Learn Hardcore Malay: Kita kongsi idea baru di kelas.

kita includes both the speaker and the listener (“we” including you). kami excludes the listener (“we” but not you). In our sentence kita implies the speaker and the class (including whoever is addressed) are sharing.

Why is the verb kongsi used here instead of berkongsi or membagikan?

kongsi is the root/borrowed form of “share.” It’s very common in colloquial and written Malay.
berkongsi adds the prefix ber-, focusing on the act of sharing among participants (to share with each other). You could say Kita berkongsi idea and it means roughly the same.
membagikan (prefix mem-
- bagikan) means “to distribute” or “to give out” rather than “to share in discussion.” It’s more one-way.

Why doesn’t kongsi show any affix or tense marking?

Malay verbs are not inflected for tense. Tense is inferred from context or by adding time adverbs (e.g., semalam for “yesterday,” nanti for “later”). Affixes (like ber-, mem-) change voice or nuance, but plain kongsi works as a neutral, colloquial form.

In idea baru, why is the adjective baru after the noun, not before it?

In Malay, adjectives normally follow the noun they modify. So you say idea baru (idea + new) rather than baru idea. This order is standard for most descriptive words.

Why is idea spelled the same as in English, and is there a Malay alternative?

idea is a loanword from English (or indirectly from Portuguese/Latin). It’s fully part of standard Malay. A more “native” alternative would be gagasan or fikiran, but idea is far more common in everyday speech and writing.

Why do we say di kelas instead of ke kelas or pada kelas?

di marks a static location (“at,” “in”). di kelas = “in/at class.”
ke indicates movement toward a location (“to”). ke kelas = “to class.”
pada can mean “on” or “at,” but it’s less common for classrooms.
Since the sharing happens within the class, di kelas is correct.

There’s no definite article “the” before kelas. Why?

Malay doesn’t use articles (a, an, the). kelas can mean “class” or “the class” depending on context. The meaning is clear without needing “the.”

Does kongsi imply sharing one idea or many ideas?

Grammatically, kongsi doesn’t mark singular or plural for the object. idea baru can be one new idea or multiple new ideas, depending on context. If you want to emphasize multiple, you might say idea-idea baru or add a quantifier like beberapa idea baru (“several new ideas”).

How would I change this sentence to past tense?

Add a time reference or the particle sudah/telah. For example:

Kita sudah kongsi idea baru di kelas. (“We have already shared a new idea in class.”)
Kita pernah kongsi idea baru di kelas. (“We once shared a new idea in class.”)