Learn Hardcore Malay: Kami bentang tikar merah di atas rumput sebelum makan. - We spread out a red mat on the grass before eating.

In Kami bentang tikar merah..., the speaker is talking about their group only, not including the person being talked to. If the speaker wanted to include the listener (e.g. “We (you and I) spread out the red mat…”), they would use kita instead.

What does bentang mean exactly, and is it a verb or a noun?

bentang is a verb that means to spread out / to lay out / to unfurl something flat, like a mat, cloth, or map.

So:

bentang tikar = spread/lay out a mat
It is a base verb (no prefix), commonly used in spoken Malay and informal writing.

A more formal or “proper” version with a prefix would be membentang or membentangkan, but bentang by itself is very natural in everyday speech.

Can I say membentang tikar or membentangkan tikar instead of bentang tikar? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can:

Kami membentang tikar merah di atas rumput sebelum makan.
Kami membentangkan tikar merah di atas rumput sebelum makan.

Differences:

bentang tikar – very colloquial / casual, common in speech.
membentang tikar – more standard, fine in neutral writing and speech.
membentangkan tikar – also standard; -kan can emphasize the action being done to the object, but in practice here it doesn’t change the meaning much.

All three are understandable; context and formality decide which is best. In normal conversation, bentang tikar is very natural.

Why is tikar merah and not merah tikar? What is the normal word order for adjectives?

In Malay, adjectives usually come after the noun:

tikar merah = red mat
rumah besar = big house
baju baru = new shirt

So:

tikar (noun: mat) + merah (adjective: red)
merah tikar would be ungrammatical or at least sound very wrong in normal Malay.

What does di atas mean exactly, and how is it different from just atas?

di atas is a preposition phrase meaning on / on top of / above (physically):

di = at / in / on (location preposition)
atas = top / above

So di atas rumput = on the grass.

Difference:

di atas – more standard, clearly a prepositional phrase.
atas alone can sometimes be used in informal speech to mean “on”, especially after motion verbs (e.g. letak atas meja = put [it] on the table).

Here, di atas rumput is the safest, most neutral form.

Could I say Kami bentang tikar merah atas rumput without di?

In casual spoken Malay, people often drop di and just say:

Kami bentang tikar merah atas rumput sebelum makan.

This is understood and common in speech, but:

In standard / formal Malay (writing, exams, official contexts), you should keep di:
di atas rumput.

There is no word for the or a in tikar merah or rumput. How do I know if it means a red mat or the red mat?

Malay normally does not use articles like a / an / the. The sentence is:

Kami bentang tikar merah di atas rumput...
→ literally: We spread (a/the) red mat on (the) grass...

Whether it means a or the depends on context:

If the mat has already been mentioned or is known: the red mat.
If it’s new information: a red mat.

If you want to be more specific:

sehelai tikar merah itu = that red mat (one specific mat)
di atas rumput itu = on that grass / that patch of grass.

How is tense shown? How do I know if Kami bentang tikar merah... is past, present, or future?

Malay verbs don’t change form for tense. bentang stays the same.

Tense is understood from context or from time words:

Past:
- Tadi kami bentang tikar merah... = Earlier we spread a red mat...
- Kami sudah bentang tikar merah... = We have already spread a red mat...
Present (ongoing):
- Kami sedang bentang tikar merah... = We are (currently) spreading a red mat...
Future:
- Nanti kami akan bentang tikar merah... = Later we will spread a red mat...

Without time markers, Kami bentang tikar merah... can be translated depending on context as we (are) spread(ing)/spread/spread (past).

Does sebelum makan mean before we eat or just before eating? Why is there no kami?

sebelum makan literally means before eating.

Malay often omits the subject when it’s obvious from context:

Kami bentang tikar merah... sebelum makan.
→ We spread a red mat... before eating / before we eat.

Here, it’s understood that the same “we” (kami) are the ones eating, so it’s natural to leave kami out.

You can say:

sebelum kami makan = before we eat

This is more explicit, and also correct.

Can I say sebelum kami makan instead of sebelum makan? Is there any difference in nuance?

Yes, both are correct:

sebelum makan – shorter, more general, “before eating (a meal)”. Subject is implied.
sebelum kami makan – adds an explicit subject, “before we eat”.

In most everyday contexts, sebelum makan is perfectly natural and common. You’d add kami if you need to be clearer about who is eating or to avoid ambiguity.

Why is there no object after makan? Shouldn’t it be makan nasi or makan sesuatu?

In Malay, makan by itself often means to have a meal, without mentioning the specific food:

Kami bentang tikar merah di atas rumput sebelum makan.
→ We spread a red mat on the grass before eating / before having our meal.

You only need an object when you want to specify what:

sebelum makan nasi = before eating rice
sebelum makan tengah hari = before eating lunch

Without an object, makan is naturally understood as “eat (a meal)”.

Could the sentence be used as an instruction, like telling someone what to do?

As written, Kami bentang tikar merah... is a statement about what we do/did.

To turn it into an instruction (imperative), you’d normally:

Drop kami
Use the bare verb:

Examples:

Bentang tikar merah di atas rumput sebelum makan.
= Spread the red mat on the grass before eating.

So yes, if you start with the verb (Bentang...), it sounds like a command / instruction.

Is tikar always a mat you sit on for eating, or can it mean other kinds of mats?

tikar is a mat in general, usually something:

made of woven material (pandan, plastic, rattan, etc.)
spread on the floor/ground to sit or lie on.

It can be used for:

Sitting to eat
Praying (though sejadah is more specific for a prayer mat)
Sleeping or resting
Picnics, gatherings, etc.

So in this sentence, with rumput and sebelum makan, it strongly suggests a picnic-type mat for sitting and eating outside.

Is the whole sentence natural in everyday Malay? In what context would people say it?

Yes, it’s natural and sounds like neutral, everyday Malay, maybe slightly on the informal side due to bentang without a prefix.

Typical context:

Describing a picnic or eating outdoors:
Kami bentang tikar merah di atas rumput sebelum makan.
→ We spread a red mat on the grass before eating.

In very formal writing, someone might prefer membentang or membentangkan, but even then, the sentence is perfectly understandable as is.