Learn Hardcore Malay: Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama ketika saya belajar. - My cat sleeps on the same sofa when I study.

kucing saya – neutral and polite; standard in writing and formal speech.
kucing aku – informal, used with friends / people close to you.
kucingku – uses the suffix -ku (my); feels literary, poetic, or affectionate; common in songs, novels, or very intimate speech.

All three can mean my cat; the choice depends on how formal you want to be and who you’re talking to. In your sentence, kucing saya is a safe, standard choice.

Where are the words the and a in this Malay sentence?

Malay usually does not use articles like the or a/an. Definiteness is understood from context or from other words:

kucing saya is clearly my cat, so it is definite.
sofa yang sama is understood as the same sofa; yang sama makes it specific.

If you really need to emphasize a vs the, you can sometimes add words like:

sebuah sofa – a sofa / one sofa
sofa itu – that sofa / the sofa

But in everyday Malay, sentences often work fine without any equivalent of the or a.

In English I’d say My cat is sleeping. Why is there no word like is in kucing saya tidur?

Malay does not use a separate verb like to be (am/is/are) before ordinary verbs:

kucing saya tidur = my cat sleeps / my cat is sleeping
- kucing = cat
- saya = I / my
- tidur = sleep

You just put the subject and then the verb. No extra is is needed.

If you want to emphasize that the action is in progress right now, you can add sedang:

Kucing saya sedang tidur = My cat is sleeping (right now, in progress).

But Kucing saya tidur is already a perfectly correct sentence.

How can this sentence mean both My cat sleeps and My cat slept? There’s no tense on tidur.

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. The verb tidur can mean:

sleeps
is sleeping
slept
was sleeping

The exact time is understood from context or from extra time words. For example:

Tadi kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama ketika saya belajar.
= Earlier / just now my cat slept on the same sofa while I was studying.
Esok kucing saya akan tidur di sofa yang sama ketika saya belajar.
= Tomorrow my cat will sleep on the same sofa when I study.

Common time markers:

tadi – earlier, just now
sudah / telah – already
akan – will
sedang – currently, in the middle of (doing something)

Without those, you rely on context to decide whether it’s present, past, or future.

What exactly does di mean in di sofa? Could I use atas or pada instead?

di is the basic preposition for location and usually means at / in / on, depending on the noun:

di rumah – at home
di meja – at the table
di sofa – on/at the sofa

A few related options:

di atas sofa – literally on top of the sofa; a bit more explicit than di sofa, but both are commonly used.
atas sofa – more casual; often understood as on the sofa.
pada – more abstract (at, on, in) and often used with time or more formal expressions; pada sofa is grammatically possible but sounds unnatural here. For physical location, di is normal.

So in your sentence, di sofa is the natural choice.

What does yang do in the phrase sofa yang sama?

Yang is a very important word in Malay. Among other roles, it acts like a linker between a noun and a describing word or clause. In sofa yang sama:

sofa = sofa
yang = (linker, roughly like that / which / that is)
sama = same

Together, sofa yang sama means the same sofa or the sofa that is the same.

More examples:

orang yang tinggi = the tall person (the person who is tall)
kucing yang comel = the cute cat (the cat that is cute)

So here, yang connects sofa with the description sama.

Can I drop yang and just say sofa sama?

In standard Malay, sofa yang sama is the natural and clear way to say the same sofa.

If you say sofa sama:

It can sound incomplete or a bit off in careful/standard speech.
In casual speech, it might be understood as a similar sofa, but it’s not the most natural phrasing for the same sofa.

To be safe and correct, use:

sofa yang sama = the same sofa
sofa yang serupa = a similar sofa

So for your sentence, sofa yang sama is the best form.

What does ketika mean here, and how is it different from other words like semasa, waktu, or bila?

In your sentence, ketika means when / while (at the time that):

ketika saya belajar = when I study / while I am studying

Some near-synonyms and their nuances:

ketika – fairly neutral, slightly formal; common in writing and speech.
semasa – similar to ketika, also when / during the time when; often used in more formal contexts too.
waktu / masa – literally time; used like when in many everyday sentences:
- waktu saya belajar / masa saya belajar = when I study.
bila – commonly used as when in questions and casual speech:
- Bila kamu belajar? = When do you study?
  In formal writing, bila is often reserved for questions and apabila is used in statements.
apabila – formal when in statements.

In your sentence, you could also say:

Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama semasa saya belajar.
Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama waktu saya belajar.

All sound natural, with small differences in formality.

Is it necessary to repeat saya in ketika saya belajar? Could I just say ketika belajar?

You can drop saya if the subject is clear from context and it’s the same as the main subject:

Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama ketika belajar.

This will usually be understood as while I am studying, because we know from context that I am the one who studies.

However, including saya:

ketika saya belajar

is clearer and more explicit, and is preferred in careful or formal usage. For learners, it’s safer to keep the pronoun until you’re very comfortable with when it can be omitted.

Can I move ketika saya belajar to the front of the sentence?

Yes. Malay word order is quite flexible with time expressions. You can say:

Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama ketika saya belajar.
Ketika saya belajar, kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama.

Both mean the same thing. Starting with Ketika saya belajar puts more emphasis on the time: While I’m studying, my cat sleeps on the same sofa.

Does ketika saya belajar describe the sofa or the sleeping action? Is there any ambiguity?

In Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama ketika saya belajar, ketika saya belajar is understood as a time clause describing the sleeping event, not the sofa.

So the meaning is:

My cat sleeps on the same sofa at the time when I am studying.

If you wanted it to more clearly describe where you are (for example, both you and the cat using the same sofa), you’d normally change the structure, e.g.:

Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama dengan saya ketika saya belajar.
= My cat sleeps on the same sofa as me when I study.

As written, native speakers read ketika saya belajar as modifying tidur (the action), not sofa.

What exactly does belajar mean here? Is it to study or to learn? How is it different from mengajar?

Belajar means to study / to learn:

saya belajar = I study / I am studying / I learn

It can mean:

studying (doing homework, revision, reading, etc.), or
learning (acquiring knowledge/skills).

Context decides which English translation is more natural.

Mengajar, on the other hand, means to teach:

saya mengajar = I teach
guru mengajar murid = the teacher teaches the students

So in your sentence, ketika saya belajar means when I’m studying / when I study, not when I’m teaching.

Is there any politeness or formality nuance in using saya here instead of aku?

Yes:

saya – polite, neutral, suitable in almost all situations (formal and informal).
aku – informal, used with close friends, family, or people of equal/lower status in casual contexts; can sound rude if used with strangers or in formal situations.

Your sentence with saya:

Kucing saya tidur di sofa yang sama ketika saya belajar.

is polite and standard.

In a very casual context with a friend, you might say:

Kucing aku tidur di sofa yang sama ketika aku belajar.

The meaning is the same; only the tone/formality changes.