Kami saling membantu menguli tanah liat.

to help

Breakdown of Kami saling membantu menguli tanah liat.

• saling: mutually
• kami: we/us
• tanah liat: clay

Questions & Answers about Kami saling membantu menguli tanah liat.

Why is kami used here instead of kita?

Kami means we but not including the person being spoken to.

Kita also means we, but it does include the listener.

So in this sentence, kami tells us that the speakers are talking about their own group helping each other, and the listener is outside that group.

• kami = we/us, not you
• kita = we/us, including you

This is a very important distinction in Malay and often feels unusual to English speakers, because English just uses we for both.

What does saling mean?

Saling means each other or one another. It shows that the action is reciprocal.

So:

• Kami membantu = We help
• Kami saling membantu = We help each other

In this sentence, saling tells us that the members of the group are mutually helping one another, not just helping someone else.

Why do we need saling if membantu already means to help?