Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.

I write the phone number in the notebook.

Breakdown of Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.

• saya: I
• tulis: to write
• di dalam: in
• buku nota: the notebook
• nombor telefon: the phone number

Questions & Answers about Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.

How can Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota mean both I write and I wrote? There’s no tense in the verb.

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. The base verb tulis can cover present, past, or even habitual actions. The exact time is understood from context or from extra words if needed.

Examples:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota setiap hari.
  = I write phone numbers in a notebook every day. (habitual)
• Tadi, saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
  = Just now / earlier, I wrote a phone number in a notebook. (past)
• Sekarang saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
  = Right now I am writing a phone number in a notebook. (present/progressive)

To be very clear about time, Malay often adds:

• sedang (in the middle of doing): Saya sedang tulis / menulis...
• sudah / telah (already): Saya sudah tulis / menulis...
• akan (will): Saya akan tulis / menulis...

Why is the verb tulis here and not menulis? What’s the difference?

Both are correct, but they differ slightly in style and formality:

• tulis = base verb, very common in everyday speech and informal writing.
• menulis = prefixed form, sounds a bit more complete and formal, common in writing, news, and more careful speech.

So you can say:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota. (totally natural in conversation)
• Saya menulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota. (slightly more formal or careful)

In many everyday sentences, Malaysians and Indonesians use the base form (like tulis, baca, makan) instead of the meN- form in casual speech.

Can I leave out saya and just say Tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota?

Yes, dropping the subject pronoun is possible and common, but it changes the feel:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
  = I write / I wrote the phone number in the notebook. (explicit subject)

• Tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
  = Write the phone number in the notebook. (usually sounds like an instruction / command)

If the context is clear (you’re already talking about yourself), you might sometimes say:

• Tadi, tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
  and people still understand I wrote, but this is more typical in spoken, very informal Malay.

For neutral, learner-friendly sentences, keep saya in.

Does nombor telefon here mean a phone number, the phone number, or my phone number? There’s no “a/the/my”.

By default, nombor telefon is neutral about definiteness and possession. It could be understood as:

• a phone number
• the phone number
• my/your/his phone number

The actual meaning comes from context. To be explicit:

• a phone number
  Saya tulis satu nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.

• the phone number
  Saya tulis nombor telefon itu di dalam buku nota.

• my phone number
  Saya tulis nombor telefon saya di dalam buku nota.

• her phone number
  Saya tulis nombor telefon dia di dalam buku nota.

Malay does not add endings like -s or articles like a / the, so you use extra words (satu, itu, saya, dia, etc.) when you need to be specific.

What’s the difference between di dalam, dalam, and di before buku nota?

All three appear in real usage, but there are nuances:

1. di dalam buku nota

   • Literally: inside in the notebook
   • Feels a bit more explicit/emphatic: inside the notebook.
   • Common and completely correct.

2. dalam buku nota

   • Literally: inside the notebook
   • Very natural and probably the most common everyday choice.
   • Many people would say: Saya tulis nombor telefon dalam buku nota.

3. di buku nota

   • Literally: at/on/in the notebook
   • Focuses on the notebook as a location/surface, less strongly “inside”.
   • Also grammatical; people do say di buku, di buku nota.

In your sentence, di dalam buku nota is fine and clear. In speech, many would shorten it to dalam buku nota with the same meaning.

Is it okay if I say Saya tulis nombor telefon dalam buku nota (without di)?

Yes, that’s very natural. Dalam buku nota by itself already means in the notebook.

So you have several acceptable variants:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon dalam buku nota.
• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
• Saya tulis nombor telefon di buku nota.

All are grammatical. Dalam buku nota and di dalam buku nota are the most common for the meaning “inside the notebook”.

Can I change the word order to Saya tulis di dalam buku nota nombor telefon?

That word order is understandable but feels awkward and unnatural. In Malay, the usual pattern is:

Subject – Verb – Object – Place/time phrases

So the natural order is:

• Saya (subject)
• tulis (verb)
• nombor telefon (direct object)
• di dalam buku nota (place phrase)

Putting di dalam buku nota before nombor telefon breaks the typical flow and sounds off to native ears. Keep nombor telefon directly after the verb.

Why is buku nota two words? Is that just “notebook”? Are there other ways to say it?

Yes, buku nota literally means note book and is the usual way to say notebook in Malay.

• buku = book
• nota = note(s)

Other possibilities:

• buku catatan – also “notebook” (more literally: record/notes book)
• buku nota kecil – small notebook
• buku tulis – exercise book / writing book (often used for school notebooks)

They’re written as separate words, not joined.

Do I need a classifier or number like sebuah or satu before buku nota?

Not necessarily. When you’re just talking about something in general, you can omit numbers and classifiers:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
  = I wrote the phone number in a notebook / in the notebook.

If you want to emphasise one notebook, or introduce it clearly, you can say:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam satu buku nota.
• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam sebuah buku nota.

satu = the number “one”
sebuah = a classifier often used with objects/buildings (including books)

Both are acceptable; sebuah buku nota sounds a bit more natural than satu buku nota in careful speech, but in everyday conversation satu is extremely common.

Does telefon here mean the physical phone or the phone number?

On its own, telefon usually means (a) telephone / phone (the device).

In your sentence, it is part of the compound nombor telefon = phone number:

• nombor = number
• telefon = telephone/phone
• nombor telefon = phone number

So the meaning is clearly phone number, not the physical phone.

To refer to the device, people would say:

• telefon – phone (general)
• telefon bimbit – mobile phone / cellphone
• telefon pintar – smartphone

I’ve seen nomor telepon in Indonesian. Is nombor telefon just the Malaysian version?

Yes, this is mainly a Malay (Malaysia/Brunei/Singapore) vs Indonesian spelling difference.

Malay (Malaysia):

• nombor telefon

Indonesian:

• nomor telepon

Pronunciation is very similar. As a learner of Malay (Bahasa Melayu / Bahasa Malaysia), you should stick with:

• nombor telefon

When should I use saya instead of aku for “I”?

In this sentence, saya is the safest and most neutral choice.

• saya

  • Polite, neutral, used in formal and informal situations, with strangers, at work, with older people, in writing.
  • Works almost everywhere.

• aku

  • More intimate/informal.
  • Used with close friends, family, or in songs.
  • Can sound rude or too casual if used with the wrong person.

So:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota. (neutral/polite)
• Aku tulis nombor telefon dalam buku nota. (very casual, e.g. to a close friend)

As a learner, default to saya unless you’re sure aku is appropriate.

How would I say I am writing the phone number in the notebook right now more explicitly?

You can add sedang to show the action is in progress:

• Sekarang saya sedang menulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.

Points:

• sekarang = now
• sedang = in the middle of doing (progressive aspect)
• menulis is used here because it sounds a bit more formal/complete in a full sentence, but sedang tulis is also heard in conversation:
  • Sekarang saya sedang tulis nombor telefon dalam buku nota.

Your original sentence without extra words:

• Saya tulis nombor telefon di dalam buku nota.
  can still mean I am writing… if the context makes it clear it’s happening now.