Learn Hardcore Malay: Saya tarik nafas dalam-dalam sebelum masuk ke pejabat. - I take a deep breath before entering the office.

Literally, tarik = pull, and nafas = breath, so tarik nafas is pull (in) breath.
Functionally, it means to inhale / to take a breath.

It is a very common, natural collocation in Malay, especially when talking about taking a deliberate breath (often before doing something, calming down, etc.). You will see it in everyday speech, in writing, and in instructions (for example in breathing exercises).

Why is it tarik and not menarik in this sentence?

Malay verbs often appear in a root form (here: tarik) or a meN- form (here: menarik). Both are related, but their usage differs:

tarik (root form) is common in casual, everyday speech, especially for short, frequent actions.
menarik sounds a bit more formal or careful, and often behaves more clearly as a transitive verb (taking a direct object).

For tarik nafas, the combination with the root form tarik is strongly conventional. You can hear menarik nafas, and it is grammatically fine, but tarik nafas is more colloquial and very common in speech.

What is the function of the repeated word dalam-dalam?

Dalam by itself means inside or deep. When it is reduplicated to dalam-dalam, it intensifies the meaning:

tarik nafas = take a breath
tarik nafas dalam-dalam = take a deep breath / breathe in deeply

Reduplication like this is a standard way in Malay to show intensity, repetition, or plurality. In this case, it works like an adverb of manner, modifying how the breath is taken.

Could I say tarik nafas dalam instead of tarik nafas dalam-dalam?

Malay speakers would understand tarik nafas dalam, but it sounds less natural and slightly incomplete as a set phrase.

In practice:

tarik nafas dalam-dalam is the standard, idiomatic way to say take a deep breath / breathe deeply.
tarik nafas dalam might appear in some contexts, but it is noticeably less common and may feel a bit off to many speakers.

So, for normal use, stick with dalam-dalam here.

Is dalam-dalam acting like an adjective or an adverb in this sentence?

In this sentence, dalam-dalam functions as an adverb of manner, describing how you take the breath.

The structure is:

Saya – subject
tarik – verb
nafas – object
dalam-dalam – adverb modifying the whole action tarik nafas

So it is not describing a noun (like an adjective would) but modifying the verb phrase, similar to deeply in English.

Why is there no saya before masuk? Why not … sebelum saya masuk ke pejabat?

Malay often omits repeated subjects when the subject is clear from context. Underlyingly, you can think of:

Saya tarik nafas dalam-dalam sebelum saya masuk ke pejabat.

Because saya is already clearly the subject in the first clause, Malay allows you to drop the second saya, giving:

Saya tarik nafas dalam-dalam sebelum masuk ke pejabat.

This is natural and very common. English usually repeats I, but Malay doesn’t have to.

Is Saya tarik nafas dalam-dalam sebelum saya masuk ke pejabat also correct?

Yes, it is grammatically correct.

With the second saya, the sentence is a bit more explicit and slightly more formal or careful.
Without the second saya, it sounds smoother and more typical of everyday speech.

Both versions mean the same thing; context will make it clear that the same person is entering the office.

What does sebelum do in this sentence, and where does it normally go?

Sebelum means before (in a temporal sense). It introduces a clause that happens earlier in time than the main clause.

Word order here is:

Main clause: Saya tarik nafas dalam-dalam
Subordinate clause: sebelum (saya) masuk ke pejabat

This pattern is very typical:

[Action A] sebelum [Action B] = do A before B
[Action A] selepas [Action B] = do A after B

So sebelum sits in front of the clause that marks the later action (entering the office).

Why is ke used with pejabat here, and not di?

Ke and di are both very common prepositions, but they show different relationships:

ke = to / towards / into (direction, movement)
di = at / in / on (location, no movement implied)

In masuk ke pejabat:

masuk already means enter / go in.
ke pejabat tells you the direction: into the office.

If you said di pejabat, it would describe being in the office, not going into it. For example:

Saya di pejabat. = I am at the office.
Saya masuk ke pejabat. = I go into the office.

Does the sentence express past, present, or future? There are no tense markers—how do I know?

Malay verbs generally do not change form for tense. The bare verb can refer to past, present, or future. The actual time is understood from:

Context (what is being talked about)
Time expressions, e.g. tadi (earlier), sekarang (now), nanti (later), esok (tomorrow).

So this sentence could be interpreted as something you did, do habitually, or are about to do, depending on the surrounding context. If needed, you can add a time word, for example tadi, setiap hari, nanti, etc.

Is Saya the only possible word for I here? What about Aku?

You could say either:

Saya tarik nafas dalam-dalam…
Aku tarik nafas dalam-dalam…

Both are grammatically correct, but they differ in formality and social context:

Saya – polite, neutral, used in most formal and semi-formal situations (talking to strangers, at work, etc.).
Aku – informal, intimate, often used with close friends, family, or in some expressive writing and lyrics.

Since this sentence involves pejabat (office), Saya is usually the more natural choice in a workplace or formal setting.

What exactly does pejabat mean? Is it the room or the organization?

Pejabat can refer to both, depending on context:

The physical office (room/place):
- The actual workspace or office building.
The office as an institution:
- A government or company office as an organization.

In this sentence, masuk ke pejabat is naturally interpreted as entering the office building or room (the physical place). Malay also has ofis, borrowed from English, which is more informal and often used in casual speech in some regions, but pejabat is standard.

Is there anything important about pronunciation here, especially for tarik and pejabat?

A few points:

tarik:
- The final k is typically a glottal stop in Malay, not a fully released [k]. It’s like cutting the sound off abruptly at the end: ta-rik̚.
nafas:
- Usually pronounced NA-fas (stress often on the first syllable for learners; Malay stress is relatively light).
dalam-dalam:
- Pronounce both dalam clearly; don’t reduce one of them.
pejabat:
- Syllables: pe-ja-bat. The pe- is short and light; -bat also ends in a glottal stop: bat̚.

Rhythm-wise, the sentence flows as roughly even syllables: Sa-ya ta-rik na-fas da-lam-da-lam se-be-lum ma-suk ke pe-ja-bat.