Learn Hardcore Malay: Ibu kata, lagi awal kami pergi ke pasar raya pada Sabtu, lagi senang kami cari ayam dan ikan segar. - Mother says, the earlier we go to the supermarket on Saturday, the easier it is for us to find fresh chicken and fish.

Outside this pattern, lagi can mean again / more / still, but in lagi X, lagi Y you can treat it as a special “the X‑er, the Y‑er” construction.

Can I use “lebih” instead of “lagi”, e.g. “lebih awal”? What’s the difference between lagi awal and lebih awal?

Yes, you can. Both are acceptable, but there are nuances:

lagi awal – very common in everyday, colloquial Malay.
lebih awal – sounds a bit more neutral or formal, like “earlier / more early”.

If you switch to lebih, keep the pattern consistent:

Lagi awal kami pergi, lagi senang kami cari…
or
Lebih awal kami pergi, lebih senang kami cari…

Mixing them (lagi awal … lebih senang) sounds odd.

Meaning-wise in this sentence, lagi awal and lebih awal are effectively the same: the earlier we go.

Why is “kami” used instead of “kita”? How would the meaning change?

Malay distinguishes two kinds of “we”:

kami = we (not including you, the listener)
kita = we (including you, the listener)

Using kami suggests:

“Mum said that we (some group that does not include the person she’s talking to) will go earlier…”

If the mother is talking to someone who is part of the group going to the supermarket (e.g. speaking directly to her children who are going with her), she would naturally say:

Lagi awal kita pergi ke pasar raya…
(The earlier we [you and I] go to the supermarket…)

Why is it “Ibu kata” and not “Ibu berkata” or “Ibu cakap”?

Several verbs can mean “say” in Malay, with slightly different flavours:

kata – base form, very common in everyday speech:
Ibu kata… = Mum said…
berkata – more formal/literary:
Ibu berkata… = Mother said… (sounds more written or formal)
cakap – casual/colloquial, roughly “say / talk”:
Ibu cakap… = Mum said… (very informal, everyday conversation)
mengatakan – more formal, “to state / to say that”:
Ibu mengatakan bahawa…

In normal spoken Malay, Ibu kata and Ibu cakap are very natural. Ibu berkata fits better in news reports, books, or formal writing.

Why is there no “bahawa” after “Ibu kata”?

bahawa means “that” (as in She said that…), and it is optional in Malay.

Both of these are grammatically correct:

Ibu kata, lagi awal kami pergi…
Ibu kata bahawa lagi awal kami pergi…

In everyday speech and most informal writing, bahawa is usually omitted after verbs like kata, cakap, beritahu, etc., unless you want a more formal or very explicit style.

What exactly does “pada Sabtu” mean, and can I also say “pada hari Sabtu” or just “Sabtu”?

Sabtu = Saturday
hari Sabtu = literally “day Saturday” → also means Saturday
pada = on (time preposition)

So:

pada Sabtu = on Saturday
pada hari Sabtu = on Saturday (slightly more formal/explicit)

In speech, you may also hear:

Sabtu kami pergi ke pasar raya. = On Saturday we go to the supermarket.

All three are possible; pada Sabtu is concise and standard.

Why do we say “pergi ke pasar raya”? Could it just be “pergi pasar raya”?

The preposition ke marks direction / destination, similar to “to” in English.

pergi ke pasar raya = go to the supermarket (standard)
pergi pasar raya = very common in informal speech; ke is often dropped in conversation.

In more careful or formal Malay, you should keep ke:

✅ Kami pergi ke pasar raya pada Sabtu. (recommended in writing)

What is the difference between “pasar raya”, “pasar”, and “kedai”?

They refer to different kinds of places:

pasar raya = supermarket (self-service store, like Tesco, Giant, etc.)
pasar (often pasar basah) = market / wet market (stalls, fresh produce, fish, meat)
kedai = shop / store (small individual shop, e.g. kedai runcit = convenience/grocery shop)

So pergi ke pasar raya specifically means “go to the supermarket”, not just any market.

Why is it “cari” and not “mencari”? Are both correct?

Both cari and mencari come from the same root:

cari = root verb “to look for / search / find”
mencari = the meN- form of cari, also “to look for / search”

In modern Malay:

Both forms are correct here:
- lagi senang kami cari ayam dan ikan segar
- lagi senang kami mencari ayam dan ikan segar

Differences:

cari is very common in speech, especially:
- after another verb or modal (e.g. nak cari, boleh cari),
- with a clear subject (e.g. kami cari, dia cari).
mencari can sound a bit more formal or “complete”, and is common in writing.

In this sentence, cari makes it sound natural and conversational.

What does “senang” mean here: “easy” or “happy”?

senang has several related meanings depending on context:

easy / not difficult
- lagi senang kami cari… = the easier it is for us to find…
comfortable / at ease
glad / pleased (colloquially, e.g. Saya senang hati = I’m happy / pleased)

In this sentence, the meaning is clearly “easy / easier”, similar to mudah:

lagi senang kami cari ayam dan ikan segar
= it’s easier for us to find fresh chicken and fish

Does “segar” describe both “ayam” and “ikan”, or just “ikan”?

In Malay, when you have:

noun 1 + dan + noun 2 + adjective

the adjective normally applies to both nouns.

So:

ayam dan ikan segar
= fresh chicken and (fresh) fish
(both are understood as fresh)

To make it very explicit, you could also say:

ayam segar dan ikan segar
ayam dan juga ikan, kedua-duanya segar
(chicken and also fish, both are fresh)

Why is the subject “kami” repeated in the second part? Could you say “lagi senang cari ayam dan ikan segar” instead?

You can drop the second kami; Malay allows subject dropping when the subject is clear:

Lagi awal kami pergi ke pasar raya pada Sabtu, lagi senang cari ayam dan ikan segar.

This would still mean the same thing.

Repeating kami:

Lagi awal kami pergi…, lagi senang kami cari…

adds clarity and a bit of emphasis, and is very natural in speech. Both versions are grammatically fine.