Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.

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Questions & Answers about Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.

What does takut mean here, and is it a verb or an adjective?

In this sentence, takut means afraid / scared.

Grammatically, takut is an adjective, but in Malay adjectives can function like verbs in English. So:

  • Saya takut = I am afraid / I fear
    (no extra verb like am or to be is needed)

So Saya takut suntikan is literally I afraid (of) injections, which we translate as I’m afraid of injections.

Why is there no word for “am” in Saya takut suntikan…?

Malay normally does not use a separate verb “to be” (like am, is, are) before adjectives.

  • English: I am afraid.
  • Malay: Saya takut. (literally: I afraid)

So the sentence:

  • Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    literally: I afraid injections at government hospital
    natural English: I’m afraid of injections at government hospitals.

The “am” is understood from the structure; Malay doesn’t need to say it explicitly.

Does suntikan mean “injection” or “injections”? How do I know if it’s singular or plural?

Suntikan means injection in general, and Malay usually doesn’t mark singular/plural unless it’s important.

So suntikan could be:

  • an injection
  • the injection
  • injections (in general)

The sentence can be understood as:

  • I’m afraid of injections at government hospitals (most natural) or
  • I’m afraid of an injection at a government hospital (in context)

If you really want to stress plural, you can say suntikan-suntikan, but that’s usually unnecessary in everyday speech here.

Should there be a word like “of” after takut, for example takut akan suntikan?

You can add a preposition, but you don’t have to.

All of these are grammatically possible:

  • Saya takut suntikan.
  • Saya takut akan suntikan.
  • Saya takut dengan suntikan.

Differences:

  • Saya takut suntikan.
    – Natural and common, especially in speech.
  • Saya takut akan suntikan.
    – Slightly more formal or careful; often in writing.
  • Saya takut dengan suntikan.
    – Also natural; can sound a bit more conversational.

In your sentence, Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan. is perfectly normal and correct.

What exactly does di hospital kerajaan mean? Is it “at”, “in”, or “in the”?

di is a location preposition meaning at / in / on, depending on context.
hospital kerajaan literally means government hospital.

So di hospital kerajaan can be translated as:

  • at a government hospital
  • in a government hospital
  • at government hospitals (general)

English usually needs an article (a / the), but Malay does not, so you choose the most natural one in English based on context. Here, at government hospitals or at a government hospital are both valid.

What does hospital kerajaan mean exactly? Is it just “government hospital”?

Yes:

  • hospital = hospital
  • kerajaan = government

So hospital kerajaan literally means government hospital.
In natural English we might say public hospital or government hospital.

Note that the order is noun + describing word:

  • hospital kerajaan = government hospital (lit. “hospital government”)
  • sekolah kerajaan = government school
  • pejabat kerajaan = government office
Why is the order hospital kerajaan and not kerajaan hospital?

Malay usually uses the order:

[main noun] + [describing word]

So:

  • hospital kerajaan = hospital (that is) government → government hospital
  • baju merah = shirt (that is) red → red shirt

Putting kerajaan before hospital (✗ kerajaan hospital) would be wrong here. The word that tells “what kind of thing it is” normally comes after the noun.

If I want to say “I’m afraid of getting an injection at a government hospital,” is Saya takut suntikan… enough?

Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan. is usually understood as:

  • I’m afraid of injections at government hospitals (general fear).

If you want to be clearer that you’re afraid of the act of being injected, you can say:

  • Saya takut disuntik di hospital kerajaan.
    = I’m afraid of being injected at a government hospital.

Compare:

  • Saya takut suntikan.
    – I’m afraid of injections (as things / procedures in general).
  • Saya takut disuntik.
    – I’m afraid of getting injected (the act, being on the receiving end).
How do I change the tense? How would I say “I was afraid” or “I will be afraid”?

Malay usually relies on context for tense, but you can add time words or markers.

Base sentence (present/general):

  • Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    = I’m afraid of injections at government hospitals.

Past (I was afraid):

  • Dulu saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    (In the past, I was afraid of injections at government hospitals.)
  • Semalam saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    (Yesterday, I was afraid…)

Future (I will be afraid):

  • Saya akan takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    (I will be afraid of injections at government hospitals.)

    More commonly, you just add a time word:

  • Esok, saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    (Tomorrow, I’ll be afraid of the injection at the government hospital.)
    → Context signals it’s about the future.

How would I say “I’m not afraid of injections at government hospitals”?

You simply add tidak before takut:

  • Saya tidak takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    = I’m not afraid of injections at government hospitals.

Pattern:

  • Saya takut… = I’m afraid…
  • Saya tidak takut… = I’m not afraid…
Can I drop saya and just say Takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan?

Yes, in conversation you can drop saya if it’s clear from context who is speaking.

  • Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    – Full, neutral sentence.
  • Takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    – More casual / elliptical, sounds like: “(I) am scared of injections at government hospitals.”

In formal writing or careful speech, it’s better to keep Saya.

How do you pronounce suntikan and kerajaan?

Approximate pronunciation:

  • suntikan → /soon-TEE-kahn/

    • sun = “soon” (short)
    • ti = “tee”
    • kan = “kahn” (short a)
  • kerajaan → /kə-RAH-ja-an/

    • ke = “kə” (like ker in worker, but very short)
    • ra = “rah”
    • ja = “jah”
    • an = “an” (like un in under, but here it sounds like a short “an”)

Main stress is usually around ra in kerajaan: ke-RA-ja-an. The aa is a longer “a” sound.

Is this sentence polite? Could it sound rude?

The sentence:

  • Saya takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.

is neutral and polite. You’re simply stating your fear.

To be extra soft or polite, especially to a doctor or nurse, you can add:

  • Saya agak takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    (I’m rather / a bit afraid of injections at government hospitals.)
  • Saya memang takut suntikan di hospital kerajaan.
    (I really am afraid of injections at government hospitals.)

But the original sentence is fine and not rude.