Learn Hardcore Malay: Kucing saya suka bermain dengan bola mainan di ruang tamu. - My cat likes to play with a toy ball in the living room.

Putting saya before the noun (saya kucing) would literally sound like “I am a cat”, not “my cat”.
So the pattern is: [thing] + [owner], not like English [owner] + [thing].

Can I say saya punya kucing instead of kucing saya? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can, but there is a nuance.

kucing saya – neutral, standard, and suitable everywhere (speech and writing).
saya punya kucing – more informal / colloquial, literally “the cat that I own”.

Example:

Kucing saya suka bermain... – standard.
Saya punya kucing suka main... – casual, spoken, more common in some dialects and in everyday conversation.

For learning and for writing, kucing saya is the safest choice.

Why is it suka bermain and not just suka?

suka means to like, but in Malay you usually say what you like by following suka with a verb or a noun.

Kucing saya suka. – “My cat likes.” (Feels incomplete: likes what?)
Kucing saya suka bermain. – “My cat likes playing.”
Kucing saya suka makan. – “My cat likes to eat.”
Kucing saya suka susu. – “My cat likes milk.”

In your sentence, bermain (to play) specifies what the cat likes doing, so suka bermain is the natural phrase.

What is the difference between bermain and main? Could I say suka main?

Both are related to “play”:

bermain – the more formal / standard verb form.
main – the colloquial / short form often used in spoken Malay.

So:

Kucing saya suka bermain dengan bola mainan... – standard, good in writing.
Kucing saya suka main dengan bola mainan... – very common in casual speech.

Both are correct in everyday conversation; for formal or written Malay, bermain is preferred.

Why do we use dengan in bermain dengan bola mainan? Can we drop it?

dengan literally means with.

bermain dengan bola mainan = “play with a toy ball”

In Malay, both of these are acceptable:

bermain dengan bola – play with a ball
bermain bola – play ball

So you can say:

Kucing saya suka bermain bola mainan di ruang tamu.
Kucing saya suka bermain dengan bola mainan di ruang tamu.

Using dengan makes the “with” relationship very clear, but without it is also natural in many contexts.

Is bola mainan a noun + adjective, or 2 nouns? Why does mainan come after bola?

bola mainan is a compound noun: literally “ball toy”, understood as toy ball.

In Malay, modifiers usually come after the main noun:

bola merah – red ball (bola = ball, merah = red)
bola plastik – plastic ball
bola mainan – toy ball (mainan = toy / plaything)

Grammatically:

bola = main noun
mainan = a noun derived from main (to play) + -an, meaning something used for playing → toy / plaything

So the order is [main noun] + [descriptor] (opposite of English “toy ball”).

How do we know the tense? Why doesn’t the sentence explicitly show present tense like English?

Malay verbs do not change form for tense (no -ed, -s, etc.). Tense is usually understood from:

Context (what you’re talking about)
Time words, if needed (semalam = yesterday, sekarang = now, nanti = later, etc.)

Your sentence:

Kucing saya suka bermain dengan bola mainan di ruang tamu.

could be:

“My cat likes to play…” (present habit)
or in the right context:
“My cat liked to play…” (past habit)

If you really want to mark time, you add a time word:

Semalam, kucing saya suka bermain... – Yesterday, my cat liked to play…
Sekarang, kucing saya suka bermain... – Now, my cat likes to play…

What is the function of di in di ruang tamu? Can I say just ruang tamu?

di is a preposition of place, similar to at / in / on in English.

di ruang tamu – in/at the living room.

Without di, ruang tamu is just the noun “living room”, not a full prepositional phrase.

Compare:

Saya di rumah. – I am at home.
Buku itu di meja. – The book is on the table.
Kucing saya suka bermain di ruang tamu. – My cat likes to play in the living room.

Saying only ruang tamu would sound like you left out the “in/at” part.

What does ruang tamu literally mean, and are there other ways to say “living room”?

Literally:

ruang = space / area / room
tamu = guest

So ruang tamu is literally “guest space”, i.e., the area where you receive guests → living room.

Other possibilities you might see:

bilik tamu – guest room (more like a guest bedroom, not the same as living room)
In some informal speech: ruang depan (front area), depending on the house layout.

For “living room”, ruang tamu is the standard and most common term.

How would the sentence change if I want to say “My cats like to play...” (plural cats)?

Malay usually does not mark plural on nouns unless you need to be explicit.

Three common options:

Keep it the same; rely on context:
- Kucing saya suka bermain dengan bola mainan di ruang tamu.
  → Can mean “My cat likes…” or “My cats like…”, depending on context.
Explicit plural with a number:
- Dua ekor kucing saya suka bermain... – My two cats like to play...
Reduplication for emphasis (more formal/written style):
- Kucing-kucing saya suka bermain... – My cats like to play...

Note: The verb suka does not change; there is no “like/likes” difference in Malay.

Is there a more casual, everyday way people might say this sentence?

Yes, in informal spoken Malay, people often shorten words and use more colloquial forms. For example:

Kucing saya suka main dengan bola mainan kat ruang tamu.

Changes:

bermain → main (colloquial verb form)
di → kat (informal spoken form of “at/in”)

This is very natural in casual conversation, but for writing and for learning the standard language, your original sentence is better:

Kucing saya suka bermain dengan bola mainan di ruang tamu.