Learn Hardcore Malay: Di pejabat lama, bos mahu semua pekerja lelaki dan perempuan berpakaian formal setiap hari Isnin. - At the old office, the boss wanted all male and female employees to dress formally every Monday.

Malay often puts a location phrase at the beginning of the sentence to set the scene, and you can optionally separate it with a comma, as in this sentence:

Di pejabat lama, bos mahu... = At the old office, the boss wanted...

Why is it pejabat lama and not lama pejabat, if it means “old office”?

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

pejabat = office
lama = old
pejabat lama = old office / former office

So:

old office → pejabat lama
Putting lama pejabat would sound incorrect or mean something else entirely.

Does pejabat lama mean “old office” (physically old) or “former office” (the one I used to work at)?

Pejabat lama can mean either, depending on context:

physically old office (an office building that is old in age), or
former office (the office you used to work at before moving to a new one).

If you want to be clearer that it’s the former office, you can say:

pejabat lama saya = my old/former office
pejabat yang lama often sounds more like “the one that is old,” focusing on age.

Is bos a proper Malay word, and is it formal?

Yes, bos is widely used in Malay and is borrowed from English “boss”.

Common in everyday speech and also understood in workplaces.
In more formal or written contexts, you might see majikan (employer), ketua (head), or pengurus (manager) depending on the role.

In this sentence, bos just means the boss (your superior at work).

What is the function of mahu here, and how is it different from hendak, ingin, or nak?

Mahu means to want. Here, bos mahu... = the boss wants / wanted...

Rough differences:

mahu – neutral, common in both spoken and written Malay.
hendak – similar meaning; a bit more formal or used in writing; often shortened to nak in speech.
ingin – “wish” or “desire,” slightly more polite/soft.

In this sentence, you could also say:

bos hendak semua pekerja...
bos ingin semua pekerja...
All would be understandable, with small nuance differences in tone.

Why is there no word for “to” before berpakaian (like “wants everyone to dress”)?

Malay does not need a separate word like English “to” before the second verb.

Structure:

bos mahu semua pekerja ... berpakaian formal...
Literally: “boss want all workers ... dress formal...”

Here, mahu is followed directly by what the boss wants to happen (the clause with berpakaian formal). There is no untuk needed. Using untuk here (mahu untuk berpakaian) would sound unnatural.

What does semua do in semua pekerja?

Semua means all.

pekerja = worker / employee
semua pekerja = all the workers / all employees

Malay does not add an -s for plural. The word semua (all) tells you it’s plural:

pekerja = worker / workers (depends on context)
semua pekerja = clearly “all the workers.”

Why is it pekerja lelaki dan perempuan? Isn’t pekerja already gender‑neutral?

Yes, pekerja is already gender‑neutral and normally includes everyone.

semua pekerja alone already means all the workers (male and female).

Adding lelaki dan perempuan:

pekerja lelaki = male employees
pekerja perempuan = female employees
pekerja lelaki dan perempuan = male and female employees

So the phrase semua pekerja lelaki dan perempuan emphasizes both genders, maybe for clarity or emphasis. In everyday speech, many people would simply say semua pekerja.

What is the difference between perempuan and wanita for “female”?

Both refer to females, but usage differs slightly:

perempuan
- Very common and general.
- Can refer to girls or women depending on context.
wanita
- Feels a bit more formal and is usually used for adult women (e.g. hak wanita = women’s rights).

In pekerja lelaki dan perempuan, perempuan is natural and commonly used in speech.

What does berpakaian mean exactly, and how is it different from memakai or pakai?

Berpakaian literally means to be dressed / to wear clothes.

Differences:

pakai (informal verb) / memakai (more standard) = to wear / put on (something specific)
- memakai baju formal = wear formal clothes
berpakaian = to be (in a state of) dressed in a certain way
- berpakaian formal = be dressed formally

So berpakaian formal = “to dress formally / be dressed in formal attire.”
Both berpakaian formal and memakai pakaian formal are correct; the first is shorter and common.

Is formal just the English word “formal” borrowed into Malay?

Yes. Formal in Malay is a loanword from English “formal” and has the same meaning: formal, not casual.

Common uses:

pakaian formal = formal clothing
majlis formal = formal event

So berpakaian formal clearly means to dress formally / in formal attire.

Why is it setiap hari Isnin and not just setiap Isnin?

Both are correct:

setiap hari Isnin = every Monday (literally “every Monday day”)
setiap Isnin = every Monday

Malay often includes hari (day) before days of the week:

hari Isnin = Monday
hari Selasa = Tuesday

Using hari here is natural and common; dropping it (setiap Isnin) is also acceptable and sounds slightly more concise.

Do we really need hari before Isnin, or is Isnin alone okay?

You don’t have to include hari.

Options:

setiap hari Isnin – very natural, slightly more explicit.
setiap Isnin – also natural and commonly used.

Both are standard Malay. In many contexts, setiap Isnin is perfectly fine and not considered incorrect.

How do we know if mahu here means “wants” (present) or “wanted” (past), since there is no tense?

Malay verbs usually do not change form for tense. Time is understood from context.

Clues here:

Di pejabat lama (“at the old/former office”) suggests this describes a past situation.
So, in natural English, you’d often translate it as “the boss wanted...”.

If you really want to mark past explicitly, you can add words like:

dulu = in the past / used to
telah = has / had (formal, written)

Example:

Dulu, di pejabat lama, bos mahu... = In the past, at the old office, the boss wanted...

Is the comma after Di pejabat lama required?

In Malay, the comma here is optional but recommended.

Di pejabat lama, bos mahu...
The comma helps show that Di pejabat lama is a separate introductory phrase indicating location.
Without a comma (Di pejabat lama bos mahu...) it’s still understandable, but less clear visually.

So it’s good style to keep the comma when you front a time/place phrase like this.

Could we put the location phrase at the end, like in English?

Yes, you can move it:

Bos mahu semua pekerja lelaki dan perempuan berpakaian formal setiap hari Isnin di pejabat lama.

This is still correct. The difference:

At the beginning (Di pejabat lama, ...) – sets the scene first; quite natural in Malay.
At the end – also fine; sometimes used to emphasize what happens more than where.

Both word orders are grammatically acceptable.