Kecuali halaman kedua, semua bahagian laporan ini pendek dan mudah.

Except for the second page, all parts of this report are short and easy.

Breakdown of Kecuali halaman kedua, semua bahagian laporan ini pendek dan mudah.

• ini: this
• adalah: to be
• dan: and
• laporan: the report
• semua: all
• kedua: second
• mudah: easy
• kecuali: except
• pendek: short
• halaman: the page
• bahagian: the part

Questions & Answers about Kecuali halaman kedua, semua bahagian laporan ini pendek dan mudah.

What is the function of kecuali in this sentence, and how does it differ from selain daripada?

kecuali means except or except for. It introduces an exception and is followed directly by the noun phrase:

• Kecuali halaman kedua (Except for the second page)
  By contrast, selain daripada also means apart from or aside from, but it requires daripada:
• Selain daripada halaman kedua

Both are correct, but kecuali is more concise.

Why is there no word for is (the verb to be) in the sentence?

Malay typically omits the copula (the equivalent of is, am, are) in descriptive sentences. You simply place the adjective after the noun:

• Laporan ini pendek = This report is short.
• Dia pandai = He/she is clever.

So semua bahagian laporan ini pendek dan mudah naturally reads as all parts of this report are short and easy.

Why do adjectives like pendek and mudah come after the noun in Malay?

In Malay, adjectives always follow the noun they modify:

• rumah besar = big house (literally house big)
• makanan sedap = delicious food (literally food tasty)

Thus bahagian … pendek dan mudah literally means parts … short and easy.

How does the phrase bahagian laporan ini work? Why is laporan ini placed after bahagian?

This is a genitive (possessive) construction:

• bahagian = sections/parts
• laporan ini = this report

Put together, bahagian laporan ini = sections of this report. In English we’d say this report’s sections or sections of this report, but in Malay the possessor follows the noun.

Why is it halaman kedua and not halaman yang kedua or halaman 2?

Malay uses built-in ordinal adjectives like pertama, kedua, ketiga directly after the noun without yang:

• halaman pertama = first page
• halaman kedua = second page

You can say halaman yang kedua, but it’s more wordy. In formal or technical contexts you might also see halaman ke-2 (using the prefix ke- plus a numeral).

Is the comma after Kecuali halaman kedua necessary?

The comma separates the fronted exception phrase from the main clause, improving readability. It’s common but not strictly mandatory:

• Kecuali halaman kedua semua bahagian …
• Kecuali halaman kedua, semua bahagian …
  Both are grammatical, though the comma clarifies that Except for the second page applies to the whole following clause.