Saya minum air sejuk di gerai minuman.

I drink cold water at the drink stall.

Breakdown of Saya minum air sejuk di gerai minuman.

• saya: I
• air: the water
• minum: to drink
• di: at
• sejuk: cold
• gerai minuman: the drink stall

Questions & Answers about Saya minum air sejuk di gerai minuman.

How do I pronounce the sentence, and is there any “false friend” to watch out for?

• Saya: SAH-yah
• minum: MEE-noom
• air: two syllables, AH-eer (not like English “air”); it means “water”
• sejuk: sə-JOOK (j as in “just”; u like “oo”)
• di: dee
• gerai: gə-RYE (final diphthong like “eye”)
• minuman: mee-NOO-mahn

False friend: air looks like English “air” but means “water” in Malay. The word for atmospheric air is udara.

Why is it air sejuk and not “sejuk air”? Where do adjectives go?

In Malay, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe. So:

• air sejuk = water (that is) cold
• gerai besar = big stall Putting the adjective before the noun is not grammatical in neutral Malay.

How is tense expressed? Does minum mean past, present, or future?

Malay verbs don’t inflect for tense. Minum is timeless; context or time words add nuance:

• Past/completed: sudah/telah — Saya sudah minum (I have drunk).
• Progressive/ongoing: sedang/tengah — Saya sedang minum (I am drinking).
• Future/intended: akan/nak/mahu — Saya akan minum (I will drink).
• Time adverbs: tadi, sekarang, nanti also help: Saya minum tadi (I drank earlier).

Do I need “a/the” before gerai minuman? How do articles work?

Malay has no mandatory articles. di gerai minuman can mean “at a drinks stall” or “at the drinks stall,” depending on context. To be explicit:

• “at a drinks stall”: di sebuah gerai minuman (uses the classifier/se- word sebuah)
• “at the/that drinks stall”: di gerai minuman itu
• “this drinks stall”: di gerai minuman ini

What’s the difference between saya and aku?

Both mean “I,” but register and intimacy differ:

• saya: neutral/polite; safe in most situations.
• aku: intimate/informal among close friends, in songs, or casual speech. Plural “we” splits into:
• kami (we, not including the listener)
• kita (we, including the listener)

What exactly does minuman mean, and how does it relate to minum?

Root verb: minum (to drink). Noun with suffix -an: minuman (a drink, beverage; things for drinking). So gerai minuman = a stall for beverages. This noun–noun compound is “head + modifier”: gerai (stall) modified by minuman (beverages).

Can I say meminum instead of minum?

You can, but it’s uncommon in everyday speech. Meminum is a formal/derived transitive form and can sound bookish. In daily Malay, minum is the natural choice: Saya minum air sejuk. You’ll mostly see meminum in formal writing.

Does air sejuk mean specifically “cold water,” or could it be any cold drink?

Typically, air sejuk means “cold water” (plain water that is cold). If you want “a cold drink” in general, say:

• minuman sejuk (cold beverage)
• or name the drink: teh ais, jus oren sejuk, etc. Regional note (Malaysia): air in compounds can mean “drink” broadly (e.g., air sirap), but air sejuk is usually understood as cold water.

Is there a difference between sejuk, dingin, ais/es, air kosong/air putih?

• sejuk: cold/cool (common in Malay for temperature).
• dingin: more common in Indonesian for “cold”; in Malay it can sound formal or mean “aloof” emotionally.
• ais (MY) / es (ID): ice; iced. MY: teh ais; ID: es teh.
• air kosong/air putih: plain water. In Malaysia, air kosong or air suam (warm plain water) is common; in Indonesia air putih means plain water. air mineral = mineral water (bottled).

How would I specify a quantity like “a glass/bottle of cold water”?

Use classifiers with the se- form:

• segelas air sejuk = a glass of cold water
• sebotol air sejuk = a bottle of cold water
• secawan air sejuk = a cup of cold water Example: Saya minum segelas air sejuk di gerai minuman.

Is di gerai minuman the right preposition? What’s the difference between di and ke?

• di = at/in/on (location): di gerai minuman (at the drinks stall).
• ke = to/toward (movement): ke gerai minuman (to the drinks stall). Spelling tip: di as a preposition is written separately (di gerai), whereas the passive prefix di- attaches to verbs (e.g., ditulis).

Can I move the place phrase to the front for emphasis?

Yes. Malay allows topicalization:

• Neutral: Saya minum air sejuk di gerai minuman.
• Place-fronted: Di gerai minuman, saya minum air sejuk. The meaning stays the same; fronting highlights the location.

Can I omit the subject saya?

Sometimes, in very casual speech or notes, people drop obvious subjects, but the safest and most natural full sentence uses the subject:

• Full: Saya minum air sejuk di gerai minuman. Omitting it can sound fragmentary unless context is crystal clear.

How do I make this negative or turn it into a question?

• Negative: Saya tidak minum air sejuk di gerai minuman.
• Yes–no question: keep the same order and use rising intonation, or add a question particle (regional):
  • Saya minum air sejuk di gerai minuman?
  • Malaysian colloquial: Saya minum air sejuk di gerai minuman, ya/ke?
• Wh- questions:
  • What are you drinking? Awak minum apa?
  • Where are you drinking? Awak minum di mana?

Is gerai the same as kedai or warung?

They overlap but differ in nuance and region:

• gerai: stall/booth (often small, in food courts or markets).
• kedai: shop/store; also used for eateries (e.g., kedai kopi).
• warung: small roadside shop/eatery (common in Indonesia; understood in Malaysia). All three can sell drinks; gerai minuman specifically highlights a stall-format drinks vendor.