Dahulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu.

Previously I worked at that old office.

Breakdown of Dahulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu.

• saya: I
• itu: that
• di: at
• kerja: to work
• pejabat: the office
• lama: old
• dahulu: previously

Questions & Answers about Dahulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu.

What exactly does dahulu do in this sentence?

Dahulu is a time word meaning formerly / in the past / previously.

In this sentence it:

• Places the action clearly in the past.
• Often carries the nuance of “some time ago” or “back then”, not just a moment ago.

Malay verbs do not change form for past, present, or future, so words like dahulu, dulu, semalam, nanti, etc. are used to show when something happens. Here, dahulu is doing that job.

What is the difference between dahulu and dulu?

Both dahulu and dulu mean before / earlier / in the past.

Differences:

• Formality:

  • dahulu sounds a bit more formal, literary, or “old‑style”.
  • dulu is more common in everyday speech.

• Nuance:

  • dahulu is often used in more careful or written Malay, or in fixed phrases like pada masa dahulu (in the old days).
  • dulu is very flexible and frequent in conversation.

In most casual conversations, people would more naturally say:

• Dulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu.

Can I move dahulu to another position, like Saya dahulu kerja di pejabat lama itu or Saya kerja dahulu di pejabat lama itu?

Yes, you can move dahulu, but the nuance changes slightly.

1. Dahulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu.
   – Neutral: In the past, I worked at that old office.
   – Simple time setting.

2. Saya dahulu kerja di pejabat lama itu.
   – Often contrasts the past “me” with the present:

   • Back then, I worked at that old office (but now I don’t).
   • Focus on saya dahulu (“the earlier version of me”).

3. Saya kerja dahulu di pejabat lama itu.
   – Here dahulu tends to mean “first / before (something else)”:

   • I worked at that old office first (before moving somewhere else).
     – The idea is more about sequence than just “past time”.

So the original Dahulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu is the clearest if you simply want to say “In the past I worked there.”

Why is it kerja and not bekerja here? Aren’t verbs supposed to have ber-?

The base word is kerja (work). The standard verb form is bekerja (to work).

• bekerja – more standard / formal:
  
  • Dahulu saya bekerja di pejabat lama itu. ✔
• kerja as a verb – very common in everyday Malaysian speech:
  
  • Dulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu. ✔ (natural in conversation)

So:

• In formal writing or exams, prefer bekerja.
• In colloquial spoken Malay, kerja as a verb is completely normal.

Note: kerja can also be a noun meaning job / work:

• Kerja saya susah. = My job is difficult.

How is past tense expressed here? There is no verb change like in English.

Malay verbs do not change form for tense.

Past, present, and future are usually shown by:

• Time words: dahulu, dulu, semalam, tadi, esok, nanti
• Aspect words: sudah, telah, pernah, sedang, akan

In this sentence, dahulu is enough to show that the action happened in the past.

If you want to be more explicit, you could add something like:

• Dahulu saya pernah bekerja di pejabat lama itu.
  – Adds pernah = “have (ever)”, emphasizing experience.
• Dahulu saya sudah bekerja di pejabat lama itu.
  – Emphasizes that it was already the case at that time.

But Dahulu saya kerja di pejabat lama itu is already grammatical and clear.

Why is it pejabat lama itu and not itu pejabat lama? What is the word order inside the noun phrase?

Malay noun phrases usually follow this order:

[NOUN] + [ADJECTIVE] + [DEMONSTRATIVE (ini/itu)]

So:

• pejabat = office
• lama = old
• itu = that

Put together in natural order:

• pejabat lama itu = that old office

Other related patterns:

• itu pejabat lama
  – More like “that is an old office” (a full clause, with itu as “that (one)”).

• pejabat itu = that office
• pejabat itu lama = the office is old

So for “that old office” as one noun phrase, pejabat lama itu is the normal structure.

What is the difference between itu and ini?

