Learn Hardcore Malay: Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.

Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
– More informal / conversational.
Saya mahu mencapai sasaran harian itu.
– More standard / neutral, good in writing and formal speech.

capai is the base verb, mencapai is the meN- form (a common verb prefix in Malay). After modals like mahu, boleh, harus, you can use either the base form or the meN- form, but in everyday spoken Malay, people very often prefer the base form:

Dia mahu makan. (He/She wants to eat.)
Dia mahu pergi. (He/She wants to go.)
Less common in casual speech: Dia mahu memakan / Dia mahu pergi ke…

So your sentence with capai sounds natural in spoken Malay; with mencapai it sounds a bit more formal or written.

What is the difference between mahu, hendak, nak, and ingin?

All can express want / would like, but they differ in formality and nuance:

mahu – Neutral, widely used, fine in speech and writing.
- Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
hendak – Slightly more formal / old-fashioned in some contexts; common in written Malay (forms, notices, official text), also used in some dialects in speech.
- Saya hendak mencapai sasaran harian itu.
nak – Colloquial contraction of hendak; very common in casual speech, not for formal writing.
- Saya nak capai sasaran harian tu.
ingin – Sounds more polite, softer, sometimes more “aspirational” (like “wish to”, “would like to”). Good for formal writing or polite speech.
- Saya ingin mencapai sasaran harian itu.

For everyday polite conversation, mahu or nak (depending on how informal you want to be) are the most common choices.

Why is there no word meaning to before capai, like English “I want to reach…”?

Malay doesn’t need a separate “to” infinitive marker the way English does. The structure is:

Subject + modal verb + main verb + object

So:

Saya (I)
mahu (want)
capai (reach)
sasaran harian itu (that daily target)

You simply put the verb capai directly after mahu:

Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
= I want to reach that daily target.

You could add untuk before the verb in some other constructions (e.g. untuk mencapai in a noun phrase like “cara untuk mencapai sasaran harian itu” – “a way to reach that daily target”), but not in this simple “I want to do X” pattern.

Can I omit saya and just say Mahu capai sasaran harian itu?

Yes, you can, if the subject is clear from context.

Malay often drops the subject pronoun when everyone already knows who is being talked about, especially in speech:

(Saya) mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
– If it’s clear you’re talking about yourself, the listener will understand it as “I want to reach that daily target.”

However, in:

formal writing
the first sentence of a conversation
situations where the subject might be ambiguous

…it’s safer and clearer to include saya.

What is the nuance of sasaran harian itu compared to just sasaran harian?

sasaran harian = “a/the daily target” (general)
sasaran harian itu = “that daily target” (specific, already known)

itu here is a demonstrative that often works like “that” or a kind of definite article (“the”):

Saya mahu capai sasaran harian.
– I want to reach a daily target (could be any / in general).
Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
– I want to reach that daily target (the one we both know about – for example, today’s step goal, a quota, etc.).

So itu points to a specific, identifiable target.

Why is itu at the end (sasaran harian itu) and not before, like itu sasaran harian?

The normal pattern in Malay is:

Noun phrase + itu
→ “that [noun phrase]”

So:

sasaran harian itu = that daily target

You can say itu sasaran harian but the nuance is different. It’s more like:

itu sasaran harian = “that is the daily target” or “that daily target (as a topic)”

For example:

Itu sasaran harian kita.
– That (thing/number) is our daily target.

In your sentence, sasaran harian itu functions as a direct object, so itu naturally comes at the end of the noun phrase.

What exactly does harian mean, and how is it formed from hari?

hari = day
harian = daily (occurring every day, or per day)

-an is a common suffix in Malay that can change the meaning or word class. In this case, harian functions like an adjective:

sasaran harian = daily target (target per day)
surat khabar harian = daily newspaper

Other similar patterns:

minggu (week) → mingguan (weekly)
bulan (month) → bulanan (monthly)

So sasaran harian literally: “target that is daily / per day”.

Why is it sasaran harian, not harian sasaran?

In Malay, adjectives and many descriptors usually come after the noun they modify.

Pattern:

Noun + adjective/describing word

Examples:

buku baharu = new book
rumah besar = big house
sasaran harian = daily target

So sasaran (target) comes first, and harian (daily) follows it.

harian sasaran would sound unnatural here and doesn’t follow the usual noun–adjective order.

Can I use target harian instead of sasaran harian?

Yes, in everyday speech you will often hear:

target harian

target is a loanword from English but is very common in Malay, especially in business, work, and casual contexts.

Nuance:

sasaran harian – more native Malay, feels slightly more formal or “written” in some contexts.
target harian – very natural in modern spoken Malay and informal writing.

Both are widely understood, and you could say:

Saya mahu capai target harian itu.
Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.

Both are acceptable; context and personal style decide which you use.

How do we know if this sentence is present, past, or future? It seems like there’s no tense.

Malay verbs generally do not change form for tense. Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu can mean:

I want to reach that daily target (now / generally).
I wanted to reach that daily target (in the past).
I will want to reach that daily target (in the future – less common reading, but possible with context).

Tense is understood from:

context
time expressions like semalam (yesterday), nanti (later), esok (tomorrow), tadi (earlier)

For example:

Tadi saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
– Earlier I wanted to reach that daily target.
Esok saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
– Tomorrow I want to reach that daily target.

The verb mahu capai itself doesn’t change.

Can I change the word order to Saya mahu sasaran harian itu capai?

No, that word order is not natural for this meaning. Malay typically follows:

Subject – Verb – Object

So:

Saya (subject)
mahu capai (verb phrase)
sasaran harian itu (object)

If you say Saya mahu sasaran harian itu capai, it sounds wrong because capai is left hanging at the end and the structure no longer follows the standard S–V–O pattern for this verb.

To keep the same meaning, stay with:

Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
or more formal: Saya mahu mencapai sasaran harian itu.

How would I make this sentence negative?

You place tidak before the verb (or the verb phrase for the intention). Two main possibilities depending on what you want to negate:

Negate the wanting (I don’t want to reach it):
- Saya tidak mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
  – I don’t want to reach that daily target.
Negate the ability/success (I can’t / didn’t manage to reach it):
- Saya tidak dapat capai sasaran harian itu.
  – I can’t reach / didn’t manage to reach that daily target.
- or: Saya tidak berjaya capai sasaran harian itu.
  – I didn’t succeed in reaching that daily target.

So tidak mahu = don’t want; tidak dapat / tidak berjaya = can’t / didn’t manage.

What’s the difference between saya and aku here?

Both mean I, but they differ in politeness and context:

saya
- Polite, neutral, safe in almost all situations (formal and informal).
- Used with strangers, elders, in the workplace, and in writing.
- Saya mahu capai sasaran harian itu.
aku
- Informal, intimate; used with close friends, family, or in song lyrics, fiction, etc.
- Can sound rude or too familiar if used with the wrong person.
- Aku nak capai sasaran harian tu. (very casual)

If you’re unsure which to use, saya is the safer pronoun.