Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Malay grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Pada petang yang sama, saya singgah di bakeri di seberang hospital.
In the phrase Pada petang yang sama, what does pada mean?
pada is a preposition meaning on or in when referring to time, so Pada petang = “in the afternoon” or “on the afternoon.”
Why do we need yang before sama in petang yang sama?
In Malay, yang is used to connect a noun to a descriptive clause or adjective. Petang yang sama literally means “the afternoon that is the same,” idiomatically “the same afternoon.” Without yang, the phrase would be ungrammatical.
Can we drop pada and just say Petang yang sama?
Yes, informally you might hear Petang yang sama, but including pada is more standard and clearly marks the time expression. Omitting it leans toward colloquial speech.
What is the verb singgah and how is it used here?
Singgah means “to stop by” or “to drop in.” It is an intransitive verb often followed by a location marker (usually ke for movement or di for location):
Saya singgah di bakeri = “I stopped by the bakery.”
Why are there two dis in the sentence (di bakeri and di seberang hospital)?
Di is a preposition meaning “at,” “in,” or “on” when indicating location. Here, di bakeri = “at the bakery” and di seberang hospital = “across from the hospital.”
Could we use ke instead of di for bakeri?
Yes. Singgah ke bakeri is also acceptable, since ke marks movement toward a place. Singgah di bakeri focuses on the location where the stop occurred.
What does seberang mean in di seberang hospital?
Seberang is a noun meaning “the opposite side” or “across.” When combined with di it expresses “across from” something: di seberang hospital = “across from the hospital.”
Is bakeri a Malay word, and how is it pronounced?
Bakeri is a loanword from English “bakery.” It is pronounced [ba-ke-ri], with each vowel sounded distinctly, unlike the English two-syllable version.
Hospital also seems like an English loanword. Are there any local alternatives?
Yes, hospital is borrowed and pronounced [hos-pi-tal]. A Malay alternative is rumah sakit (literally “house of sickness”).
Could we say berseberang hospital instead of di seberang hospital?
Yes, berseberang is a verb/adjective meaning “to be opposite.” You could say Saya singgah di bakeri berseberang hospital, which is equivalent to di seberang but uses berseberang adjectivally. However, sticking with di seberang hospital is more straightforward.