Suhu di bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi.

The temperature in that room is cold in the morning.

Breakdown of Suhu di bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi.

• adalah: to be
• itu: that
• di: in
• bilik: the room
• sejuk: cold
• pada: in
• waktu pagi: the morning
• suhu: the temperature

Questions & Answers about Suhu di bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi.

What does each word in Suhu di bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi mean literally?

Word‑by‑word:

• Suhu – temperature
• di – at / in (location preposition)
• bilik – room
• itu – that (also functions like the in this kind of sentence)
• sejuk – cold / cool
• pada – at / on / during (time preposition)
• waktu – time / period
• pagi – morning

So the structure is literally:
Temperature at room that cold at time morning.

Why is there no word like “is” in this sentence? Shouldn’t it be “suhu … is sejuk”?

Malay normally does not use a verb like “to be” (is/are) before adjectives.

• Suhu … sejuk = “The temperature … is cold”

The adjective sejuk itself functions as the predicate, so you don’t say adalah here.
You would only use adalah in more formal sentences where the complement is usually a noun phrase, not a simple adjective, e.g.:

• Masalah utama adalah kekurangan dana.
  “The main problem is a lack of funds.”

With adjectives in simple descriptive sentences, just use the adjective:

• Bilik itu sejuk. – “That room is cold.”
• Makanan ini sedap. – “This food is delicious.”

What is the grammatical role of di bilik itu and pada waktu pagi?

Both are prepositional phrases:

• di bilik itu – “in that room / in the room” → describes location
• pada waktu pagi – “in the morning” → describes time

In this sentence:

• Suhu = subject
• sejuk = predicate (adjective)
• di bilik itu = adverbial of place (where the temperature is cold)
• pada waktu pagi = adverbial of time (when it is cold)

So structurally:
Suhu (subject) [di bilik itu] (place) sejuk (predicate) [pada waktu pagi] (time).

Could I say “Suhu bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi” without di?

Yes, you can. Both are acceptable but slightly different in feel:

• Suhu di bilik itu sejuk…
  Literally: “The temperature in that room is cold…”
  – Focuses on location (temperature at that place).

• Suhu bilik itu sejuk…
  Literally: “The temperature of that room is cold…”
  – Makes “room” sound more like something that has a temperature.

In everyday usage, both are natural. Using di bilik itu is very clear and slightly more neutral.

What is the difference between di and pada here? They both look like “at/in”.

They’re both prepositions but used in different ways:

• di is mainly for places / locations:

  • di bilik – in the room
  • di rumah – at home
  • di sekolah – at school

• pada is often used for time and also for some abstract objects:

  • pada waktu pagi – in the morning
  • pada hari Isnin – on Monday
  • pada tahun 2020 – in the year 2020

So in this sentence:

• di bilik itu → “in that room” (place)
• pada waktu pagi → “in the morning” (time)

Using di with times is generally wrong in standard Malay (di pagi is not standard), while pada is the default for time expressions.

Can I drop waktu and just say “pada pagi”?

Yes, that’s possible and common:

• Suhu di bilik itu sejuk pada pagi.

However, note these nuances:

• pada waktu pagi – slightly more explicit/neutral (“at the time period of morning”).
• pada pagi – sounds a bit more compressed / casual, but still correct.

You can also hear:

• waktu pagi (without pada) in speech:
  
  • Suhu di bilik itu sejuk waktu pagi. (quite colloquial)

In careful or written Malay, pada waktu pagi is very natural and clear.

Is waktu pagi one unit meaning “morning time,” or is waktu just “time”?

waktu by itself means “time / period / time of day,” and pagi means “morning.”
Together, waktu pagi literally means “the morning period” / “morning time.”

You can form similar combinations:

• waktu malam – night time
• waktu petang – evening time
• waktu siang – daytime

So pada waktu pagi = “at (the time of) morning.”

Does this sentence talk about a habit (every morning) or just one particular morning?

As written, Malay doesn’t mark tense explicitly, so it can be interpreted as:

• A general/habitual statement:
  
  • “The temperature in that room is (usually) cold in the morning.”
• Or a specific statement (if context makes it clear):
  
  • “The temperature in that room was cold this morning.”

To make it clearly habitual, you might add an adverb like selalu (always/often):

• Suhu di bilik itu selalu sejuk pada waktu pagi.
  “The temperature in that room is always cold in the morning.”

To make it clearly about the past, you’d rely on context or add time markers like tadi pagi (this morning), semalam pagi (yesterday morning), etc.

Could I just say “Bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi” instead?

Yes, and that’s very natural.

• Bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi.
  = “That room is cold in the morning.”

Difference in nuance:

• Suhu di bilik itu sejuk…
  – Slightly more technical or precise, emphasizing temperature as a measurable thing.

• Bilik itu sejuk…
  – More everyday and casual, describing how the room feels.

In normal conversation, you’re more likely to say Bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi.

Is itu here more like “that room” or “the room”?

itu literally means “that”, but in Malay it often functions like the definite article “the” when both speaker and listener know which object is meant.

So bilik itu can be:

• “that room” (contrasting with other rooms), or
• “the room” (the specific room we both know about).

Context decides whether “that” or “the” is the better English translation.

Can the order of the time phrase change? For example, “Pada waktu pagi, suhu di bilik itu sejuk”?

Yes, that’s perfectly correct and common:

• Pada waktu pagi, suhu di bilik itu sejuk.

Putting pada waktu pagi at the front gives extra emphasis to the time:
“As for the morning, the temperature in that room is cold.”

Both word orders are grammatical:

• Suhu di bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi.
• Pada waktu pagi, suhu di bilik itu sejuk.

Is the adjective sejuk only for temperature, or can it also mean “cool” in other senses?

sejuk mainly means cold / cool (temperature), but it can extend metaphorically:

• Physical temperature:

  • Air ini sejuk. – This water is cold.
  • Cuaca hari ini sejuk. – The weather is cool today.

• Figurative/feeling (less common, more context‑dependent):

  • Suasana di pejabat itu agak sejuk. – The atmosphere in that office is rather “cold” (emotionally).

In the sentence Suhu di bilik itu sejuk pada waktu pagi, it clearly refers to physical temperature.