Learn Hardcore Malay: Dia jarang bertanya apabila dia tidak faham kerja rumah, walaupun dia selalunya risau tentang markah. - He/She rarely asks when he/she doesn’t understand the homework, even though he/she is usually worried about grades.

context (who you are talking about), or
adding extra information, e.g. dia lelaki itu (that man), dia perempuan itu (that woman), or the person’s name.

So this sentence is compatible with either:

He rarely asks when he doesn’t understand the homework…
or
She rarely asks when she doesn’t understand the homework…

Why is dia repeated three times? Can any of them be left out?

They’re all referring to the same person, and repeating dia is perfectly natural in Malay, especially in careful or written language.

However, Malay does allow dropping repeated subjects when the referent is clear. So more natural, slightly less formal versions are:

Dia jarang bertanya apabila tidak faham kerja rumah, walaupun selalunya risau tentang markah.
(the second and third dia are dropped)

Dia jarang bertanya apabila dia tidak faham kerja rumah, walaupun selalunya risau tentang markah.
(only the third dia is dropped)

All of these are grammatical. Keeping dia each time just makes it extra clear that every action refers to the same person, and is stylistically fine in written Malay.

What is the difference between jarang and selalunya in this sentence?

Both are frequency adverbs, but they describe different tendencies:

jarang = rarely, seldom
→ He/she rarely asks questions.
selalunya = usually, generally, most of the time
→ He/she is usually worried about marks.

So the contrast is:

Behavior A (asking questions) = not done very often (jarang)
State B (being worried) = happens most of the time (selalunya)

That contrast is exactly what walaupun (“although”) is highlighting.

Could we say selalu risau instead of selalunya risau? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say selalu risau, but there is a nuance:

selalu: literally “always”, but in everyday speech often “always / very often / all the time”.
selalunya: “usually, generally, as a rule”.

In this sentence:

dia selalunya risau tentang markah = he/she is usually worried about marks (it’s the general pattern).
dia selalu risau tentang markah = he/she is always / constantly worried (a bit stronger, sounds more like a permanent condition).

Both are grammatical; selalunya fits better if you want the English nuance “usually” or “generally”.

Why is it bertanya and not just tanya? Are both correct?

Both exist, but they’re used a bit differently:

bertanya = “to ask (a question)”; more standard/formal, often in writing.
- Dia jarang bertanya. = He/she rarely asks (questions).
tanya = base verb “ask”; very common in speech.
- Dia jarang tanya. (informal)
- Dia jarang tanya cikgu. = He/she rarely asks the teacher.

In this sentence, bertanya sounds more standard and complete, especially because there is no explicit object (ask who? ask what?). In informal conversation, you absolutely could hear:

Dia jarang tanya bila dia tak faham kerja rumah…

What is the role of apabila here? Could I use bila instead?

apabila is a subordinating conjunction meaning “when / whenever” (for time, not questions):

apabila dia tidak faham kerja rumah
= when he/she doesn’t understand the homework

You can replace it with bila in informal Malay:

Dia jarang bertanya bila dia tidak faham kerja rumah…

Differences:

apabila: more formal/standard, preferred in essays, exams, and official writing.
bila: very common in everyday speech and informal writing; also used as a question word (“when?”).

So:

Formal: apabila
Informal but totally natural in conversation: bila

Why is tidak used instead of tak?

tidak and tak are basically the same word, but:

tidak = full, standard form; used in formal writing or when you want to sound careful.
tak = shortened, informal form; extremely common in speech and casual writing.

Both negate verbs and adjectives:

tidak faham / tak faham = “don’t understand”

So in conversation, you’d often hear:

Dia jarang tanya bila dia tak faham kerja rumah…

In this sentence, tidak simply makes the style more standard/neutral.

What exactly does kerja rumah mean here? Is it “homework” or “housework”?

Literally, kerja rumah is “house work”, so it can mean:

housework (chores at home), or
homework (school work done at home).

Which one it is depends on context. In a school/marks context (because of markah), Malaysians will usually understand kerja rumah as “homework”.

If you want to be clearer, you can say:

kerja rumah sekolah, tugas rumah, pekerjaan rumah = homework
kerja rumah tangga, kerja-kerja rumah = housework / domestic chores

In this sentence, with risau tentang markah, the intended meaning is clearly homework.

What does walaupun do in this sentence? Is it the same as “but”?

walaupun is a subordinating conjunction meaning “although / even though”. It introduces a clause that contrasts with the main clause.

Here:

Main idea: Dia jarang bertanya… (He/she rarely asks…)
Contrasting fact: walaupun dia selalunya risau tentang markah.
(even though he/she is usually worried about marks.)

You can change the order:

Walaupun dia selalunya risau tentang markah, dia jarang bertanya apabila dia tidak faham kerja rumah.

This is similar to:

although he/she is usually worried, he/she rarely asks…

It’s not the same as tetapi (“but”), which links two coordinate clauses:

Dia risau tentang markah, tetapi dia jarang bertanya.
= He/she is worried about marks, but he/she rarely asks.

So:

walaupun = “although / even though” (subordinate clause)
tetapi = “but” (coordinate clause)

Why is it risau tentang markah and not just risau markah?

In careful Malay, adjectives like risau (“worried”) are usually followed by a preposition when you specify what you are worried about:

risau tentang markah = worried about marks
variations: risau akan markah, risau hal markah (more formal/literary)

In informal speech, people might shorten this and say:

Dia risau markah dia.
But inserting a preposition like tentang sounds clearer and more standard.

So risau tentang markah is the safest, most standard form.

Does markah mean “marks” or “grades”? Is it different from gred?

markah literally means “marks / score”, usually a numerical result:

markah ujian = test score (e.g. 78/100)
markah penuh = full marks

gred means “grade”, as in A, B, C:

gred A, gred B etc.

In everyday speech, people often say markah more generally to mean “results” or “grades”, so translating as “marks” or “grades” is both acceptable in English, depending on your context.

Here, risau tentang markah = “worried about his/her marks/grades.”

Can the adverbs jarang and selalunya be moved to other positions?

Yes, Malay adverbs of frequency are fairly flexible. Some common patterns:

As in the original:
- Dia jarang bertanya…
- Dia selalunya risau tentang markah.
After the verb/adjective (common in speech):
- Dia bertanya jarang (less natural; speakers usually prefer before the verb)
- Dia risau selalunya tentang markah (sounds awkward)

More natural alternatives are:

Selalunya, dia risau tentang markah.
Jarang sekali dia bertanya apabila dia tidak faham kerja rumah.

The most common and natural positions here are exactly as in the original:
jarang and selalunya before the verb/adjective they modify.

How do we know this is about a habitual situation (something that happens in general), not just one time?

Malay doesn’t mark tense the same way English does; it often relies on context and time‑related words.

In this sentence, habitual meaning comes from:

jarang = rarely (a frequency adverb)
selalunya = usually (another frequency adverb)

These automatically suggest repeated or general behavior, not a single event. So:

Dia jarang bertanya… = He/she rarely asks (in general).
Dia selalunya risau… = He/she is usually worried (as a general tendency).

That’s why the natural English translation is in the present simple (“rarely asks”, “doesn’t understand”, “is usually worried”), which expresses habits.