Persembahan itu sangat menarik.

That performance is very interesting.

Breakdown of Persembahan itu sangat menarik.

• adalah: to be
• itu: that
• sangat: very
• menarik: interesting
• persembahan: the performance

Questions & Answers about Persembahan itu sangat menarik.

What does each word in Persembahan itu sangat menarik do grammatically?

The sentence breaks down like this:

• Persembahan – a noun meaning performance, show, or presentation. It is the subject.
• itu – a demonstrative meaning roughly that or the. Here it functions like a determiner: that performance / the performance.
• sangat – an adverb of degree meaning very.
• menarik – an adjective (often called a stative verb in Malay) meaning interesting or attractive.

So the structure is:

• [Noun] [demonstrative] [degree adverb] [adjective]
  = The/That performance very interesting. (which in natural English is The/That performance is very interesting.)

Why is there no word for is in this sentence?

Malay normally does not use a verb like is/are/am between a noun and an adjective.

• English: The performance is very interesting.
• Malay: Persembahan itu sangat menarik. (literally The performance very interesting.)

Adjectives like menarik, besar, cantik, etc. can function as stative verbs: they already express a state, so you do not need is.

You might see adalah in some sentences, but it is generally:

• used more in formal writing, and
• mostly used before a noun phrase, not before a simple adjective.

For this sentence, Persembahan itu sangat menarik (without any is) is the natural form.

Does itu here mean that or the?

itu literally means that, but in real usage it can often work like the, especially when both speaker and listener know which thing is being talked about.

• Persembahan itu can be understood as:
  • that performance (for example, the one we just watched), or
  • the performance (the specific one in context).

Malay does not have separate words for a/an vs the. Instead, it uses:

• demonstratives: ini (this), itu (that), or
• context alone.

So Persembahan itu is the natural way to refer to a specific performance that both people know about.

What exactly does persembahan mean? Is it only a stage performance?

Persembahan is quite flexible. Common meanings include:

1. Stage performance / show – music, dance, theatre, etc.

   • persembahan muzik – music performance
   • persembahan tarian – dance performance

2. Presentation – in a more formal or business context.

   • persembahan slaid – slide presentation

3. In some contexts, it can also refer to an offering or something presented to someone (though this is less common in everyday speech).

In your sentence, it’s most naturally understood as a performance or show (for example, a concert, a school performance, etc.).

What does menarik literally come from, and how is it different from tertarik?

Menarik comes from the root verb tarik, which means to pull.

• menarik (meN- + tarik) literally has the sense of pulling, but as an adjective it means:
  • interesting, attractive, appealing.

Examples:

• Filem itu sangat menarik. – That movie is very interesting.
• Dia seorang yang menarik. – He/She is an attractive/interesting person.

Tertarik, on the other hand, usually describes the feeling of being interested:

• Saya tertarik dengan persembahan itu. – I am interested in that performance.
• Dia tertarik dengan tawaran kerja itu. – He/She is interested in that job offer.

So:

• menarik = interesting / attractive (what something is like).
• tertarik = interested (how someone feels).

Can menarik also mean attractive, not just interesting?

Yes. Menarik can mean both:

1. interesting – something that captures your attention intellectually or emotionally.

   • Cerita itu sangat menarik. – That story is very interesting.

2. attractive / appealing – visually or in a general sense.

   • Reka bentuk rumah itu menarik. – The design of that house is attractive.
   • Dia mempunyai personaliti yang menarik. – He/She has an appealing personality.

Context will usually tell you whether the emphasis is on interesting or attractive, and often both ideas overlap.

Are there other common words like sangat to mean very? Are there differences in tone?

Yes, there are several intensifiers similar to sangat:

• sangat – very; neutral and common in both speech and writing.
• amat – also very; slightly more formal or emphatic.
• terlalu – too, overly (often with a negative or excessive sense).
  
  • Persembahan itu terlalu panjang. – The performance was too long.
• sungguh – truly, really; can sound a bit more emotional or emphatic.
  
  • Persembahan itu sungguh menarik. – The performance was really interesting.
• begitu – so (as in so interesting).
  
  • Persembahan itu begitu menarik.

In your sentence, sangat is a safe, neutral choice: Persembahan itu sangat menarik.

Can I put sangat after menarik, like Persembahan itu menarik sangat?

In standard Malay, sangat normally comes before the adjective:

• sangat menarik – very interesting.

Putting sangat after the adjective, as in menarik sangat, can be heard in casual spoken Malay (and in some dialects / colloquial styles), but it is:

• more informal, and
• not the standard written form.

For clear and correct Malay, especially in writing or in formal situations, you should say:

• Persembahan itu sangat menarik.
  or
• Persembahan itu menarik sekali. (literally interesting once, but idiomatically very interesting)

How do I say The performance was very interesting or will be very interesting? There is no tense here.

Malay does not mark tense on verbs or adjectives the way English does. Persembahan itu sangat menarik can mean:

• The performance is very interesting, or
• The performance was very interesting, depending on context.

To make the time clearer, Malay usually adds a time word:

• Past:

  • Persembahan itu sangat menarik semalam. – The performance was very interesting yesterday.
  • Tadi persembahan itu sangat menarik. – Just now, the performance was very interesting.

• Future:

  • Persembahan itu akan sangat menarik. – The performance will be very interesting.
  • Esok persembahan itu pasti sangat menarik. – Tomorrow the performance will surely be very interesting.

So tense is understood from time expressions like semalam, tadi, esok, or from context, not from changes in the adjective.

Could Persembahan itu sangat menarik also mean The performances were very interesting (plural)?

Yes, Malay does not normally mark plural with a separate word like -s in English. Persembahan itu can be:

• that performance / the performance, or
• those performances / the performances, if the context is clearly plural.

If you really want to emphasize plurality, you can:

• repeat the noun (reduplication):
  
  • persembahan-persembahan itu – those performances, the performances.
• or add a number or quantifier:
  
  • beberapa persembahan itu – those several performances.

But in many real-life situations, Persembahan itu sangat menarik can naturally refer to one or many performances, depending on what you have just been talking about.

Is Persembahan itu sangat menarik formal, informal, or neutral? How else might people say this?

The sentence is neutral and suits most contexts:

• everyday conversation,
• writing,
• presentations, etc.

Some variants you might hear:

• Persembahan itu menarik sekali. – very common and natural, also neutral.
• Persembahan itu amat menarik. – slightly more formal or emphatic.
• Persembahan itu sungguh menarik. – a bit more emotional: really interesting.
• Very casual spoken Malay could be:
  • Show tadi menarik gila. – Super informal; gila literally means crazy, used like crazy good.

For learners, Persembahan itu sangat menarik and Persembahan itu menarik sekali are excellent, safe choices.