Learn Hardcore Malay: Kalau saya marah pun, saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang. - Even if I am angry, I try to speak calmly.

kalau = if (informal–neutral, very common in speech)
A more formal/school-book word is jika, which also means if.
In casual speech, people often use kalau instead of jika, even in serious contexts.

So yes, here kalau works like English if, introducing a condition.

What is the function of pun after marah, and can I just leave it out?

Here pun adds an “even” / “still” nuance:

Kalau saya marah pun ≈ “Even if I am angry…” or “Even when I’m angry…”

It softens the sentence and gives a concessive feel: in spite of being angry, I still try to speak calmly.

If you leave out pun:

Kalau saya marah, saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang.
→ More like “If I am angry, I try to speak calmly.”
This is a bit more neutral, more straightforwardly conditional.

Meaning is similar overall, but pun emphasizes the contrast and sounds more natural and expressive in this kind of sentence.

Is Kalau saya marah pun basically the same as Walaupun saya marah or Meskipun saya marah?

They are very close in meaning but differ in style:

Kalau saya marah pun…
→ Common, neutral, sounds natural in speech and writing.
Literally: If I’m angry even…
Walaupun saya marah… / Meskipun saya marah…
→ More formal or “bookish”, often used in essays, speeches, or careful writing.
Literally: Although I’m angry… / Even though I’m angry…

In practice:

Everyday conversation: Kalau saya marah pun…
Formal writing: Walaupun / Meskipun is slightly preferred.

All express the idea “even though I’m angry…”.

Is marah here a verb (“to get angry”) or an adjective (“angry”)?

In this sentence, marah behaves like an adjective:

saya marah = “I am angry” (state/feeling)

Malay often doesn’t separate adjectives and stative verbs the way English does, so marah can also appear in more verb-like forms:

Dia marah. = He/She is angry.
Dia memarahi saya. = He/She scolded me (literally “angried me”).

But in Kalau saya marah pun, you can think of it as “if I am angry” (adjective-like).

Why is it saya cuba bercakap and not saya cuba untuk bercakap?

Both are possible, but they differ slightly:

saya cuba bercakap
→ Very natural and common. cuba + verb is the normal pattern for “try to [do something]”.
saya cuba untuk bercakap
→ Grammatically correct, but can sound a bit more formal or slightly wordier in everyday speech.
cuba untuk + verb is often used in formal writing or when you want to sound very careful/polite.

In this specific sentence, saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang is the most natural choice.

What is the difference between bercakap and cakap?

Both are related to speaking/talking, but:

bercakap
- More neutral / standard.
- Fits well in polite conversation and writing.
- Here: saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang = “I try to speak calmly.”
cakap
- Often used as the base/root form (like an infinitive) and also in colloquial speech.
- In casual speech, you often hear:
  - saya cuba cakap dengan tenang
    This sounds informal but is widely used.

As a learner, using bercakap in this sentence is safe and polite; cakap is fine in casual contexts.

What does dengan tenang literally mean, and why use dengan here?

Literally:

dengan = with
tenang = calm / calmly

So dengan tenang literally = “with calm(ness)”, and functions like an adverbial phrase meaning “calmly”.

In Malay, a common way to form an adverb (how something is done) is:

dengan + adjective
- dengan perlahan = slowly
- dengan jelas = clearly
- dengan tenang = calmly

Other possibilities exist (e.g. secara tenang), but dengan tenang is very natural here.

Could I say bertenang instead of dengan tenang?

Not in this exact structure.

bertenang is more like “to stay calm” / “to calm oneself”.
Example:
- Cuba bertenang. = “Try to stay calm.”

In your sentence, the focus is on how you speak: “speak calmly”, not “calm yourself”. So:

saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang = “I try to speak calmly” (manner of speaking)
saya cuba bertenang = “I try to calm down / stay calm” (your emotional state)

Both are correct sentences, but they say slightly different things.

How do we know the tense? Could it also mean “I tried” or “I will try”?

Malay does not mark tense on the verb the way English does. It relies on:

Context
Time words (like semalam = yesterday, nanti = later, akan = will)

So saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang can mean:

“I try to speak calmly.” (present/habit)
“I will try to speak calmly.” (future, if the context suggests it)
“I tried to speak calmly.” (past, if you’re telling a story about before)

By itself, and especially with kalau plus a general statement, it’s often understood as habitual/general:
“Even if I’m angry, I (always) try to speak calmly.”

Is there anything special about the word order? Could I say saya cuba dengan tenang bercakap?

The natural word order in Malay is:

verb + (object) + manner phrase

So:

saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang
→ sounds natural.

Saya cuba dengan tenang bercakap is grammatically understandable but sounds awkward and unnatural to native speakers.

Keep dengan tenang after bercakap as a phrase describing how you speak.

Is this sentence formal or informal? And is saya the polite choice?

The sentence is neutral, suitable for both everyday conversation and reasonably formal situations.

saya = neutral–polite “I / me”
- Used in most situations, including talking to strangers, colleagues, in public, etc.
aku = informal “I / me”
- Used with close friends, family, or people of equal status in casual contexts.

So:

Kalau saya marah pun, saya cuba bercakap dengan tenang.
→ Polite, neutral, and safe to use almost anywhere.

An informal version among close friends might be:

Kalau aku marah pun, aku cuba cakap dengan tenang.