pakaian = alteration of clothing / clothing alteration

The first noun is the main idea, and the second noun specifies what kind of alteration it is. This noun + noun pattern is very common in Malay.

Yes, this is something English speakers often notice.

In Malay, ini and itu usually come after the noun phrase, not before it. So ini appears at the end instead of where English would put this or these.

Because of that, pengubahsuaian pakaian ini can look slightly ambiguous out of context. It may be understood as:

• this clothing alteration, or
• the alteration of these clothes

Usually, context or the given meaning tells you which reading is intended. If your learning material gives the meaning as something like These clothes need alterations, then that is the reading you should follow.

Perlu means need or necessary, while diperlukan means is needed or is required.

Compare:

• Pengubahsuaian pakaian ini diperlukan = The alteration of these clothes is needed
• Pakaian ini perlu diubah suai = These clothes need to be altered

So diperlukan makes the sentence sound more formal and more impersonal. It focuses on the thing that is required, rather than directly saying what must be done.

Yes. Diperlukan is a passive form related to memerlukan, which means to require.

A useful comparison is:

• Keadaan ini memerlukan pengubahsuaian pakaian = This situation requires clothing alterations
• Pengubahsuaian pakaian ini diperlukan = This clothing alteration is required

So in your sentence, the focus is on what is needed, not on who needs it.

Malay often does not use a separate verb like English is in sentences like this.

So Pengubahsuaian pakaian ini diperlukan is already a complete sentence. You do not need to insert a copula the way you do in English.

This is very normal in Malay. English says X is needed, but Malay can simply say X diperlukan.

Because adalah is usually not needed in this kind of sentence, and using it here would sound unnatural in normal Malay.

The predicate diperlukan already does the job. So:

• natural: Pengubahsuaian pakaian ini diperlukan
• not the usual choice: Pengubahsuaian pakaian ini adalah diperlukan

Learners often overuse adalah because they want a direct equivalent of English is, but Malay does not work that way.

It can be either, depending on context.

Malay nouns usually do not change form for singular or plural. So pakaian can refer to:

• clothing in general
• a garment
• clothes collectively

That means the best English translation depends on the situation. Malay often leaves number to context unless it really needs to be made explicit.

Yes, it sounds fairly formal, especially because of pengubahsuaian and diperlukan.

A more everyday way to say the idea would be:

• Pakaian ini perlu diubah suai
• Baju ini perlu diubah

These sound more natural in casual speech. Your original sentence is the kind of phrasing you might see in writing, official communication, or more careful formal Malay.

This is a common spelling question.

The base expression is ubah suai, which is normally written as two words. But when it becomes a derived noun with peng- and -an, it is written as one word:

• ubah suai
• mengubah suai
• diubah suai
• pengubahsuaian

So the verb forms stay split, but the noun pengubahsuaian is written as a single word.