Learn Hardcore Malay: Saya menulis dengan pen biru di buku nota. - I write with a blue pen in the notebook.

Menulis is the basic verb form meaning “to write / writing / wrote / writes”. Malay verbs do not change form for tense the way English verbs do.

The tense is understood from context or from time words:

Saya menulis dengan pen biru di buku nota.
I write / am writing / wrote …

To make time clearer, you add adverbs:

Saya sedang menulis… = I am (currently) writing…
Saya telah menulis… = I have written / I wrote…
Saya akan menulis… = I will write…

The verb menulis itself stays the same.

What is the meN- prefix in menulis doing?

The root is tulis (write). The prefix meN- turns it into an active verb:

tulis → menulis = to write / writing

Common pattern:

baca (read) → membaca
masak (cook) → memasak
ajar (teach) → mengajar

You normally use the meN- form for standard, full sentences with a subject:

Saya menulis. = I write / I am writing.

Bare roots like tulis can appear in commands or short phrases:

Tulis nama kamu. = Write your name.

Why do we use dengan before pen biru? Can I leave it out?

Here dengan means “with (using)” and introduces the instrument you use:

menulis dengan pen biru = write with a blue pen

You cannot just say:

✗ Saya menulis pen biru… (wrong)

Without dengan (or another suitable word), pen biru would look like a direct object, and the sentence becomes unclear or wrong.

Other common ways to express with (using):

dengan pen biru
menggunakan pen biru (using a blue pen; a bit more formal)
pakai pen biru (colloquial: use a blue pen)

All are acceptable, but dengan is simple and very common.

Does dengan always mean “with someone” like English “with”, or is it different?

Dengan can mean both:

With (person)
- Saya pergi dengan kawan. = I go with a friend.
With (using something / in some manner)
- Saya menulis dengan pen biru. = I write with a blue pen.
- Dia bercakap dengan perlahan. = He/She speaks slowly (literally: with slow).

Context tells you whether it’s with a person, with a tool, or in a manner.

Does di mean “in” or “on”? In di buku nota, am I writing in the notebook or on it?

Di is a general preposition for at / in / on, and context fills in the exact sense.

In everyday use, di buku nota is normally understood as in the notebook (inside/on the pages).

If you want to be more precise:

di dalam buku nota = inside the notebook (emphasises inside)
di atas buku nota = on top of the notebook (on its cover, physically on it)

So your sentence is fine as-is; di buku nota is natural and usually understood as in the notebook.

Is buku nota one word or two? And is it the same as “notebook” in English (paper, not a laptop)?

It’s usually written as two words: buku nota.

buku = book
nota = notes

Together: buku nota = notebook (for writing notes, paper type).

Other possibilities:

buku catatan = notebook / book of notes
buku latihan = exercise book (often for school)

For a laptop computer, you normally say komputer riba, not buku nota.

Can I change the order and say Saya menulis di buku nota dengan pen biru instead? Is it still correct?

Yes, both are grammatically correct:

Saya menulis dengan pen biru di buku nota.
Saya menulis di buku nota dengan pen biru.

Malay allows some flexibility in the order of prepositional phrases. Both mean the same thing. The first version feels slightly more like you’re emphasising the tool first; the second, the location first, but the difference is small.

How would I make it clear that I mean the blue pen and the notebook, not just any?

Malay usually relies on context for the vs a, but you can make things more specific with itu (that/the) after the noun phrase:

pen biru itu = that blue pen / the blue pen
buku nota itu = that notebook / the notebook

Example:

Saya menulis dengan pen biru itu di buku nota itu.
= I am writing with the blue pen in the notebook.

If the items were mentioned earlier, itu sounds natural to show you mean those specific ones.

Is pen biru singular or plural? How would I say “blue pens”?

Malay doesn’t mark plural on nouns automatically. Pen biru can mean:

a blue pen, the blue pen, or blue pens (in general), depending on context.

To make plural explicit, you can:

Repeat the noun:
- pen-pen biru = blue pens (more formal/written)
Use a number + classifier:
- tiga batang pen biru = three blue pens
  (batang is a classifier for long, stick-like objects.)

In casual speech, people often still say just pen biru, relying on context.

Why do we use saya? Can I use aku instead?

Both mean “I / me”, but they differ in formality:

saya: neutral, polite, suitable for almost all situations (talking to strangers, at work, to elders).
aku: informal, intimate (friends, close family, songs, casual speech).

In a neutral example sentence like this, saya is the safest choice.

You could say:

Aku menulis dengan pen biru di buku nota.

Grammatically correct, but it sounds casual. Use aku only with people you’re close to and where it’s socially appropriate.

How would I say “I am writing right now with a blue pen in the notebook”?

Add sedang before the verb to show an action in progress:

Saya sedang menulis dengan pen biru di buku nota.
= I am (currently) writing with a blue pen in the notebook.

Sedang works like “be … -ing” in English (am doing, is doing, are doing), but it’s optional and mainly used when you want to highlight that the action is in progress right now.

Can I add words for “one pen” and “one notebook” to be very explicit?

Yes. You use numeral + classifier:

sebatang pen biru = one (stick-shaped) blue pen
sebuah buku nota = one notebook

Full sentence:

Saya menulis dengan sebatang pen biru di sebuah buku nota.

This sounds a bit more formal or descriptive (e.g. in writing exercises or stories), but it’s correct and natural. In everyday speech, people often just omit sebatang / sebuah unless they need to stress the number.