Pakar cuaca itu menerangkan ramalan cuaca pagi ini di stesen televisyen tempatan.

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Questions & Answers about Pakar cuaca itu menerangkan ramalan cuaca pagi ini di stesen televisyen tempatan.

What does itu after pakar cuaca mean, and why is it used here?

Itu is a demonstrative meaning that, but in sentences like this it often works like the English the.

  • pakar cuaca = a weather expert / meteorologist (not specific)
  • pakar cuaca itu = that/the weather expert (a specific one that the speaker assumes you know about, e.g. “the weather expert” on that program)

You could drop itu and say Pakar cuaca menerangkan…, which would sound a bit more general (like “a weather expert explained…”).
So itu adds specificity/definiteness.


Is menerangkan present tense or past tense in this sentence?

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. Menerangkan by itself is neutral; it can mean:

  • is explaining / explains
  • was explaining / explained

The time reference comes from context words like:

  • tadi (a short while ago) – past
  • akan (will) – future
  • sedang (in the middle of doing) – progressive

For example:

  • Pakar cuaca itu sedang menerangkan… = is explaining (right now)
  • Pakar cuaca itu telah menerangkan… = has explained / already explained

In your sentence, pagi ini (“this morning”) gives the time frame, but not whether it’s already finished or ongoing. English has to choose; Malay does not.


What is the base word of menerangkan, and what does this form literally mean?

The base word is terang, which means bright or clear.

The verb menerangkan is formed as:

  • meN- + terang + -kan → menerangkan

This pattern often means to make something [adjective] or to cause [adjective]:

  • terang = clear
  • menerangkan = to make something clear → to explain / to clarify

So menerangkan ramalan cuaca literally has the sense to make the weather forecast clear, i.e. to explain the weather forecast.


Why is cuaca repeated in both pakar cuaca and ramalan cuaca? Could we leave it out anywhere?

The double cuaca looks repetitive in English, but it is natural in Malay because each phrase is a separate unit:

  • pakar cuaca = weather expert / meteorologist
  • ramalan cuaca = weather forecast

If you drop cuaca from ramalan cuaca, you get:

  • ramalan pagi ini = this morning’s forecast / prediction

This becomes more general; it could be a forecast about anything, not specifically weather, unless the context is very clear. Keeping cuaca makes the meaning explicit and unambiguous.

So the repetition is normal and stylistically fine in Malay.


Does ramalan cuaca pagi ini mean “this morning’s weather forecast” or “the weather forecast for this morning”?

It naturally covers both ideas, and Malay doesn’t need to distinguish them as sharply as English does.

Structure-wise:

  • ramalan cuaca = weather forecast
  • pagi ini = this morning

Putting them together:

  • ramalan cuaca pagi ini = the weather forecast (for) this morning

Depending on context, it can be understood as:

  • the forecast that is being given this morning, or
  • the forecast about this morning’s weather

If you wanted to be very explicit about “for this morning,” you could say:

  • ramalan cuaca untuk pagi ini
    (using untuk = for), but it’s not required; your original is perfectly natural.

Why do we use di in di stesen televisyen tempatan and not pada?

Di is the usual preposition for physical locations: in / at / on (a place).

  • di rumah = at home
  • di sekolah = at school
  • di stesen televisyen tempatan = at the local TV station

Pada is more common with:

  • time expressions (pada hari Isnin = on Monday, pada pukul 8 = at 8 o’clock)
  • abstract objects (e.g. pada pendapat saya = in my opinion)
  • some fixed phrases

Using di with a concrete place like stesen televisyen is the standard choice.
Pada stesen televisyen tempatan would sound odd or overly formal/old‑fashioned in modern usage.


In stesen televisyen tempatan, which word modifies which? What is the structure of this noun phrase?

Malay noun phrases usually follow this pattern:

Head noun + modifiers (nouns, adjectives, etc.)

Here:

  • stesen = station (head noun)
  • televisyen = television (noun modifying stesen → “television station”)
  • tempatan = local (adjective modifying the whole phrase “TV station”)

So the structure is:

  • stesen (televisyen) (tempatan)
    → a TV station that is local = a local TV station

You cannot reorder it to something like stesen tempatan televisyen; that would sound wrong or confusing in Malay.


Could we just say televisyen tempatan or TV tempatan instead of stesen televisyen tempatan?

Yes, in many contexts you can, and the meaning shifts slightly in a natural way:

  • di stesen televisyen tempatan
    = at the local TV station (emphasises the place/organisation)

  • di televisyen tempatan / di TV tempatan
    = on local TV (emphasises the medium / channel)

All are acceptable, but:

  • The original sounds more like a written, news‑style sentence.
  • di TV tempatan is more colloquial and close to spoken English “on local TV”.

So you can adjust the phrase depending on how formal or casual you want to sound.


Can the time phrase pagi ini be moved to another position in the sentence?

Yes, Malay time expressions are quite flexible. All of these are grammatical:

  1. Pakar cuaca itu menerangkan ramalan cuaca pagi ini di stesen televisyen tempatan.
    (neutral order)

  2. Pagi ini, pakar cuaca itu menerangkan ramalan cuaca di stesen televisyen tempatan.
    (putting pagi ini at the start adds emphasis on “this morning”)

  3. Pakar cuaca itu, pagi ini, menerangkan ramalan cuaca di stesen televisyen tempatan.
    (more marked; sounds like spoken emphasis)

The most common neutral positions are:

  • just after the main verb phrase or object (as in the original), or
  • at the very beginning of the sentence.

What is the difference between menerangkan and menjelaskan? Could we use menjelaskan here?

Both mean to explain and are often interchangeable.

  • menerangkan (from terang, clear/bright)
    – literally “to make clear”; slightly more general and common.

  • menjelaskan (from jelas, clear/obvious)
    – literally “to make clear”; also very common, sometimes feels a bit more formal or explicit in “giving a detailed explanation”.

In this sentence, you can say:

  • Pakar cuaca itu menerangkan ramalan cuaca pagi ini…
  • Pakar cuaca itu menjelaskan ramalan cuaca pagi ini…

Both are natural. Any difference in nuance is small and usually not important in everyday use.


In English we say “on TV,” but here we have di stesen televisyen tempatan. How do you normally say “on TV” in Malay?

Malay often uses di for what English expresses as “on” with media:

  • di televisyen / di TV = on TV
  • di radio = on the radio
  • di internet = on the internet

So, more directly parallel to English “on local TV”, you could say:

  • Pakar cuaca itu menerangkan ramalan cuaca pagi ini di televisyen tempatan.
    = The weather expert explained the weather forecast this morning on local TV.

The original di stesen televisyen tempatan is also fine; it leans slightly more towards “at the local TV station,” but in practical terms it refers to appearing on that station’s broadcast.