Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak.

I am worried the motorcycle brakes are broken.

Breakdown of Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak.

• saya: I
• adalah: to be
• itu: that
• rosak: broken
• risau: worried
• brek motosikal: the motorcycle brake

Questions & Answers about Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak.

What does risau mean exactly, and how strong is it compared to English words like “worried”, “anxious”, or “afraid”?

Risau most often corresponds to “worried” in English.

• It usually suggests:
  • mental unease
  • being preoccupied with a possible problem
• It is typically not as strong as “terrified” or “really scared”, and a bit softer than intense “anxiety”.

Some rough comparisons:

• risau – worried / concerned
• bimbang – worried / uneasy (often interchangeable with risau)
• takut – afraid, scared (more about fear)

So Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak is like:

• “I’m worried the motorcycle’s brakes are damaged / faulty.”
  rather than “I’m really scared” in a panic sense.

In English we say “I’m worried that the motorcycle’s brakes are broken”. Why is there no word for “that” in Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak?

Malay often omits the equivalent of “that” when introducing a clause.

A very literal structure is:

• Saya risau [brek motosikal itu rosak].
  → I am worried [the motorcycle’s brakes are broken].

You can include an explicit “that” word:

• Saya risau bahawa brek motosikal itu rosak.

Here bahawa = “that” (for statements/clauses).
However, in everyday Malay, bahawa is frequently dropped in speech because the meaning is clear without it. That’s why the sentence is perfectly natural without a visible “that”.

Why isn’t there a word for “is” in brek motosikal itu rosak? Why not something like “brek motosikal itu adalah rosak”?

Malay normally doesn’t use a separate “to be” verb (like “is/are”) before adjectives.

In brek motosikal itu rosak:

• brek motosikal itu = the motorcycle’s brakes
• rosak = broken / damaged

The structure is simply:

• [Subject] + [Adjective]
• “The motorcycle’s brakes broken” → “The motorcycle’s brakes are broken.”

Using adalah here (brek motosikal itu adalah rosak) is not natural.
Adalah is mainly used:

• before nouns in formal contexts:
  • Dia adalah doktor. – He/She is a doctor.
• for emphasis in formal written Malay.

With adjectives like rosak, you normally don’t use adalah.

Is rosak an adjective or a verb here? Does it mean “are broken” or “to break”?

Rosak can behave like both an adjective and a stative verb, depending on context. Here it means:

• “broken / damaged / not functioning” – essentially like an adjective.

In brek motosikal itu rosak:

• It works like: “the motorcycle’s brakes are broken.”

If you want to talk about the action of something becoming damaged, you usually add other words:

• Brek motosikal itu telah rosak. – The motorcycle’s brakes have become damaged.
• Brek motosikal itu tiba-tiba rosak. – The motorcycle’s brakes suddenly failed/broke.

So in this sentence, think of rosak as “broken / faulty”, describing a state.

What exactly does itu mean here? Is it “that” or “the”? Why is it placed after motosikal?

Itu most basically means “that”, but it is also very commonly used like “the” to mark something specific, known, or already mentioned.

In brek motosikal itu:

• motosikal = motorcycle
• itu = that / the
• Together: motosikal itu = that motorcycle / the motorcycle (we’re talking about)

Word order rule:

• In Malay, demonstratives (this/that = ini/itu) usually come after the noun:
  • buku itu – that/the book
  • kereta ini – this/the car
  • motosikal itu – that/the motorcycle

So itu is correctly placed after motosikal.

Does brek mean one brake or both brakes? How do you show plural in Malay in a phrase like brek motosikal itu?

Malay usually does not mark plural on the noun. Context tells you whether it’s singular or plural.

• brek motosikal itu can mean:
  • “the brake of that motorcycle” or
  • “the brakes of that motorcycle”

In this context (talking about a vehicle’s brakes), an English speaker would naturally translate it as “brakes” (plural).

If you really need to emphasize plural, you can:

• use semua (all):
  
  • Semua brek motosikal itu rosak. – All the motorcycle’s brakes are damaged.
• sometimes repeat the word (more common for countable items like buku-buku “books”, less needed for parts like brakes).

But normally, brek alone is fine and understood from the situation.

