Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu mudah menjadi keliru.

Breakdown of Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu mudah menjadi keliru.

menjadi
to become
berita
the news
yang
who
sesiapa
anyone
percaya
to believe
palsu
fake
mudah
easily
keliru
confused
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Questions & Answers about Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu mudah menjadi keliru.

What exactly does sesiapa mean, and is it singular or plural?

Sesiapa means whoever / anyone.

  • It does not mark singular or plural explicitly – it’s number‑neutral.
  • In context, it usually refers to any (single) person who fits the description, but it can logically cover more than one person too.

In the sentence, Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu… means “Anyone who believes fake news…” or “Whoever believes fake news…”.

What is the function of yang in sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu?

Yang is a relative marker. It introduces a describing clause (relative clause) for sesiapa.

  • sesiapa = whoever / anyone
  • yang percaya berita palsu = who believes fake news

So sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu literally means “anyone who believes fake news”.

Without yang, the sentence would be ungrammatical here. You can’t just say ✗ sesiapa percaya berita palsu with the same meaning.

Is sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu the subject of the sentence?

Yes.

The entire phrase sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu functions as the subject of the sentence, and mudah menjadi keliru is the predicate:

  • Subject: Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu
  • Predicate: mudah menjadi keliru

Literally: “Whoever believes fake news is easily confused / easily becomes confused.”

Why is there no pronoun like dia (“he/she”) in the sentence?

Malay doesn’t need a pronoun here because sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu already serves as the full subject.

In English, you might be tempted to think in two clauses:

  • “Whoever believes fake news, they easily become confused.”

In Malay, the “they” is not added. The subject phrase itself directly connects to mudah menjadi keliru:

  • Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu mudah menjadi keliru.
    → No pronoun in between is needed or natural.
What does berita palsu literally mean, and why is palsu after berita?
  • berita = news
  • palsu = fake, false

In Malay, adjectives usually follow the noun they describe:

  • berita palsu = fake news
  • telefon baharu = new phone
  • rumah besar = big house

So berita palsu is literally “news fake”, but it is translated into English as “fake news.”

What is the nuance of percaya here? Why not mempercayai?

Percaya means “to believe” and can be used:

  • Intransitively (no object):
    • Saya percaya. – I believe.
  • With an object, especially for things or statements:
    • percaya berita palsu – believe fake news
    • percaya janji itu – believe that promise

Mempercayai is a more “fully” transitive form and usually sounds a bit more formal or emphatic, and is more common with people or abstract nouns:

  • mempercayai Tuhan – to believe in God
  • mempercayai rakannya – to trust/believe his friend

In this sentence, percaya berita palsu is natural and idiomatic; mempercayai berita palsu is grammatical but less common in everyday speech.

Can you add a preposition like kepada: percaya kepada berita palsu? Is that correct?

You sometimes see percaya kepada or percaya akan, especially with people, God, or abstract things:

  • percaya kepada Tuhan – believe in God
  • percaya kepada doktor – trust the doctor

With concrete information like berita palsu, Malaysians often omit the preposition and say simply:

  • percaya berita palsu

Percaya kepada berita palsu is not wrong, but it can sound more formal or slightly heavier. For a neutral, natural sentence, percaya berita palsu is better.

What does mudah mean here? Is it an adjective or an adverb?

Mudah literally means “easy”, but before a verb or result phrase it often has an adverbial meaning like “easily / readily / is prone to.”

In mudah menjadi keliru:

  • mudah = easily / tends to
  • menjadi keliru = become confused

So mudah menjadi keliru means “easily becomes confused / tends to become confused.”

Grammatically, mudah is an adjective, but its position before the verb gives it an adverb-like function in this structure.

Why do we need menjadi? Could we just say mudah keliru?

Both are possible, but the nuance is slightly different:

  1. mudah menjadi keliru

    • menjadi = to become
    • Focuses on the process of becoming confused.
    • Feels a bit more complete or explicit: easily becomes confused.
  2. mudah keliru

    • Literally: easily confused / easily get confused.
    • Also very natural and common in speech.

In many contexts, mudah keliru would be perfectly fine:

  • Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu mudah keliru.

Using menjadi makes the sentence a bit more formal or explicit, but it’s not strictly required.

What is the role of keliru here? Is it a verb or an adjective?

Keliru means “confused”.

In Malay, many words can act as either adjectives or stative verbs depending on the structure. Here:

  • With menjadi keliru, it behaves like an adjectival result:
    • menjadi keliru – to become confused

You’ll also see keliru used like an adjective on its own:

  • Saya keliru. – I’m confused.
  • Dia keliru tentang berita itu. – He/She is confused about that news.

Related word: mengelirukan = confusing, misleading (actively causes confusion).

  • berita itu mengelirukan – that news is misleading.
How would you negate this sentence? Where does tidak go?

It depends on what you want to negate.

  1. Negate the belief (doesn’t believe fake news):

    • Sesiapa yang tidak percaya berita palsu tidak mudah menjadi keliru.
      → “Anyone who does not believe fake news does not easily become confused.”
  2. Negate only the “easily becomes confused” part:

    • Sesiapa yang percaya berita palsu tidak mudah menjadi keliru.
      → “Anyone who believes fake news does not easily become confused.”
      (logically odd, but grammatically correct)
  3. Negate just the ease (it’s not easy for them to become confused):

    • Same as (2); tidak goes before mudah:
    • … tidak mudah menjadi keliru.

So the usual pattern is tidak + verb/adjective:

  • tidak percaya
  • tidak mudah
  • tidak keliru
Is this sentence formal, informal, or neutral? Can I say it in conversation?

The sentence is neutral and standard. You can use it:

  • in conversation (it sounds natural), and
  • in writing, including articles or essays.

If you needed something slightly more casual in speech, you might just shorten or rearrange it, but as written it’s perfectly acceptable in everyday use.