Saya membuat nasi untuk makan malam.

I make rice for dinner.

Breakdown of Saya membuat nasi untuk makan malam.

• saya: I
• nasi: the rice
• untuk: for
• makan malam: the dinner
• membuat: to make

Questions & Answers about Saya membuat nasi untuk makan malam.

Why does the sentence use membuat instead of another verb meaning to cook?

In Malay, membuat literally means to make, while masak means to cook. In this context, both can be used, but membuat places a slight emphasis on the act of making something (as in preparing or putting it together), whereas masak focuses more on the cooking process.

Why is nasi used here instead of another word for rice?

Nasi specifically means cooked rice in Malay. If you wanted to refer to raw rice, you would use the word beras. Since you are talking about rice for dinner, which is presumably cooked, nasi is the appropriate word.

What does untuk mean, and why is it used here?

Untuk typically translates to for in English. It indicates the purpose or reason for doing something. In this sentence, untuk makan malam explains that the rice is being made for dinner.

Is makan malam a phrase on its own, or can it be broken down further?

Makan malam is the common Malay phrase for dinner. It breaks down into makan (meaning to eat) and malam (meaning night). Put together, it literally means night meal.

How flexible is the word order in Malay for this sentence?

Malay word order is relatively flexible, but the most common structure is Subject + Verb + Object + Purpose. You could potentially move the time or purpose around, but the standard form you see here—Saya membuat nasi untuk makan malam—is the most natural and clear way people usually speak.