Learn Hardcore Malay: Selepas itu, saya mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal. - After that, I wipe the floor with a thick cloth.

Selepas itu – after that (more formal/standard, good for writing, polite speech)
Kemudian – then / afterwards (also common and standard; often used like “then” in a story)
Lepas tu – after that / then but colloquial, informal speech (especially in Malaysia)

You can usually swap “selepas itu” with “kemudian” without changing the meaning much, but “lepas tu” sounds more casual and would not usually be used in formal writing.

Why is it “saya mengelap” and not just “saya lap”?

The verb “mengelap” is formed from the root lap (to wipe) plus the prefix meN- → mengelap.

lap – root form; often used in casual speech:
- Saya lap lantai. (I wipe the floor.) – sounds informal/colloquial.
mengelap – the standard meN- verb form (more complete, more neutral/polished):
- Saya mengelap lantai. (I am wiping / I wiped the floor.)

Both are understandable. “mengelap” is more typical in standard Malay, especially in writing or more formal contexts.

Does “mengelap” mean “am wiping”, “wipe” or “wiped”? Where is the tense?

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. The verb “mengelap” itself is tenseless. The time is understood from context or time words.

In English, “saya mengelap lantai” could be:

I wipe the floor.
I am wiping the floor.
I wiped the floor.

Here, “Selepas itu” (after that) puts it in the past in context, so the most natural English is:
“After that, I wiped the floor with a thick cloth.”

If you want to make time very clear, you add time markers:

Tadi saya mengelap lantai. – I wiped the floor earlier.
Sekarang saya mengelap lantai. – I am wiping the floor now.
Esok saya akan mengelap lantai. – Tomorrow I will wipe the floor.

What is the root of “mengelap”, and how does the prefix work?

The root is “lap” (to wipe).

Malay often forms active verbs with the prefix meN-, which changes slightly depending on the first letter of the root:

meN- + lap → mengelap
The N assimilates and becomes ng before l.

Pattern (simplified):

meN- + p → mem- (mem pakai → memakai)
meN- + b / f → mem- (mem baca → membaca)
meN- + t → men- (men tulis → menulis)
meN- + d / j / c → men-
meN- + k / g / h / vowels → meng-
meN- + s → meny-
meN- + l / r / w / y → me- or meng- depending on dictionary/tradition

For lap, the conventional form is mengelap.

Why is it “lantai” instead of a word like “flooring” or “ground”? What exactly does “lantai” cover?

“Lantai” means floor – the surface you walk on inside a building.

lantai rumah – house floor
lantai bilik air – bathroom floor
lantai pejabat – office floor

It is not used for the outdoor ground (soil/earth). For outside ground, Malay normally uses “tanah”.

So “mengelap lantai” = wiping the floor surface (tiles, wood, etc.), not wiping the soil.

What does “dengan” mean here, and can it be left out?

In this sentence, “dengan” means “with” in the instrumental sense: “using”.

mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal
= wipe the floor with / using a thick cloth.

You normally need “dengan” when you specify a tool/instrument like this.
Without it:

Saya mengelap lantai kain tebal.
This sounds wrong/unnatural because it suggests “I wipe the floor (which is) thick cloth”.

So keep “dengan” when you mean “using (something)”.

Why is the order “kain tebal” and not “tebal kain”?

In Malay, adjectives usually come after the noun:

kain tebal
- kain = cloth
- tebal = thick
  → thick cloth

Other examples:

buku besar – big book
kereta merah – red car
lantai basah – wet floor

“Tebal kain” on its own would more likely mean “the thickness of the cloth” or “thick, the cloth is” (if said in a sentence with extra context), not a simple noun phrase “thick cloth”.

Can “kain tebal” also mean “a thick piece of cloth / rag”? Or must it be generic “cloth”?

Yes, “kain” is flexible. It can mean:

cloth (material, fabric) in general
a piece of cloth, like a rag/towel, depending on context
specific cloth items (e.g. kain batik, kain sarung)

In this sentence, “kain tebal” is naturally understood as:

“a thick cloth”
“a thick rag”
“a thick piece of cloth”

English usually introduces “a” or “the”, but Malay often omits such articles; the context fills it in.

What’s the difference between “saya” and “aku” here?

Both mean “I”, but they differ in formality and social distance:

saya – polite, neutral, used with strangers, in formal situations, or whenever you want to sound respectful or neutral.
aku – informal, intimate, used with close friends, family, or in songs, poetry, etc.

In a neutral or polite narration, “saya mengelap lantai” is more appropriate.
In casual speech to a close friend, you might say:

Lepas tu, aku lap lantai dengan kain tebal.

Could I say “Selepas itu, saya mengelap dengan kain tebal lantai.” or move the words around?

No, that word order is wrong in standard Malay.

The typical order is:

Subject – saya
Verb – mengelap
Object – lantai
Instrument (with “dengan”) – dengan kain tebal

So:

✅ Saya mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal.
❌ Saya mengelap dengan kain tebal lantai.

Malay generally keeps direct object immediately after the verb, and extra information (instruments, time, place) comes after that.

Is “Selepas itu” always at the beginning of the sentence? Can it go elsewhere?

“Selepas itu” is most commonly put at the beginning, like English “After that,”:

Selepas itu, saya mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal.

You can move time/sequence phrases, but in this case moving it sounds awkward:

❌ Saya mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal selepas itu.
This could be understood, but usually “selepas itu” refers back to something previously mentioned and is used to start the next action.

When you want to say “after that” as a linking phrase in a narrative, it’s most natural and common at the start of the new sentence/clause.

If I want to emphasize that the floor became clean, how would I say that?

You can add a clause about the result:

Selepas itu, saya mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal sehingga lantai menjadi bersih.
– After that, I wiped the floor with a thick cloth until the floor became clean.

Shorter options:

Selepas itu, saya mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal sehingga bersih.
– After that, I wiped the floor with a thick cloth until (it was) clean.
Selepas itu, saya mengelap lantai dengan kain tebal sampai bersih.
– Same meaning, more colloquial with “sampai”.

How would this sentence change in very casual spoken Malaysian Malay?

Very casual Malaysian speech might reduce or modify several parts:

Selepas itu → Lepas tu
saya → aku (with friends) or dropped if obvious
mengelap → lap
sometimes dengan is reduced in pronunciation, but it’s usually still there in clear speech

Example:

Lepas tu, aku lap lantai dengan kain tebal.

This keeps the meaning but sounds informal and conversational.