Learn Hardcore Malay: Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel. - Please do not sing loudly in the hotel lobby.

As help:
- Tolong saya! – Help me!
As please:
- Tolong tutup pintu. – Please close the door.
- Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat. – Please don’t sing loudly.

So here, Tolong is functioning like please, softening the command and making it more polite.

Why do we need both Tolong and jangan? Isn’t jangan already a command meaning “don’t”?

Jangan is the word used to make a negative command or prohibition:

Jangan lari. – Don’t run.
Jangan merokok. – Don’t smoke.

If you only say Jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel, it can sound like a fairly direct order: “Don’t sing loudly in the hotel lobby.”

By adding Tolong in front (Tolong jangan…), you make it more polite and softer, like “Please don’t…” in English.

So:

Jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel. – Don’t sing loudly in the hotel lobby. (direct)
Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel. – Please don’t sing loudly in the hotel lobby. (more polite)

What’s the difference between nyanyi and menyanyi? Why is it menyanyi here?

The root word is nyanyi (sing). When you add the prefix meN-, it becomes menyanyi. This prefix is very common and typically turns roots into standard verb forms.

nyanyi – sing (root; often used in casual speech)
menyanyi – to sing (standard verb form)

In correct/neutral Malay, you normally use menyanyi:

Saya suka menyanyi. – I like to sing.
Jangan menyanyi kuat. – Don’t sing loudly.

In relaxed, colloquial speech, people may say nyanyi instead:

Jangan nyanyi kuat. – (very casual) Don’t sing loudly.

For a sentence that could appear in a classroom, textbook, or polite context, menyanyi is the appropriate choice.

Why is it menyanyi kuat and not kuat menyanyi? Where do adverbs like “loudly” usually go in Malay?

In Malay, adverbs that describe how something is done usually come after the verb they modify.

menyanyi kuat – sing loudly
bercakap perlahan – speak slowly/quietly
berlari laju – run fast

So the pattern is:

[verb] + [adverb]

That’s why menyanyi kuat is natural, while kuat menyanyi is unusual and doesn’t sound right in this context.

Does kuat literally mean “loudly”? I thought it meant “strong”.

Yes, the basic meaning of kuat is strong, but it also extends to mean loud when talking about sounds.

Orang itu kuat. – That person is strong.
Bunyi itu kuat. – That sound is loud.
Menyanyi kuat. – To sing loudly.

So here, kuat is being used in its “strong (volume)” sense.

For “noisy”, another common word is bising, for example:

Jangan terlalu bising di lobi hotel. – Don’t be too noisy in the hotel lobby.

Why is it di lobi hotel and not something like di hotel lobi? What’s the rule for noun order?

Malay usually puts the main noun first, then the describing/qualifying noun after it.

So lobi hotel literally means “lobby (of the) hotel”, like “hotel lobby” in English, but the order is:

[main noun] + [qualifier]
lobi + hotel → lobi hotel (hotel lobby)

Other examples:

bilik hotel – hotel room (room of a hotel)
pintu rumah – house door (door of a house)
tiket bas – bus ticket (ticket for a bus)

So lobi hotel is correct; hotel lobi would sound wrong in Malay.

What exactly does di mean here? Is it “in” or “at”?

Di is a preposition meaning at, in, or on, depending on context. It marks a location.

In di lobi hotel, it means in/at the hotel lobby. You choose the English preposition based on what sounds natural in English, but Malay just uses di.

Other examples:

di rumah – at home / in the house
di sekolah – at school
di meja – on/at the table

So di is the general “location” preposition in Malay.

Why don’t we need a word for “the” in lobi hotel? How do I know it’s “the hotel lobby” and not “a hotel lobby”?

Malay does not use articles like a, an, or the. The noun phrase lobi hotel is neutral: it can mean a hotel lobby or the hotel lobby, depending on context.

The definiteness (a/the) is understood from the situation or extra words:

Saya di lobi hotel. – I’m in the hotel lobby.
Kami menunggu di lobi hotel itu. – We are waiting in that hotel lobby.
- itu = that (makes it clearly definite/specific)

In your sentence, because we’re talking about a specific place where the listener is or will be, the natural English translation is the hotel lobby, even though Malay doesn’t mark it.

Is Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel polite enough to say to a stranger, or is it too direct?

It’s polite, especially if your tone is gentle. Tolong jangan… is a standard, respectful way to say please don’t….

To make it even softer or more friendly, people sometimes add:

ya or ya, cik/puan/tuan at the end:
- Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel, ya.
Encik / Cik / Puan to address the person respectfully:
- Encik, tolong jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel.

But as it is, the sentence is not rude; it’s a reasonable polite request. Tone of voice matters a lot in real-life use.

Could I say Tolong jangan kuat menyanyi di lobi hotel instead?

That word order sounds unnatural in Malay. The adverb kuat should directly follow the verb menyanyi:

✔ menyanyi kuat – correct
✖ kuat menyanyi – sounds wrong here

So the natural version is:

Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel.

If you really want to emphasize how the singing is done, you could also say:

Tolong jangan menyanyi dengan kuat di lobi hotel.
(literally: “please don’t sing with strong (volume)” → please don’t sing loudly)

But menyanyi kuat is simpler and very common.

What’s the difference between jangan and tidak? Why not Tolong tidak menyanyi kuat?

Jangan and tidak are both negative words, but they are used differently:

jangan = don’t, used in commands/requests (imperatives)
- Jangan lari. – Don’t run.
- Tolong jangan bising. – Please don’t be noisy.
tidak = not / do not, used in statements with verbs or adjectives
- Saya tidak menyanyi. – I do not sing / I am not singing.
- Dia tidak kuat. – He/She is not strong.

Because the sentence is a request/command, you must use jangan, not tidak.
So:

✔ Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat… – correct
✖ Tolong tidak menyanyi kuat… – ungrammatical in Malay.

How do you pronounce menyanyi and jangan? The ny and ng look tricky.

Pronunciation tips:

ny in menyanyi is like “ny” in “canyon” or Spanish ñ:
- menyanyi → roughly muh-NYA-nyi
  - me – like muh
  - nya – like nya in Kenya
  - nyi – similar to nyee
ng in jangan is like “ng” in “singer”:
- jangan → roughly JANG-an
  - ja – like ja in jar but shorter
  - ng – as in sing
  - an – like un in sun

So the full sentence, roughly:

Tolong jangan menyanyi kuat di lobi hotel.
→ TO-long JANG-an muh-NYA-nyi KOO-at dee LO-bi HO-tel (all vowels clear and short).