Learn Hardcore Malay: Saya tekan butang lif dua kali tetapi lif masih belum tiba. - I press the elevator button twice but the elevator still hasn’t arrived.

In colloquial Malay, speakers often use the root form of the verb without the meN- prefix. menekan is the formal or dictionary form (“to press”), but in everyday conversation you can simply say tekan. In formal writing, you might prefer menekan.

How do we know whether Saya tekan refers to “I press” (present) or “I pressed” (past)?

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. Instead, time is indicated by context or by adding particles/adverbs. In your sentence, context plus belum tiba (“hasn’t arrived yet”) tells you that the pressing happened before now. If you wanted to be explicit about past time, you could add sudah or telah before the verb:

Saya sudah tekan butang lif. (I have pressed the lift button.)

What does dua kali mean, and why not say dua waktu or dua masa?

Dua means “two” and kali means “time(s)” in the sense of occurrences. Together, dua kali = “twice.” Waktu and masa both mean “time” in the sense of a period or moment, not “times” as in counts of events.

What is the difference between tetapi and tapi?

Both tetapi and tapi mean “but.” Tetapi is more formal or literary. Tapi is the shorter, colloquial form you’ll hear in daily speech. You can safely substitute one for the other in informal contexts.

Why does the sentence use both masih and belum before tiba?

Masih means “still.”
Belum means “not yet.”
Together masih belum tiba emphasize that the lift has still not arrived. Native speakers often stack them for extra emphasis, though you could say just belum tiba and still be correct.

Could you drop saya and just say Tekan butang lif dua kali…?

Yes. Malay often drops subject pronouns when context is clear. (Saya) tekan butang lif dua kali... is fine, especially in casual speech or when you’re already talking about yourself.

What’s the difference between the verbs tiba and sampai?

Both mean “to arrive.”

Tiba is slightly more formal or neutral.
Sampai is very common in everyday speech.
In your sentence you could say lif masih belum sampai, and it would mean the same thing.

Why doesn’t Malay use articles like the or a before butang lif?

Malay does not have definite or indefinite articles. Nouns stand alone, and context tells you whether you mean “a lift button” or “the lift button.” If you really need to specify you can add words like itu (“that”) or ini (“this”):

butang lif itu = “that lift button”

Where does the word lif come from?

Lif is a loanword from English lift (the British term for elevator). Malay often borrows English terms, especially for modern inventions. The spelling adapts to Malay phonetics.