Papan tanda lencongan itu jelas.

A natural breakdown is:

• papan tanda = sign / signboard
• lencongan = diversion / detour
• itu = that / the
• jelas = clear, easy to see, or easy to understand

So papan tanda lencongan means diversion sign, and the whole sentence means something like That diversion sign is clear or The diversion sign is clear.

In Malay, you often do not need a verb like is/are in simple sentences with adjectives.

So:

• Papan tanda lencongan itu jelas
  = The/That diversion sign is clear

Malay commonly links the subject directly to the adjective:

• Rumah itu besar = That house is big
• Cuaca hari ini panas = The weather today is hot

This is very normal Malay sentence structure.

In Malay, demonstratives like ini (this) and itu (that) usually come after the noun phrase.

So:

• papan tanda itu = that sign
• rumah itu = that house
• buku ini = this book

In your sentence, itu refers to the whole noun phrase:

• papan tanda lencongan itu = that diversion sign

This is different from English, where that comes before the noun.

This is a Malay noun phrase where the main noun comes first, and the describing noun comes after it.

• papan tanda = sign
• lencongan describes what kind of sign it is

So:

• papan tanda lencongan = diversion sign

This is normal in Malay. The head noun usually comes first, followed by words that describe or specify it.

Compare:

• kereta polis = police car
• bilik guru = teachers' room / staff room
• lampu jalan = street light

English often puts the describing noun first; Malay usually puts it after.

Because jelas is the predicate adjective in the sentence.

The structure is:

• [subject] + [adjective]

So:

• Papan tanda lencongan itu = the subject
• jelas = the adjective describing it

Malay usually places the adjective after the noun when the adjective is part of the sentence predicate:

• Kereta itu mahal = That car is expensive
• Jawapan dia betul = His/Her answer is correct

So jelas comes at the end because it is what is being said about the sign.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Jelas can mean:

• visually clear / easy to see
• clear in meaning / easy to understand
• obvious

In Papan tanda lencongan itu jelas, it could mean:

• the sign is easy to see, or
• the message on the sign is clear

Context tells you which sense is intended. In many real situations, both ideas may be true at the same time.

Lencongan is a noun. It is related to lencong, which has the idea of turning aside, swerving, or deviating.

The ending -an often helps form a noun in Malay. So lencongan refers to:

• a diversion
• a detour
• a deviation from the usual route

This is why papan tanda lencongan means a sign showing a diversion or detour.

It often literally means that, but in many sentences it can sound more natural in English as the.

So this sentence could be translated as:

• That diversion sign is clear
• The diversion sign is clear

The difference depends on context. Malay itu often marks something as specific and identifiable, which overlaps with English the.

Yes, you could, but the nuance changes slightly.

• Papan tanda lencongan itu jelas = that/the diversion sign is clear
  This points to a specific sign.

• Papan tanda lencongan jelas = diversion signs are clear or a diversion sign is clear, depending on context
  This can sound more general or less specifically anchored.

In many situations, adding itu makes the sentence feel more definite and natural if you are talking about one particular sign.

It is written as two words: papan tanda.

This is a fixed compound noun meaning signboard or sign. Malay has many compounds like this that are written as separate words.

For example:

• kereta api = train
• kaki lima = five-foot way / covered walkway
• rumah sakit in Indonesian, though not standard Malay in Malaysia = hospital

So even though papan tanda functions like one unit in meaning, it is normally written as two words.

Malay often does not mark plural if the meaning is already clear from context.

So papan tanda lencongan can sometimes mean either:

• a diversion sign
• diversion signs

If you really want to make it clearly plural, you can use reduplication:

• papan-papan tanda lencongan itu jelas

But in normal usage, that may sound heavier than necessary. Very often Malay simply relies on context, or adds a quantity word such as:

• semua papan tanda lencongan itu jelas = all those diversion signs are clear
• beberapa papan tanda lencongan jelas = several diversion signs are clear