Learn Hardcore Malay: Selepas hujan, jalan di pasar licin. - After the rain, the road at the market is slippery.

Selepas is a preposition (sometimes called a conjunction when linking clauses) meaning after in a temporal sense. Here it introduces the adverbial phrase Selepas hujan (after the rain), telling us when the main clause happens.

Why is there a comma after Selepas hujan, and is it necessary?

The comma separates the time-phrase Selepas hujan from the main clause jalan di pasar licin. It isn’t strictly required in Malay but improves readability by marking a pause. You can write the sentence without it and still be correct.

Why isn’t there an equivalent of “the” before jalan?

Malay does not use definite or indefinite articles like the or a. Nouns stand on their own, and context tells you whether they’re definite. Here jalan simply means road (implicitly “the road”).

What does di indicate in di pasar? Is it like “in” or “at”?

Di is a locative preposition marking location, equivalent to English in, at, or on depending on context. Di pasar means “at the market” or “in the market area.”

Why is licin placed after jalan di pasar instead of before?

In Malay, attributive adjectives normally follow the noun they describe. The order is Noun + Adjective, so you say jalan licin (slippery road), expanded here to jalan di pasar licin.

There’s no verb like “is” in the main clause. Why?

Malay often omits the copula (to be) in present-tense nominal or adjectival sentences. The adjective licin directly describes the subject jalan di pasar, so no separate verb is needed.

What’s the difference between jalan pasar and jalan di pasar?

jalan pasar (without di) is a compound noun meaning market road—it could be the proper name of a street. jalan di pasar means the road in the market, emphasizing location rather than a road’s name.

Are there any alternative words to selepas for “after”?

Yes. Setelah also means after or once, and is slightly more formal or literary. In everyday speech, selepas is more common for simple time markers.

Could you put selepas hujan at the end of the sentence instead?

Yes. You could say Jalan di pasar licin selepas hujan. Malay allows flexible word order for adverbial phrases—just move selepas hujan to the end without changing meaning.

How would you say “the road to the market” instead of “road in the market”?

Use the movement preposition ke, not di. So jalan ke pasar means the road to the market, indicating direction rather than location.