Breakdown of Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk di rak dekat singki.
Questions & Answers about Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk di rak dekat singki.
Saya is a polite, neutral word for “I / me”. It’s appropriate in most situations: with strangers, at work, in writing, etc.
You can use aku, but it sounds more informal and intimate, usually with close friends, siblings, or people your age (depending on culture and region).
So:
- Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk… – polite/neutral
- Aku simpan pinggan mangkuk… – casual/intimate
Grammar-wise both are correct; the choice is about politeness and relationship.
Malay usually does not mark tense on the verb. Simpan stays the same for present, past, and future; context tells you the time.
Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk di rak dekat singki can mean:
- I keep the dishes on the shelf near the sink (a general habit)
- I’m putting the dishes on the shelf near the sink (now)
- I put the dishes on the shelf near the sink (earlier)
If you really need to show time clearly, you add time words:
- Tadi saya simpan… – I put (them) earlier / just now
- Sekarang saya simpan… – I am putting (them) now
- Nanti saya simpan… – I will put (them) later
Simpan basically means “to keep / to store / to put away (for later)”. There is often a sense of:
- putting something in its proper place
- keeping it so it stays safe or ready for future use
Letak means “to put / to place” (just physically putting something somewhere), without the extra “for storage” or “keeping” nuance.
In this sentence:
- Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk… – I store/keep the dishes (where they belong)
- Saya letak pinggan mangkuk… – I put/place the dishes (there), more neutral
They overlap a lot in casual speech, but simpan fits well when talking about where things are kept.
Literally:
- pinggan = plates
- mangkuk = bowls
The phrase pinggan mangkuk together means “dishes / crockery / tableware”, not only plates and bowls but basically the usual ceramic items used for eating.
Malay often combines two related nouns like this without dan:
- suami isteri – husband and wife
- tua muda – old and young
- pinggan mangkuk – plates and bowls → dishes/crockery
So pinggan mangkuk is a common fixed expression for dishes / crockery, not just “plates and bowls” separately.
Malay usually does not mark plural with an ending like -s. Number is understood from context.
So pinggan mangkuk can mean:
- a (set of) plate(s) and bowl(s)
- the dishes / crockery (in general)
- some dishes
If you really want to show plurality, you could say:
- pinggan-pinggan dan mangkuk-mangkuk – plates and bowls (clearly plural, sounds a bit formal or emphatic)
- or add a number / quantifier: beberapa pinggan dan mangkuk – several plates and bowls
But in everyday speech, pinggan mangkuk is already naturally understood as plural “dishes” here.
Malay has no direct equivalent of English “a / an / the”. Definiteness (“the”) and possession (“my”) are usually understood from context or added only when needed.
In context, Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk di rak dekat singki is naturally understood as:
- I keep the dishes on the shelf near the sink
(and usually they’re your dishes, in your kitchen)
If you want to say “my” explicitly:
- Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk saya di rak dekat singki. – I keep my dishes on the shelf near the sink.
- Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk di rak saya dekat singki. – I keep the dishes on my shelf near the sink.
But it’s normally not necessary unless there could be confusion.
Di is a general location preposition: it covers “in / on / at” depending on the noun and context.
- di rumah – at home
- di dalam kotak – in the box
- di meja – at the table / on the table (context decides)
- di rak – on the shelf
Malay doesn’t split “in / on / at” as finely as English. You usually just use di plus the location, and the natural English equivalent depends on the object: shelves, tables, surfaces → “on”; rooms, containers → “in”; places → “at”.
Dekat means “near / close”.
You’ll see both patterns:
Noun + dekat + noun
- rak dekat singki – the shelf near the sink
Noun + dekat dengan + noun
- rak dekat dengan singki – the shelf near the sink (a bit clearer/longer)
In everyday conversation, dropping dengan is common and natural:
- Saya kerja dekat KL. – I work near KL.
- Dia duduk dekat pintu. – He/she sits near the door.
So dekat (without dengan) is fine here and very colloquial/normal. Dekat dengan is slightly more explicit, sometimes a bit more formal or careful.
You’ll see both:
- singki – spelling more aligned with Malay phonetics (preferred in many dictionaries)
- sinki – common in everyday writing/signs, also used
Both refer to the sink (usually the kitchen sink in this context). Region and personal habit affect which one people use. For learning purposes, singki is perfectly acceptable and understood.
Yes, you can see di rak dekat singki as:
- di – at/on
- rak – shelf
- dekat singki – (that is) near the sink
So rak dekat singki functions like “the shelf near the sink”:
- Saya simpan pinggan mangkuk [di rak dekat singki].
→ I keep the dishes [on the shelf near the sink].
Word-for-word, it’s:
- at/on shelf near sink
Malay often stacks modifiers after the noun like this:
- rak buku besar – big bookshelf
- meja bulat kecil – small round table
- rak dekat singki – the shelf near the sink
More casual:
- Aku simpan pinggan mangkuk kat rak dekat singki.
- aku instead of saya
- kat (slang for di) in many colloquial varieties
In some very casual contexts, people might even drop the subject:
- Simpan pinggan mangkuk kat rak dekat singki. – (You) put/keep the dishes…
More formal:
- Saya menyimpan pinggan mangkuk di rak yang terletak berhampiran singki.
- menyimpan (full verb with prefix)
- yang terletak berhampiran – “which is located near” (more formal phrasing)
The original sentence is already neutral and suitable for most situations.