Both are demonstratives:

• ini = this (near the speaker)
• itu = that (farther away, or not present)

In noun phrases like this, they come after the noun (and any adjective):

• pejabat lama ini = this old office (near me / us)
• pejabat lama itu = that old office (farther away, or being talked about from a distance / past)

In conversation, itu can also signal something previously mentioned or known from context, even if no physical distance is involved.

Can lama be used for people, or only things? What is the nuance of lama here?

lama basically means old / long (in terms of time), and its usage depends on the noun:

• With inanimate things / places:

  • rumah lama = old house
  • pejabat lama = old office
    – This is perfectly natural.

• With people:

  • Usually you do not use lama to mean “old person”.
  • For age, use tua:
    
    • orang tua = old person / parents (depending on context)
  • lama with people is more about long time:
    
    • kawan lama = long‑time friend / old friend (in terms of duration)

In pejabat lama itu, lama simply means “old / previous / not new anymore”, often implying a former workplace.

Is di necessary here? Could I say saya kerja pejabat lama itu without di?

di is necessary here.

• di is the preposition for location, roughly “at / in / on”.
• Without di, saya kerja pejabat lama itu is ungrammatical or at least very unnatural.

Correct pattern:

• kerja di pejabat = work at the office
• tinggal di KL = live in KL
• makan di restoran = eat at the restaurant

Be careful with di:

• As a preposition (location): written separately
  
  • di pejabat, di rumah, di sekolah
• As a prefix on verbs: written together
  
  • dibuka, dibuat, dikerjakan

Here, it is the preposition: di pejabat lama itu.

Can I drop saya and just say Dahulu kerja di pejabat lama itu?

Yes, in informal conversation you can drop saya if it is clear from context that you are talking about yourself:

• Dahulu kerja di pejabat lama itu.
  – Could mean “I used to work at that old office”, if the context is clear.

Malay often allows subject pronouns to be omitted when they are understood. However:

• In formal writing, exams, or when context is not clear, it is safer to keep saya.
• Without saya, it could also be interpreted as talking about someone in general (e.g. “Previously, (we/they/people) worked at that old office.”)

Is this sentence formal or informal? How would I make it more clearly formal or clearly casual?

As written, it is a mix:

• dahulu feels a bit formal / literary.
• kerja (as a verb) is informal / conversational.

To make it more formal / standard:

• Dahulu saya bekerja di pejabat lama itu.
• Or even: Pada masa dahulu, saya bekerja di pejabat lama itu.

To make it more casual / everyday spoken Malay:

• Dulu saya kerja kat pejabat lama tu.
  
  • kat instead of di (very colloquial)
  • tu instead of itu

How do I pronounce words like kerja and pejabat correctly?

Approximate pronunciation (in simple English terms):

• dahulu: da-HOO-loo

  • da as in duh, hu like who, lu like loo

• saya: SAH-yah

  • sa like sah, ya like yah

• kerja: KER-jah

  • ker similar to kur in “cur” (short, not stressed)
  • -ja like “jah”, with a soft “j” as in “jump”
  • In rapid speech it may sound close to “kə-ja”.

• pejabat: pə-JA-bat

  • pe- like a weak “puh”
  • ja like “jah”, stressed
  • bat like “but” (short vowel)

• lama: LAH-mah

  • Both a are like “a” in “father”.

• itu: EE-too

  • i like “ee” in “see”, tu like “too”.

How would I say “I used to work at those old offices” (plural) instead of just “that old office”?

To make “offices” plural, Malay often uses reduplication (repeating the noun):

• pejabat-pejabat lama itu = those old offices

So your sentence could be:

• Dahulu saya kerja di pejabat-pejabat lama itu.
• More standard: Dahulu saya bekerja di pejabat-pejabat lama itu.

In many contexts, Malay does not have to mark plural if it is clear from context, but when you want to emphasize plurality, use reduplication.