Learn Hardcore Malay: Perbezaan pendapat kecil itu tidak mengganggu perbualan kami. - That small difference of opinion does not disturb our conversation.

perbezaan pendapat = a noun–noun compound: head noun perbezaan (difference) + complement pendapat (opinion) → “difference of opinion.”
kecil = adjective modifying the whole noun phrase “difference of opinion” → “small.”
itu = demonstrative (“that/the”) placed after the noun phrase. It makes the phrase definite and often indicates something previously known/mentioned. Overall: “that small difference of opinion.”

Why does the adjective kecil come after the noun, not before?

In Malay, attributive adjectives generally follow the noun: noun + adjective. So it’s perbezaan (difference) kecil (small), not “kecil perbezaan.” If the adjective is long or part of a clause, you can link it with yang: perbezaan pendapat yang kecil.

Can I move itu somewhere else? For example, can I say perbezaan pendapat itu kecil or start with itu?

perbezaan pendapat kecil itu = “that small difference of opinion” (itu makes the NP definite).
perbezaan pendapat itu kecil = “that difference of opinion is small” (here itu marks the subject NP, and kecil is a predicate adjective).
Sentence-initial Itu perbezaan pendapat kecil… is also possible; itu then works like “That…” to topicalize/foreground the NP.
In formal writing, tersebut can replace itu: perbezaan pendapat kecil tersebut (“the aforementioned small difference of opinion”).

Why is the negator tidak, not bukan?

tidak negates verbs and adjectives: tidak mengganggu, tidak kecil, tidak bagus.
bukan negates nouns/pronouns or corrects identification: Dia bukan doktor, Itu bukan masalah. Here we’re negating a verb (mengganggu), so tidak is correct.

Can I use the shorter tak instead of tidak?

Yes. Tak is the common colloquial form of tidak. Your sentence can be: … tak mengganggu perbualan kami. It’s natural in speech and informal writing; stick with tidak in formal prose.

What is the base form of mengganggu, and what does the meN- prefix do?

Base/root: ganggu (“to disturb/bother; to interfere with”).
meN-
- ganggu → mengganggu (active transitive verb). The nasal assimilates to the initial consonant; before g it surfaces as meng-. Related forms:
gangguan (noun) = disturbance.
Imperative/neutral: jangan ganggu (“don’t disturb”).

Could I say something like mengganggukan?

No. mengganggu is already the correct transitive verb; adding -kan here is ungrammatical. If you want a causative or benefactive effect, -kan works with some bases, but not with ganggu.

Is there a passive or alternative way to phrase the sentence?

Yes:

Perbualan kami tidak terganggu (oleh perbezaan pendapat kecil itu). = “Our conversation was not disturbed …” (terganggu = stative/resultative “be disturbed.”)
Perbualan kami tidak diganggu oleh… = “Our conversation was not disturbed by …” (di- passive; oleh “by” is optional in many contexts).

How is past tense shown here? English says “did not,” but Malay has no tense marker.

Malay verbs don’t inflect for tense. Tidak mengganggu can be present or past; the time frame comes from context or adverbs:

Past/completed: sudah/telah → … tidak (pernah) mengganggu, … tidak mengganggu semalam.
Future: akan → … tidak akan mengganggu.

How does possession work in perbualan kami? Why is the pronoun after the noun?

Possession is typically NOUN + possessor, with no apostrophe or “of”:

perbualan kami = “our conversation.”
rumah mereka = “their house.” You can add a proper noun similarly: rumah Ali (“Ali’s house”).

What’s the difference between kami and kita?

Both mean “we/us,” but:

kami = exclusive (excludes the listener).
kita = inclusive (includes the listener). So perbualan kami implies the conversation did not include the person addressed; perbualan kita would include them.

What’s the difference between perbualan, perbincangan, and percakapan?

perbualan (from bual, “to chat”) = conversation/chat; neutral and common in Malaysia.
perbincangan (from bincang, “to discuss”) = discussion, often more purposeful or formal.
percakapan (from cakap, “to speak”) = speech/talk/conversation; used but less common than perbualan in Malaysia; more common in Indonesian as percakapan.

Is perbezaan pendapat a set phrase? How is perbezaan formed?

Yes, perbezaan pendapat is a common fixed expression meaning “difference of opinion.” Morphology:

beza = different; difference.
per-…-an nominalizes it: perbezaan = “difference.” Note the double “a” when -an attaches to a base ending in “a” (beza + an → bezaan).
Compare Indonesian: perbedaan (spelled with d, not z).

What does pendapat mean exactly, and is there a related verb?

pendapat = “opinion/view.” The related verb is berpendapat = “to hold the opinion / to think (that).” Another near-synonym noun is pandangan (“viewpoint”).

Could I say this another way, like “a small difference in opinion”?

Yes:

Sedikit perbezaan pendapat tidak mengganggu perbualan kami. (“A slight/small difference of opinion didn’t …”)
Perbezaan kecil dalam pendapat kami tidak… (more literally “a small difference in our opinions”; more wordy and less idiomatic than the set phrase).
Perbezaan pandangan kecil… also works (“difference in viewpoints”).

Do I need yang before kecil? When would I use it?

You don’t need it here: perbezaan pendapat kecil itu is fine. Use yang to clearly link a longer modifier or to add emphasis/restriction:

perbezaan pendapat yang kecil itu = “that difference of opinion which is small” (slightly more formal/specific).

Is there any plural marking here? How would I say “small differences of opinion”?

Malay doesn’t require plural marking. Plurality is inferred or indicated with quantifiers/reduplication:

beberapa perbezaan pendapat kecil = several small differences of opinion.
perbezaan-perbezaan pendapat kecil = plural via reduplication (often unnecessary unless you need to stress multiplicity).

Any pronunciation tips for perbezaan and mengganggu?

perbezaan: four syllables per-be-za-an. The adjacent vowels a+a are pronounced separately (not like a single long vowel).
mengganggu: me-nggang-gu. The “ngg” is the nasal+g cluster [ŋg], not just [ŋ]. Stress is relatively flat; Malay is syllable-timed.

Could I drop itu? What changes?

Yes. Without itu, the phrase becomes non-specific/generic:

Perbezaan pendapat kecil tidak mengganggu perbualan kami. ≈ “A small difference of opinion didn’t disturb our conversation” (or as a general truth: “Small differences of opinion don’t…”). Including itu points to a particular, known difference of opinion: “That small difference of opinion…”

Are there good synonyms for mengganggu here, and do they change the nuance?

mengacau = disturb/mess with; more colloquial, can sound rougher.
menjejaskan = to impair/affect negatively; more formal/abstract (e.g., “didn’t affect our conversation”).
mengusik = to tease/perturb; lighter.
menggugat = to threaten/undermine; formal and strong. Your original mengganggu is neutral and fits best for “disturb/disrupt.”