Mereka bertukar tempat.

Mereka means they.

It is the normal third-person plural pronoun in standard Malay. It is not especially formal, but in very casual spoken Malay, speakers sometimes repeat the noun instead of using mereka, or use more colloquial styles depending on region and context.

So in this sentence:

• Mereka = they

Bertukar here means to exchange, to swap, or to switch.

In Mereka bertukar tempat, it gives the idea that the people involved switched with each other, not that they changed something else directly.

So bertukar often has an intransitive or reciprocal feel:

• the subject is involved in the exchanging
• the action happens among the participants themselves

That is why this sentence naturally means They switched places.

The prefix ber- changes the feel of the verb.

• tukar is the base idea: change / exchange / swap
• bertukar often means to exchange / to change / to swap with each other in a more complete verb form

In everyday speech, you may also hear tukar tempat, especially informally. But bertukar tempat sounds more standard and clearly verbal.

Very roughly:

• tukar tempat = switch places
• bertukar tempat = switch places / exchange places, with a more standard grammatical form

Tempat literally means place.

In this sentence, it usually refers to a physical position, seat, or spot. So:

• bertukar tempat = switch places

Depending on context, tempat can also mean:

• place
• location
• seat
• spot
• position

But in this sentence, the most natural understanding is that two or more people changed positions.

Malay often does not need to say with each other explicitly when the verb already suggests a mutual action.

In Mereka bertukar tempat, the reciprocal idea is understood from bertukar and from the plural subject mereka.

So even without an extra phrase, the sentence naturally means:

• They exchanged places
• They switched places with each other

English often needs to make this relationship more explicit, but Malay can leave it implied.

You can think of tempat as what is being exchanged or switched: the place/position.

In learner-friendly terms, yes, it works much like the thing affected by the verb:

• Mereka = subject
• bertukar tempat = predicate, with tempat completing the meaning of the verb

You do not need to analyze it too technically to use it correctly. The main pattern to remember is:

• bertukar + noun
• bertukar tempat = switch places
• bertukar pendapat = exchange opinions

Context decides.

Bertukar can mean:

• change
• exchange
• swap

Examples:

• Warna daun bertukar kuning.
  The leaf color changed to yellow.
• Mereka bertukar hadiah.
  They exchanged gifts.
• Mereka bertukar tempat.
  They switched places.

So when the subject is plural and the situation suggests a mutual action, bertukar often means exchange/swap.

This is a very common question.

A useful basic distinction is:

• bertukar = to change / exchange / swap, often involving the subject itself or a mutual action
• menukar = to change or exchange something directly, often with a clear object

Compare:

• Mereka bertukar tempat.
  They switched places.
  -> mutual action among the subjects

• Dia menukar tempat duduknya.
  He changed his seat.
  -> he changed something directly

Another example:

• Kami bertukar hadiah.
  We exchanged gifts.
• Saya menukar baju.
  I changed clothes.

This is not the whole grammar of ber- and meN-, but it is a very helpful starting rule.

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

So bertukar can refer to:

• present: they are switching places
• past: they switched places
• future: they will switch places

The time is usually understood from context or from time words such as:

• semalam = yesterday
• sekarang = now
• nanti = later

Examples:

• Semalam mereka bertukar tempat.
  Yesterday they switched places.
• Sekarang mereka bertukar tempat.
  They are switching places now.
• Nanti mereka bertukar tempat.
  They will switch places later.

Yes, but it is most naturally understood literally.

Literal:

• two people swap seats
• players switch positions
• people move into each other’s places

It can sometimes be understood more figuratively depending on context, but if you want a clearly figurative meaning such as they changed roles or they exchanged positions in life/status, Malay may use a more specific expression.

So by default:

• Mereka bertukar tempat = they switched physical places

Yes. In everyday speech, Mereka tukar tempat is very natural and common.

The difference is mainly one of style and register:

• Mereka bertukar tempat = more standard, more textbook-like
• Mereka tukar tempat = more conversational

Both are understandable and widely used. As a learner, it is good to recognize both.

To make it negative, use tidak before the verb:

• Mereka tidak bertukar tempat.
  They did not switch places.

To make it a yes-no question in speech, intonation is often enough:

• Mereka bertukar tempat?
  Did they switch places?

You can also use question words if needed:

• Mengapa mereka bertukar tempat?
  Why did they switch places?
• Bila mereka bertukar tempat?
  When did they switch places?

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• mereka ≈ muh-REH-kah
• bertukar ≈ ber-TOO-kahr
• tempat ≈ tem-PAHT

A few helpful notes:

• r in Malay is usually tapped or lightly rolled
• e in mereka is not like the English long ee
• the final t in tempat is usually clearly pronounced, though sometimes lightly in fast speech

A rough full pronunciation:

• muh-REH-kah ber-TOO-kahr tem-PAHT