Kertas itu nipis.

to be

Breakdown of Kertas itu nipis.

• itu: that
• kertas: the paper
• nipis: thin

Questions & Answers about Kertas itu nipis.

In the sentence Kertas itu nipis, what does each word literally mean?

Word by word:

• kertas = paper
• itu = that / the (a demonstrative that often works like that or a definite marker)
• nipis = thin

So Kertas itu nipis literally is That paper thin, which in natural English becomes That paper is thin or The paper is thin.

Is itu more like the or more like that in English?

Itu is primarily a demonstrative meaning that (referring to something further away or already known in the context).

However, Malay does not have separate words for the and a/an. Often, a noun + itu is used for a specific/definite thing, so in translation it can correspond to either:

• kertas itu → that paper (when you want to contrast with other paper, or point at it)
• kertas itu → the paper (when it is clear from context which paper you mean)

So grammatically it is that, but in natural English translation it may be rendered as the.

Why does itu come after kertas, instead of before like in English (that paper)?