Saya belajar tanpa nota.

I study without notes.

Breakdown of Saya belajar tanpa nota.

• saya: I
• nota: the note
• belajar: to study
• tanpa: without

Questions & Answers about Saya belajar tanpa nota.

What does the word tanpa mean in this sentence?

tanpa is a preposition meaning “without.” It indicates that something is absent or not used. So tanpa nota = “without notes.”

Why is there no article (like “the” or “a”) before nota?

Malay does not have definite or indefinite articles. Nouns stand alone, and context tells you if it’s singular or plural, specific or general. Thus nota can mean “a note,” “the note,” or “notes,” depending on context.

How would you express “notes” in the plural if you really needed to?

You can reduplicate the noun for emphasis or plurality:

• nota-nota = “notes” (several distinct notes)
  But often you just leave it as nota, and add a numeral or quantifier if necessary (e.g., dua nota = “two notes”).

Can I drop Saya and just say Belajar tanpa nota?

Yes. Malay frequently omits the subject pronoun when it’s clear from context.

• Belajar tanpa nota still means “(I) study without notes.”
• In a group context you could also infer “we” or “you” as the subject.

What part of speech is belajar, and does it mean “study” or “learn”?

belajar is a verb that covers both “to study” and “to learn.”

• Context determines the nuance.
• If you want to emphasize “study academically,” you might say belajar di universiti (“study at university”).
• To stress “learn something specific,” you can use mempelajari, e.g., Saya mempelajari sejarah (“I learn/study history”).

Why is the order Saya belajar tanpa nota and not Saya tanpa nota belajar?

Malay follows a Subject–Verb–Object (SVO) order, and prepositional phrases come after the verb. The structure is:

1. Subject = Saya
2. Verb = belajar
3. Prepositional phrase = tanpa nota

Putting tanpa nota in the middle would break the standard flow and sound unnatural.

How do you pronounce tanpa and nota?

• tanpa: TAHN-pah (stress on the first syllable; “a” like the “a” in “father”)
• nota: NOH-tah (stress on the first syllable; “o” like the “o” in “note,” “a” as in “sofa”)

Could you use a different word instead of tanpa to say “without”?

Not really in this context. tanpa is the standard preposition for “without.” You could rephrase more verbosely:

• Saya belajar tanpa menggunakan nota (“I study without using notes”),
  but you wouldn’t replace tanpa itself.

What’s the difference between tanpa and tiada?

• tanpa = “without” (preposition)
• tiada = “there is none” / “does not exist” (verb/adjective)

You cannot say Saya belajar tiada nota. If you want to use tiada, you might rephrase:

• Saya tidak menggunakan nota semasa belajar (“I do not use notes while studying”).