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Questions & Answers about Saya berjalan di tepi pasar.
What is the literal translation of "Saya berjalan di tepi pasar"?
The sentence translates to "I walk by the market" (or "I am walking by the market"). Here, "saya" means "I", "berjalan" means "walk" or "am walking", "di" functions as the preposition "at" or "by", "tepi" means "side" (indicating the edge or periphery), and "pasar" means "market."
How is tense indicated in the verb "berjalan"?
In Malay, verbs are not inflected for tense. The form "berjalan" remains the same regardless of whether you mean to express a present, past, or future action. The time reference is instead determined by context or supplemented with time adverbs if needed.
What does the prepositional phrase "di tepi pasar" indicate about the location?
The phrase "di tepi pasar" provides the location where the action occurs. "Di" is used to denote location (equivalent to "at" or "by" in English), "tepi" means "side" or "edge," and "pasar" means "market." Together, they convey that the walking is taking place "by the side of the market."
How does the word order in this Malay sentence compare to that of English?
The word order in this sentence is quite similar to English. It follows a subject-verb-location structure—"I" (saya) + "walk" (berjalan) + "by the market" (di tepi pasar)—which parallels the common English sentence pattern. One noticeable difference is that Malay does not use articles (like "the"), so "pasar" stands alone without one.
Why are there no articles such as "a" or "the" in the sentence?
Malay does not employ articles in the same way English does. Nouns like "pasar" are used without definite ("the") or indefinite ("a," "an") articles, relying instead on context to convey specificity. This characteristic is typical of Malay grammar and can be one of the initial challenges for English speakers learning the language.