Learn Hardcore Malay: Laporan penting itu dibaca sebelum mesyuarat. - The important report is read before the meeting.

Itu is a demonstrative that usually means that, but very often it also works like the in English, making the noun more specific or definite.

In laporan penting itu:

laporan = report
penting = important
itu = that / the (specific)

So laporan penting itu means that important report or the important report.

In Malay, itu comes after the noun phrase it modifies, so it naturally appears at the end of laporan penting.

What is the difference between laporan penting itu and laporan itu penting?

They mean different things and have different structures:

laporan penting itu
- Structure: noun + adjective + itu
- Meaning: that important report / the important report (a specific report, and important is just describing it)
- Used as a noun phrase.
laporan itu penting
- Structure: noun + itu + adjective
- Meaning: that report is important / the report is important
- Here, laporan itu is the subject (that report / the report), and penting acts like a predicate (is important).
- Used as a full sentence.

So:

laporan penting itu = the important report (as an object or subject)
laporan itu penting = the report is important (a statement about the report)

Is dibaca specifically past tense, like was read, or can it also mean is read or will be read?

Dibaca is not marked for tense. It simply means read (in passive voice). The actual time (past, present, future) comes from context or time expressions.

So Laporan penting itu dibaca sebelum mesyuarat can be understood as:

The important report was read before the meeting (most natural in many contexts)
The important report is read before the meeting (as a general routine)
Less commonly, with future context: The important report will be read before the meeting

If you want to make the time clearer, you can add markers:

telah / sudah for past:
Laporan penting itu telah dibaca sebelum mesyuarat.
= The important report has been / was read before the meeting.
akan for future:
Laporan penting itu akan dibaca sebelum mesyuarat.
= The important report will be read before the meeting.

Why is dibaca used instead of membaca? What is the difference?

membaca = to read (active voice, someone is doing the reading)
dibaca = is/was read (passive voice, focus on what is read, not who reads it)

In the sentence:

Laporan penting itu dibaca sebelum mesyuarat.
Focus = the report. We don’t mention who reads it.

If you used the active form, you would need a subject:

Kami membaca laporan penting itu sebelum mesyuarat.
= We read the important report before the meeting.

So dibaca is used when:

the object (the report) is the focus, and
the doer (reader) is not mentioned or not important.

How would I say We read the important report before the meeting using the active voice?

A natural active-voice version is:

Kami membaca laporan penting itu sebelum mesyuarat.

Breakdown:

Kami = we
membaca = read (active)
laporan penting itu = the important report
sebelum mesyuarat = before the meeting

You could also replace kami with other subjects like saya (I), mereka (they), pengurus (the manager), etc.

If I want to mention who read the report in the passive sentence, how can I do that?

You can keep the passive structure and add an agent using oleh:

Laporan penting itu dibaca oleh pengurus sebelum mesyuarat.
= The important report was read by the manager before the meeting.

Structure:

Laporan penting itu = the important report
dibaca = was read
oleh pengurus = by the manager
sebelum mesyuarat = before the meeting

In more colloquial Malay, people often prefer an active-like structure without the prefix:

Laporan penting itu pengurus baca sebelum mesyuarat.
(Literally: that important report, the manager read before the meeting.)

This is common in speech but less formal than the dibaca oleh form.

Does sebelum mesyuarat always mean before the meeting? Can it mean before a meeting in general?

Sebelum mesyuarat is neutral with respect to definiteness. It can mean:

before the meeting (a specific meeting both speakers know about), or
before a meeting (in a general or habitual sense).

Malay does not use articles like a and the, so context tells you whether the meaning is specific or general.

If you want to be clearly specific, you can say:

sebelum mesyuarat itu = before that meeting / before the meeting (mentioned earlier)
sebelum mesyuarat tersebut = before that (aforementioned) meeting (more formal).

Can I change the word order to start with before the meeting?

Yes. You can put the time expression at the beginning for emphasis:

Sebelum mesyuarat, laporan penting itu dibaca.
= Before the meeting, the important report was read.

This is still correct and natural. It slightly emphasizes the time (before the meeting) rather than the report.

Are there other ways to say before the meeting, like using semasa or dalam?

Yes, but they change the meaning:

sebelum mesyuarat = before the meeting
semasa mesyuarat = during the meeting / while the meeting is happening
dalam mesyuarat = in the meeting / during the meeting (more like in the context of the meeting)

So:

Laporan penting itu dibaca sebelum mesyuarat.
= The report was read before the meeting.
Laporan penting itu dibaca semasa mesyuarat.
= The report was read during the meeting.
Laporan penting itu dibaca dalam mesyuarat.
= The report was read in the meeting.

Why is the adjective penting placed after laporan, not before it, like in English?

In Malay, adjectives normally come after the noun they describe:

laporan penting = important report
buku baharu = new book
kereta besar = big car

So laporan penting is the standard order. Putting penting before laporan would be ungrammatical in standard Malay.

Is mesyuarat the only word for meeting, or are there others?

Mesyuarat is the standard, general word for meeting, especially formal or work-related meetings (committee, office, board, etc.).

Other related words:

perjumpaan – a gathering or meet-up (can be less formal, like a reunion or a casual meet)
sidang – a session, sitting, often used for parliamentary or conference sessions

In this sentence, mesyuarat is the most natural choice for a typical work/official meeting.

Is the sentence formal, informal, or neutral in tone?

Laporan penting itu dibaca sebelum mesyuarat. sounds fairly formal and suitable for:

written reports
official documents
formal speech in meetings

In casual conversation, people might use an active or colloquial structure instead, such as:

Kita baca laporan penting itu sebelum mesyuarat.
Laporan penting itu kita baca sebelum mesyuarat.