Saya berharap esok kami boleh melawat pulau lain di sebelah barat.

I hope tomorrow we can visit another island to the west.

Breakdown of Saya berharap esok kami boleh melawat pulau lain di sebelah barat.

• saya: I
• boleh: to be able
• esok: tomorrow
• kami: we
• melawat: to visit
• berharap: to hope
• pulau: island
• lain: another
• di sebelah barat: to the west

Questions & Answers about Saya berharap esok kami boleh melawat pulau lain di sebelah barat.

Why is kami used instead of kita?

In Malay, both kami and kita mean “we,” but they differ in inclusivity:

• kami = “we” excluding the listener (first-person plural exclusive)
• kita = “we” including the listener (first-person plural inclusive)
  Here, the speaker is talking about their own group (excluding you), so kami is correct.

What does boleh mean here, and how is it different from akan?

• boleh is a modal verb meaning “can,” “may,” or “be able to.” It expresses possibility, permission, or ability.
• akan is a future-tense marker meaning “will,” focusing on what is going to happen.
  Using boleh in “kami boleh melawat” suggests “we hope it will be possible to visit,” rather than simply stating “we will visit.”

Can we move esok to the front of the sentence?

Yes. Malay allows flexible word order for time expressions. Both are natural:

• Esok, saya berharap kami boleh melawat pulau lain di sebelah barat.
• Saya berharap esok kami boleh melawat pulau lain di sebelah barat.
  Starting with esok adds emphasis on “tomorrow.”

Why is berharap used instead of just harap?

• berharap is the standard verb “to hope.”
• harap can be a noun (“hope”) or colloquially used as a verb, but it’s less formal.
  For clear, formal expression of the action, berharap is preferred.

Do we need yang before lain in pulau lain?

No. In Malay, adjectives like lain can directly follow a noun: pulau lain = “other island.”
Adding yang (“that/which”) is optional and slightly more formal: pulau yang lain also works.

How would I say “other islands” (plural)?

Use reduplication to form the plural:

• pulau-pulau lain = “other islands”

What does di sebelah barat mean, and why is di used?

• di is a preposition meaning “at,” “in,” or “on.”
• sebelah = “side”
• barat = “west”
  Put together, di sebelah barat means “on the west side” or “to the west,” indicating location.

Could we say ke sebelah barat instead?

• ke marks direction (“to”). ke sebelah barat means “toward the west.”
• di sebelah barat describes location (“on the west side”).
  Since melawat (“visit”) already implies movement, both forms can be used, but melawat pulau lain di sebelah barat is more idiomatic for specifying which island is being visited.

Is melawat used only for visiting people, or can it be used for places too?

melawat applies to both people and places.

• To visit a person: melawat kawan (“visit a friend”)
• To visit a place: melawat pulau (“visit an island”)
  Alternatives for visiting people include berkunjung (more general) or menziarahi (specifically visiting graves).