Learn Hardcore Malay: Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat. - He/She talks with the boss at the office.

Dia is a third-person singular pronoun and can mean he, she, or they (singular, gender-neutral), depending on context. Malay pronouns are not marked for gender, so:

Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
can be translated as
- He is talking to the boss in the office.
- She is talking to the boss in the office.

You must infer gender from context, or specify it with extra information (for example, dia (lelaki) = he (male), dia (perempuan) = she (female)), but this is not common in casual speech unless needed for clarity.

Does this sentence mean he/she spoke, is speaking, or will speak? Where is the tense shown?

Malay verbs normally do not change form for tense. The verb bercakap itself is tenseless.

Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat. can mean:

He/She spoke with the boss in the office. (past)
He/She is speaking with the boss in the office. (present)
He/She will speak with the boss in the office. (future, if context makes that clear, though this is less common without a time word)

To show tense/aspect explicitly, Malay usually uses time expressions or particles, for example:

Dia sedang bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
He/She is currently speaking with the boss in the office.
Tadi dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
Earlier he/she spoke with the boss in the office.
Esok dia akan bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
Tomorrow he/she will speak with the boss in the office.

What is the role of ber- in bercakap? Why not just cakap?

The prefix ber- turns a root into an intransitive or “doing” verb.

Root: cakap – speech, talk (also used as a verb informally)
Verb: bercakap – to speak, to talk

In standard/neutral Malay, bercakap is a common and slightly more formal verb meaning to speak / to talk.

In everyday conversation, many people also simply use cakap as a verb:

Dia cakap dengan bos di pejabat. (colloquial)
Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat. (neutral/standard)

Both are understood; bercakap sounds a bit more standard or careful.

Why is the preposition dengan used here? Can you use kepada instead?

In Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat, dengan means with and indicates interaction between two parties.

bercakap dengan [someone] = to talk with / to [someone], emphasizing a two-way interaction.

Kepada generally means to in the sense of direction or recipient (especially for giving, telling, addressing something):

Dia berkata kepada bos. – He/She said (something) to the boss.
Dia menulis surat kepada bos. – He/She wrote a letter to the boss.

You can hear bercakap kepada in more formal or literary contexts, but day‑to‑day speech much more often uses:

bercakap dengan [orang]
cakap dengan [orang]

So in this sentence, dengan is the natural choice.

What does bos mean, and why is it spelled bos and not boss?

Bos is the Malay adaptation of the English word boss. Malay commonly adapts English loanwords into its own spelling system. Some examples:

teknologi (technology)
stesen (station)
bas (bus)
bos (boss)

So bos = boss, usually meaning someone who is your superior at work (manager, supervisor, director, etc.), depending on context.

In more formal Malay, you might use:

ketua – leader/head
pengurus – manager
penyelia – supervisor

But bos is very common and natural in everyday speech.

Should bos be capitalized here, like Bos?

In Malay, you normally do not capitalize bos if it’s just a common noun:

Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
He/She is talking with the boss in the office.

Capitalize it only if it is part of a specific title or used like a name:

Dia bercakap dengan Bos Ali di pejabat. – Here Bos Ali functions like a title + name.
Saya akan berjumpa dengan Tuan Pengarah. – Pengarah is capitalized because it’s part of a formal title.

In your sentence, bos is a general role, so keep it lowercase.

What does di mean, and how is di pejabat different from pada or dekat?

Di is a basic preposition meaning at / in / on (for location):

di pejabat – at the office / in the office
di rumah – at home
di sekolah – at school

Comparisons:

pada – often means on / at but is more abstract, used with time and certain objects:
- pada pukul 3 – at 3 o’clock
- Pada pendapat saya – In my opinion
  You wouldn’t say pada pejabat to mean at the office.
dekat (dengan) – means near (to):
- Dia berada dekat (dengan) pejabat. – He/She is near the office.

So di pejabat is the standard and natural way to say at the office / in the office.

Is di pejabat more like in the office or at the office?

Malay di covers both English in and at for location, so di pejabat can be translated as either:

in the office
at the office

The choice in English depends on how you want to phrase it, not on a change in Malay. Both are valid translations of di pejabat in this sentence.

Could the word order be Dia bercakap di pejabat dengan bos instead? Does that change the meaning?

Yes, you can say:

Dia bercakap di pejabat dengan bos.

The basic meaning is still He/She is talking with the boss in the office.

However, there is a subtle difference in emphasis:

Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
– more natural; flows as “He/She is talking with the boss (and this is happening) in the office.”
Dia bercakap di pejabat dengan bos.
– slightly emphasizes at the office first, then adds with the boss; still acceptable but less typical.

In everyday speech, [verb] + dengan [person] + di [place] is very common and sounds more natural here.

Can I drop dia and just say Bercakap dengan bos di pejabat?

You can drop dia in some contexts, but it changes the feel of the sentence:

Bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
Literally: (Someone is) talking with the boss in the office.

Without dia, it sounds like:

a fragment (e.g. in notes, instructions, headlines), or
something where the subject is understood from context (for example, when giving instructions:
Kalau ada masalah, bercakap dengan bos di pejabat. – If there is a problem, talk to the boss in the office.)

For a complete, neutral sentence describing someone’s action, Dia bercakap dengan bos di pejabat. is better.

Is bercakap the only way to say talk / speak? What about cakap, berbual, or berkata?

There are several related verbs:

bercakap – to speak, to talk
- Neutral/standard, common.
- Dia bercakap dengan bos.
cakap – to speak, to talk
- Often more colloquial, especially without the prefix.
- Dia cakap dengan bos. (very common in informal speech)
berbual – to chat, to have a conversation
- More like chatting or having a conversation, often informal and two‑way.
- Dia berbual dengan bos di pejabat. – He/She is chatting with the boss in the office.
berkata – to say
- Usually followed by what is said, more formal/literary.
- Dia berkata kepada bos, “Saya sudah siap.” – He/She said to the boss, “I’m finished.”

All can involve speech, but the nuance and usual structure differ. In your sentence, bercakap dengan fits naturally.

Is dia appropriate for a boss, or should I use beliau when referring to a respected person?

Dia is the general third-person pronoun used for anyone in everyday speech, regardless of status.

Beliau is a more respectful, formal third-person pronoun, commonly used for:

teachers
officials
respected seniors
public figures

If you want to sound more formal or respectful when talking about your boss, you could say:

Beliau bercakap dengan bos di pejabat.
He/She (respectfully) is speaking with the boss in the office.

However:

In casual conversation with friends/colleagues, dia is absolutely normal for a boss.
In formal writing, news, or official contexts, beliau is often preferred for respected people.

What is the difference between pejabat and ofis / ofis that I sometimes hear?

Pejabat is the standard Malay word for office.

There is also the loanword ofis (from English office) used informally, especially in urban or mixed-language settings. Examples:

Dia di pejabat. – He/She is at the office. (standard)
Dia di ofis. – He/She is at the office. (informal/colloquial)

For proper or formal Malay (writing, exams, official communication), pejabat is preferred. In everyday speech, you will hear both pejabat and ofis, depending on the speaker and environment.