Breakdown of Pegawai memeriksa pasportnya dengan teliti.
dengan
with
pasport
the passport
pegawai
the officer
memeriksa
to examine
nya
his/her
teliti
carefully
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Questions & Answers about Pegawai memeriksa pasportnya dengan teliti.
What does Pegawai mean in this sentence?
Pegawai is a noun meaning “officer” or “official.” It refers to someone in a formal post (e.g., immigration officer, bank officer).
How is the verb memeriksa formed, and why does it start with me-?
In Malay, the me- prefix turns a noun or base verb into an active transitive verb. When the base begins with p, the prefix becomes mem- and you drop the initial p of the root.
- Root: periksa (to check/examine)
- Drop p, attach mem- → memeriksa (to check/examine actively)
What does the suffix -nya signify in pasportnya?
The suffix -nya can serve two roles:
1) Possessive pronoun: “his passport” or “her passport.”
2) Definite marker: “the passport.”
Without extra context, most readers take pasportnya as “his/her passport.”
Why is it spelled pasport with one s instead of passport?
Malay adapts English loanwords to its spelling conventions, generally simplifying double consonants. Thus passport becomes pasport in Malay orthography.
How does dengan teliti convey the idea of “carefully”? Could I just say teliti?
Malay often forms adverbials by pairing dengan (with) + adjective:
- dengan teliti = “with thoroughness” = “carefully.”
You may hear teliti alone used informally as “carefully,” but dengan teliti (or secara teliti) is more standard and unambiguous.
Why isn’t there any article like the or a before pegawai?
Malay does not use articles (a/the) the way English does. Nouns generally stand on their own, and specificity comes from context or markers like -nya, not from separate words like the.