Bahagian ini susah, tetapi saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.

This section is difficult, but I will revise again tonight.

Breakdown of Bahagian ini susah, tetapi saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.

• saya: I
• ini: this
• adalah: to be
• malam ini: tonight
• akan: will
• tetapi: but
• semula: again
• susah: difficult
• ulang kaji: to revise
• bahagian: the section

Questions & Answers about Bahagian ini susah, tetapi saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.

What does bahagian mean here, and how is it different from bahagia?

In this sentence, bahagian means part or section, as in this part of the chapter / exercise / topic.

• bahagian = part / section
  
  • Bahagian ini susah. → This part is difficult.
  • Bahagian ketiga → the third section

Be careful not to confuse it with:

• bahagia = happy (emotionally content)
  • Saya bahagia. → I am happy.

They look similar but have different meanings and pronunciations:

• bahagian: ba-ha-gi-an (4 syllables)
• bahagia: ba-ha-gia (3 syllables)

Why is ini placed after bahagian? Can it go before, like in English?

In Malay, demonstratives like ini (this) and itu (that) normally come after the noun:

• bahagian ini = this part
• rumah itu = that house
• buku ini = this book

You don’t normally say ini bahagian for this part in a neutral sentence.
Ini bahagian… would sound more like This is the part…, e.g.:

• Ini bahagian yang susah. → This is the part that is difficult.

What is the nuance of susah? Is it “hard” like emotionally hard, or “difficult” like a tough exercise?

Susah is flexible; it generally means difficult or troublesome and can apply to:

1. Intellectual difficulty:

   • Bahagian ini susah. → This part is difficult.

2. Practical difficulty / inconvenience:

   • Jalan ini susah nak lalu. → This road is hard to pass through.

3. Life problems:

   • Dia hidup susah. → He/She has a hard life.

You’ll also hear sukar and payah:

• sukar – a bit more formal/literary, also “difficult”
• payah – “hard / troublesome,” sometimes with a slightly stronger sense of effort

In everyday speech, susah is the most common, natural choice.

What’s the difference between tetapi and tapi?

Both mean but.

• tetapi – more formal/neutral; good for writing, presentations, and standard speech.
• tapi – more casual; very common in everyday conversation.

In this sentence, both are possible:

• Bahagian ini susah, tetapi saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.
• Bahagian ini susah, tapi saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.

Meaning is the same; the difference is mainly in formality and tone.

Why is saya used here instead of aku? Are they interchangeable?

Both saya and aku mean I / me, but they differ in formality and context.

• saya – polite, neutral, standard; safe in almost all situations (formal or informal).
• aku – informal; used with close friends, family, or in songs / casual speech.

In a neutral sentence like this, saya is the default choice, especially in writing or with people you don’t know well.

You could say:

• Bahagian ini susah, tapi aku akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.
  …but that sounds more like you’re talking to a close friend.

What does akan do here? Is it a tense marker like “will”?

Yes. Akan is a future marker, similar to will in English.

• saya akan ulang kaji → I will review / revise

Malay verbs don’t change form for tense, so particles like akan (future), sudah / telah (past/completed), sedang (in progress) help indicate time and aspect.

Note: In everyday speech, akan is often dropped if the future time is clear from context:

• Malam ini saya ulang kaji semula.
  Still naturally understood as: Tonight I’ll review again.

What exactly does ulang kaji mean? Isn’t ulang already “repeat”?

Ulang kaji is a fixed expression meaning to revise / review (studies), especially for exams.

• ulang = repeat
• kaji = examine / study / investigate
  Together: ulang kaji = to go over your studies again.

Examples:

• Saya perlu ulang kaji sebelum peperiksaan.
  I need to revise before the exam.
• Murid-murid sedang mengulang kaji pelajaran.
  The students are revising their lessons.

It’s not usually used for repeating physical actions; it’s specifically about going over material you’ve learned.

Is ulang kaji semula redundant? Both ulang and semula seem to mean “again”.

You’re right: literally, there is some overlap.

• ulang = repeat
• semula = again / from the beginning

So ulang kaji semula is a bit like saying “review again” or “go over it again”.
In practice:

• ulang kaji by itself already means to review / revise.
• Adding semula gives extra emphasis to doing it again / once more.

It’s very common in natural speech and writing, and not considered wrong or strange. Think of it as mild emphasis rather than bad redundancy:

• Saya akan ulang kaji. → I’ll review.
• Saya akan ulang kaji semula. → I’ll review again / I’ll go over it once more.

Why is malam ini at the end? Can it go somewhere else?

Malam ini means tonight / this evening. Placing time expressions at the end is very common:

• Saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.

You can move it to other positions without changing the meaning much:

1. Malam ini saya akan ulang kaji semula.
   → Slight emphasis on tonight.

2. Saya malam ini akan ulang kaji semula.
   → Grammatically possible, but less natural; learners should avoid this pattern.

Safest patterns:

• [Subject] [time] [rest of sentence]
• [Subject] [rest of sentence] [time]

So:

• Saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.
• Malam ini saya akan ulang kaji semula.
  are both good.

Can the subject saya be dropped, like in some other languages?

In standard Malay, the subject pronoun is usually kept, especially in simple sentences like this.

• Saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.
  sounds complete and clear.

In informal spoken Malay, people sometimes drop pronouns when context is very clear, but this is more common with kita / kami / mereka etc., and often combined with other contractions.

For learners, it’s better to keep saya:

• Bahagian ini susah, tetapi saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.

Dropping saya here:

• Bahagian ini susah, tetapi akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.
  sounds a bit incomplete or odd in standard Malay.

Is this sentence formal, informal, or neutral in tone?

The sentence is neutral / polite and suitable in most contexts:

• Bahagian ini susah, tetapi saya akan ulang kaji semula malam ini.

Reasons:

• Uses saya (polite “I”)
• Uses tetapi, the more neutral but
• No slang or highly informal forms

You could:

• Use it in writing (e.g., an email to a teacher).
• Say it to classmates, teachers, or colleagues.
• Use it in both formal and informal situations without sounding strange.