Learn Hardcore Malay: Pada hari biasa, kami selalunya makan snek ringan di bilik makan sebelum tidur. - On normal days, we usually eat a light snack in the dining room before sleeping.

It can mean days that are not special occasions (not holidays, festivals, celebrations).
In many contexts it also contrasts with weekends or public holidays, but it is less specific than hari bekerja (working days / weekdays).

So it is more like “on regular days / usually” rather than strictly “on weekdays only”, unless the wider context makes that clear.

Why do we use pada before hari biasa? Can I just say Hari biasa, kami selalunya makan…?

Pada is a preposition often used with time expressions:

pada hari Isnin (on Monday)
pada malam itu (that night)
pada pukul 8 (at 8 o’clock)

So pada hari biasa = “on normal days”.

Can you drop pada?

Yes, in everyday speech and informal writing, Hari biasa, kami selalunya makan… is acceptable and common.
Keeping pada sounds a bit more standard / careful, and is typical in more formal or written Malay.

What’s the difference between kami and kita? Why is kami used here?

Both mean we / us, but:

kami = we (excluding the listener)
- The speaker’s group does something, but the person being spoken to is not included.
kita = we (including the listener)
- The speaker’s group includes the listener.

Here, kami selalunya makan… implies:

“We (in my family / my group), but not you, usually eat…”.

If the speaker wanted to include the listener (for example, talking to a housemate about your shared habit), they would say kita selalunya makan….

What is the nuance of selalunya? How is it different from selalu or biasanya?

selalu: literally always, but in everyday use it can also mean very often.
selalunya: usually translated as usually / generally / most of the time.
- The suffix -nya often makes it sound like a comment on a general pattern.
biasanya: also usually / normally.

In practice:

selalu ≈ always / very often
selalunya ≈ usually (talking about a regular habit)
biasanya ≈ normally, as a norm

In this sentence, selalunya fits well because we are talking about a habitual routine, not something that literally happens every single time.

You could also say:

Pada hari biasa, kami biasanya makan snek ringan… (very natural)
Pada hari biasa, kami selalu makan snek ringan… (more like “we very often / almost always eat…”)

Where can I put selalunya in the sentence? Is Kami makan snek ringan selalunya correct?

In Malay, adverbs of frequency like selalunya are quite flexible, but some positions are more natural:

Very natural:

Pada hari biasa, kami selalunya makan snek ringan…
Selalunya, pada hari biasa kami makan snek ringan…

Also acceptable (slightly different emphasis):

Pada hari biasa, selalunya kami makan snek ringan…

Less natural or awkward:

Kami makan snek ringan selalunya di bilik makan… → sounds clumsy and is not a usual word order.

General pattern:

Put selalunya near the subject or before the verb:
- kami selalunya makan
- selalunya kami makan

Avoid putting it at the very end after objects and place phrases.

There is no word for present or past tense. How do we know if this is present, past, or future?

Malay normally does not mark tense on the verb. Instead, it uses:

Time expressions:
- pada hari biasa (on normal days)
- semalam (yesterday)
- esok (tomorrow)
Aspect markers if needed:
- sedang (in the middle of doing)
- sudah / telah (already)
- akan (will)

Here, pada hari biasa and selalunya tell us this is a habitual action.

So the sentence is best understood as:

“On regular days, we usually eat a light snack in the dining room before going to sleep.”
It describes a general routine, not one specific time in the past or future.

What exactly does snek ringan mean? How is it different from makanan ringan?

snek is a loanword from English snack.
ringan means light (not heavy), either in weight or in seriousness/amount.

So snek ringan is a light snack / light snacks.

makanan ringan literally means light food, and is the common general term for snacks (like chips, crackers, biscuits, etc.).

Differences:

snek ringan: feels closer to English light snack; can sound a bit more specific and casual.
makanan ringan: very common in packaging, advertisements, and general talk about snack foods.

In this sentence, snek ringan suggests something small and not heavy before bed.

Is snek in this sentence singular or plural? How do you say “a snack” or “some snacks” in Malay?

Malay nouns usually do not show singular/plural by form.

snek ringan can mean:

a light snack
light snacks

To be more precise, you can add quantity words:

satu snek ringan – one light snack
beberapa snek ringan – a few light snacks
banyak snek ringan – many light snacks
sedikit snek ringan – a little / some light snacks

But in everyday conversation, snek ringan without a number is very normal, and context tells you if it’s one or more.

Why is it snek ringan and not ringan snek?

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

buku baru (new book)
kereta besar (big car)
filem menarik (interesting movie)

So:

snek (snack) + ringan (light) → snek ringan (light snack).

ringan snek would sound wrong, because that order does not follow the usual noun + adjective pattern.

Why do we say di bilik makan and not pada bilik makan?

di and pada are both prepositions, but they are typically used with different types of phrases:

di is usually for physical locations / places:
- di rumah (at home)
- di sekolah (at school)
- di bilik makan (in the dining room)
pada is very commonly used for time expressions and some abstract locations:
- pada hari Isnin (on Monday)
- pada masa itu (at that time)
- pada tahun lalu (last year)

So:

pada hari biasa (time phrase)
di bilik makan (place phrase)

pada bilik makan would sound wrong in standard Malay.

In bilik makan, is makan still a verb? How does this combination work?

bilik makan is a compound noun:

bilik = room
makan = to eat / eating

Literally, bilik makan is eating room, which corresponds to dining room.

This is a common pattern in Malay: noun + verb can form a new noun:

bilik tidur (sleep room → bedroom)
meja makan (eating table → dining table)
baju tidur (sleep clothing → pajamas)

So here makan functions as part of a fixed expression, not as the main verb of the sentence. The main verb of the sentence is the first makan: kami selalunya makan snek ringan…

Why is it just sebelum tidur and not sebelum kami tidur or sebelum tidur kami?

sebelum means before (in time). It can be followed by:

a noun phrase:
- sebelum makan malam (before dinner)
- sebelum peperiksaan (before the exam)
or a clause with a subject:
- sebelum kami tidur (before we sleep)
- sebelum saya pergi (before I go)

In everyday Malay, it is very common to omit the subject when it is obvious from context, especially with tidur:

sebelum tidur is understood as before going to sleep / before we sleep / before they sleep, depending on the subject earlier in the sentence.

So:

sebelum tidur – concise and very natural
sebelum kami tidur – also correct, just more explicit about we.

Can sebelum tidur be moved to the beginning of the sentence?

Yes. Malay word order is quite flexible for time and place phrases. These versions are all acceptable:

Pada hari biasa, kami selalunya makan snek ringan di bilik makan sebelum tidur.
Sebelum tidur, pada hari biasa kami selalunya makan snek ringan di bilik makan.
Pada hari biasa, sebelum tidur kami selalunya makan snek ringan di bilik makan.

The meaning stays the same; the difference is the emphasis:

If you start with Sebelum tidur, you highlight the time: “Before bed, on normal days, we usually eat…”.
If you keep the original order, you start by setting the general context pada hari biasa (on normal days).