Tukang jahit memeriksa kelim itu.

Tukang jahit is a noun phrase made from:

• tukang = a worker, craftsperson, skilled person
• jahit = sew / sewing

So tukang jahit literally means something like sewing worker or person who sews, and it is the normal way to say tailor.

Malay often forms professions this way, with tukang + a type of work:

• tukang masak = cook
• tukang kebun = gardener
• tukang gunting rambut = hairdresser / barber

Memeriksa is the active verb form of the root periksa.

The prefix meN- makes it an active verb, so memeriksa means to examine / to inspect / to check.

In this sentence, it shows that the tailor is actively doing the action to kelim itu.

A very useful pattern to notice is:

• root: periksa
• active verb: memeriksa

This kind of verb formation is extremely common in Malay.

This is because the meN- prefix changes shape depending on the first sound of the root word.

With periksa, the prefix appears as mem-, giving memeriksa.

Malay learners often just memorize the final form at first, because the sound changes are part of a regular but sometimes tricky pattern:

• meN- can appear as mem-, men-, meng-, meny-, and so on

So the important beginner point is:

• the dictionary-like root is periksa
• the verb used in the sentence is memeriksa

Malay usually does not use a verb like to be in the same way English does, and it also does not normally mark tense the way English does.

So memeriksa can mean:

• checks
• is checking
• checked

The exact time usually comes from context or from time words such as:

• sekarang = now
• semalam = yesterday
• esok = tomorrow

So Tukang jahit memeriksa kelim itu could mean The tailor checks the hem, The tailor is checking the hem, or in some contexts The tailor checked the hem.

In Malay, demonstratives like ini and itu usually come after the noun, not before it.

So:

• kelim itu = that hem
• baju ini = this shirt

This is different from English, where we say that hem with that before the noun.

So the word order is normal Malay:

• noun + demonstrative

Literally, itu means that. But in real usage, itu can also help make a noun feel definite, so in some contexts it may sound natural in English as the.

So kelim itu could be understood as:

• that hem
• sometimes the hem, depending on context

Malay does not have a separate word exactly like English the, so words like itu sometimes help do part of that job.

No, Malay does not use articles in the same way English does.

That means a noun can often appear without any article:

• tukang jahit = a tailor, the tailor, or just tailor, depending on context
• kelim = a hem or the hem

If Malay wants to make something more clearly specific, it may use words like itu or ini:

• kelim itu = that hem / the hem
• baju ini = this shirt

So English articles usually have to be supplied from context when translating.

The word order is:

• Tukang jahit = subject
• memeriksa = verb
• kelim itu = object

So the pattern is Subject–Verb–Object, which is the same basic order as English.

That makes this sentence fairly straightforward for English speakers:

• The tailor
  • examines
    • that hem

Kelim means hem, especially in clothing or fabric.

It is a tailoring or sewing word, so it fits naturally with tukang jahit.

Depending on context, learners may sometimes confuse sewing-related terms, so it helps to remember:

• jahit is connected with sewing
• kelim is the hem or finished edge of cloth

Yes, you can.

Tukang jahit memeriksa kelim is grammatical and means something like:

• The tailor is checking a hem
• The tailor checks hems
• The tailor is checking the hem

The exact meaning becomes less specific without itu. Adding itu makes the object feel more definite and identifiable:

• kelim = hem / a hem
• kelim itu = that hem / the hem

Not necessarily.

You could say:

• Seorang tukang jahit memeriksa kelim itu

This would emphasize a tailor or one tailor.

But in normal Malay, it is very common to omit words like seorang when they are not needed. So:

• Tukang jahit memeriksa kelim itu

is completely natural.

Malay often leaves number and article-like meanings to context unless they need to be made explicit.

A simple learner-friendly guide would be:

• tukang ≈ too-kahng
• jahit ≈ jah-heet
• memeriksa ≈ muh-meh-rik-sah
• kelim ≈ kuh-leem
• itu ≈ ee-too

A few helpful points:

• Malay pronunciation is generally more regular than English spelling
• j sounds like English j in job
• ng in tukang is like the ng in sing
• the r in memeriksa is usually a tapped or lightly rolled r

Yes.

Tukang jahit itu memeriksa kelim itu means:

• That tailor is examining that hem
• or in some contexts The tailor is examining the hem

Here, itu after tukang jahit makes the subject definite too.

So compare:

• Tukang jahit memeriksa kelim itu = A/The tailor examines that/the hem
• Tukang jahit itu memeriksa kelim itu = That/The tailor examines that/the hem

Malay often uses itu after a noun phrase to make it more definite or more clearly identifiable.