Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.

Every morning, I write one important thing in the diary.

Breakdown of Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.

• saya: I
• setiap: every
• pagi: the morning
• penting: important
• tulis: to write
• dalam: in
• satu: one
• diari: the diary
• perkara: the thing

Questions & Answers about Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.

Why is it “tulis” and not “menulis” here? Are both correct?

Both “tulis” and “menulis” are possible; the difference is mostly style and formality.

• tulis = the basic root verb “to write”
• menulis = the meN- verb form, also “to write,” often slightly more formal or neutral

In everyday spoken Malay, it’s very common (and natural) to use the root with a subject:

• Saya tulis… = I write…
• Saya menulis… = I write… (sounds a bit more “complete”/formal, often used in writing, narration, or careful speech)

So you could also say:

• Setiap pagi, saya menulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.

The meaning is the same; the original just sounds a bit more casual or conversational.

How is tense shown in this sentence? How do we know it’s a habitual action?

Malay verbs themselves do not change for tense (no -ed, -ing, etc.). Tense and aspect are shown by:

1. Time expressions, like:

   • setiap pagi – every morning
   • semalam – yesterday
   • nanti – later

2. Optional particles like:

   • sudah / dah – already
   • akan – will

In “Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari,” the phrase “Setiap pagi” signals that this is a habitual action (something you do regularly). Without it, the sentence could be interpreted as present, past, or future depending on context:

• Saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.
  → could mean “I’m writing / I wrote / I will write an important thing in the diary,” depending on the situation.

So the time phrase is doing the job that verb tense does in English.

Why is it “satu perkara penting” and not just “perkara penting”? Do I have to say “satu”?

You don’t have to say “satu”; it just adds the idea of “one single” important thing.

• satu perkara penting
  = one important thing (clearly singular, and exactly one)
• perkara penting
  = important things / important matter(s), number not specified

So:

• Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.
  → Every morning I write one important thing.

• Setiap pagi, saya tulis perkara penting dalam diari.
  → Every morning I write important things / important matters in the diary (might be one or several; it’s vague and a bit less natural without more context).

In normal everyday speech, using “satu” here is very natural if you literally mean “one thing each morning.”

Why is it “perkara penting” and not “penting perkara”? Where do adjectives go in Malay?

In Malay, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.

So the pattern is:

• Noun + adjective

Examples:

• rumah besar – big house
• buku baharu – new book
• perkara penting – important thing / important matter

Putting the adjective before the noun (like English) is wrong in Malay:

• ❌ penting perkara
  ✅ perkara penting

So “satu perkara penting” is literally “one thing important,” but in natural English we flip it to “one important thing.”

What’s the difference between “perkara penting” and “perkara yang penting”?

Both are grammatically correct, but there’s a nuance:

1. perkara penting

   • Simple noun + adjective: “an important thing”
   • Neutral description.

2. perkara yang penting

   • Literally “the thing that is important”
   • The “yang” introduces a relative clause or adds emphasis / contrast.
   • Feels a bit more like: “the thing which is important (as opposed to other things).”

In your sentence, “satu perkara penting” is natural and straightforward.
You might use “yang penting” when contrasting with other things:

• Antara semua itu, satu perkara yang penting ialah kesihatan.
  Among all that, one thing that is important is health.

Could I say “Setiap hari pagi” instead of “Setiap pagi”?

No; “Setiap hari pagi” is not natural Malay.

Use:

• Setiap pagi – every morning
• Setiap hari – every day

You choose one unit of time:

• Setiap pagi, saya tulis… – Every morning, I write…
• Setiap hari, saya tulis… – Every day, I write… (time of day not specified)

If you want to mention both, you’d usually phrase it differently, e.g.:

• Setiap hari pada waktu pagi, saya tulis… – Every day in the morning, I write… (more formal/wordy)

Why is there a comma after “Setiap pagi”? Is it necessary?

The comma is there because “Setiap pagi” is a fronted time expression. It works like English:

• Every morning, I write…

In Malay, a comma after an initial time phrase is common and recommended, especially in writing:

• Setiap pagi, saya tulis…
• Semalam, saya pergi ke bandar.

In casual writing or texting, you might see it omitted, but using the comma is good practice and improves readability.

Why is it “dalam diari” and not just “di diari” or “pada diari”?

Malay has a few common prepositions:

• di – at / in / on (location)
• dalam – in / inside (emphasizes “inside” something)
• pada – on / at (time, abstract location, sometimes “on someone/something”)

For writing inside a diary, “dalam diari” is natural because the diary is like a container of writing:

• dalam diari – in the diary (inside its pages)

You could also say:

• di dalam diari
  → more explicit/formal “inside the diary”

Using “di diari” is technically possible but sounds a bit flat or less idiomatic here.

“pada diari” would be unusual; pada is not normally used for writing in a book/diary.

Should it be “diari saya” to mean “my diary”? Is the sentence incomplete without “saya”?

To be precise about possession, yes:

• dalam diari saya – in my diary
• dalam diari – in the diary (could be my diary, a diary, the diary; context decides)

The original sentence is still grammatically correct. It just doesn’t specify whose diary it is. In real conversation, context often makes this clear.

If you want to match the English idea of “my diary” explicitly, use:

• Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari saya.

Can I drop “saya” and just say “Setiap pagi, tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.”?

You can drop pronouns in Malay when the subject is obvious from context, but in this exact sentence:

• Setiap pagi, tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.

this sounds more like an instruction or advice, e.g.:

• “Every morning, write one important thing in the diary.” (like telling someone what to do)

To state your own habit, it’s more natural to keep “saya”:

• Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.
  → Every morning, I write one important thing in the diary.

So:

• With “saya” = a statement about yourself.
• Without “saya” = sounds like telling someone else what to do.

Is there a difference between “setiap”, “tiap”, and “tiap-tiap”?

They all convey a similar meaning: “every / each.”

• setiap – very common in both spoken and written Malay

  • Setiap pagi – every morning

• tiap – shorter, common in speech, slightly more casual

  • Tiap pagi – every morning

• tiap-tiap – more emphatic or slightly old-fashioned; still used

  • Tiap-tiap pagi – every single morning

In your sentence, all of these are possible:

• Setiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.
• Tiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.
• Tiap-tiap pagi, saya tulis satu perkara penting dalam diari.

The meaning is essentially the same; “setiap pagi” is probably the safest and most neutral choice.