Why is it brek motosikal itu (motorcycle’s brake) and not something with an apostrophe like in English “motorcycle’s brake”?

Malay shows possession by putting the possessor after the thing possessed, with no apostrophe.

Pattern:

• [thing owned] + [owner]

Examples:

• buku Ali – Ali’s book
• rumah saya – my house
• brek motosikal itu – that motorcycle’s brakes

So:

• brek = brake(s)
• motosikal itu = that/the motorcycle
• Together: brek motosikal itu = the brakes of that motorcycle / that motorcycle’s brakes.

There’s no apostrophe in Malay possessive structures.

Could I just say breknya rosak instead of brek motosikal itu rosak? What is the difference?

Yes, breknya rosak is grammatically correct, but the nuance is different.

• breknya rosak:

  • Literally: “its brakes are broken.”
  • -nya = “its / his / her / their / the” (contextual, very flexible).
  • This does not specify what “its” refers to; the listener must already know.

• brek motosikal itu rosak:

  • Explicitly: “the brakes of that motorcycle are broken.”
  • You state the owner directly: motosikal itu.

Use breknya rosak when:

• the object has just been mentioned:
  • Saya nampak motosikal itu. Breknya rosak.
    – I saw that motorcycle. Its brakes are broken.

Use brek motosikal itu rosak when:

• you want to be clear and explicit, or the motorcycle hasn’t just been mentioned.

Why is the pronoun saya used here? Could I use aku instead, and what’s the difference?

Both saya and aku mean “I / me”, but they differ in formality and tone.

• saya

  • polite, neutral
  • used in most situations: with strangers, in public, at work, in writing
  • safe default for learners

• aku

  • informal, more intimate
  • used with close friends, family, or in songs/poetry
  • can sound too casual or even rude in a formal context

So:

• Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak. – polite/neutral, usable almost anywhere.
• Aku risau brek motosikal itu rosak. – casual, suitable with friends or in relaxed conversation.

For learners, it’s safer to stick with saya until you’re comfortable with social nuances.

Can I drop saya and just say Risau brek motosikal itu rosak?

You can sometimes drop the subject pronoun in Malay, but you must be careful.

• Risau brek motosikal itu rosak.
  • Grammatically understandable, but it sounds incomplete/fragment-like in many contexts.
  • It can feel like: “(I’m) worried the motorcycle’s brakes are broken,” with the subject implied.

Malay does allow subject dropping when:

• the subject has already been clearly established in context, or
• in informal speech / text messages.

But as a learner, it’s better to keep saya:

• Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak.

This is clear and natural in most contexts.

Could we say brek motosikal yang rosak? How is that different from brek motosikal itu rosak?

Yes, brek motosikal yang rosak is grammatical, but it has a different structure and meaning.

1. brek motosikal itu rosak

   • A full sentence:
     • brek motosikal itu = subject (the motorcycle’s brakes)
     • rosak = predicate (are broken)
   • Meaning: “The motorcycle’s brakes are broken.”

2. brek motosikal yang rosak

   • A noun phrase:
     • yang rosak functions like a relative clause: “that are broken”.
   • Meaning: “the motorcycle brakes that are broken” – you’re describing which brakes, not stating a full sentence by itself.

Example:

• Saya mahu membaiki brek motosikal yang rosak.
  – I want to repair the motorcycle brakes that are broken.

So:

• …itu rosak → complete sentence, stating a fact.
• …yang rosak → descriptive phrase, usually part of a larger sentence.

The sentence doesn’t show any tense. How do we know if it’s “I was worried”, “I am worried”, or “I will be worried”?

Malay verbs and adjectives do not change form for tense. Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak is tense-neutral; context provides the time.

It can mean:

• “I am worried that the motorcycle’s brakes are broken.”
• “I was worried that the motorcycle’s brakes were broken.”
• “I will be worried if the motorcycle’s brakes are broken.” (with extra context)

To make tense clearer, Malay often uses time words or aspect markers:

• tadi / semalam / dulu – earlier / yesterday / before

  • Tadi saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak.
    – Earlier I was worried the motorcycle’s brakes were broken.

• akan – will (for future, especially formal/written)

  • Saya akan risau kalau brek motosikal itu rosak.
    – I will be worried if the motorcycle’s brakes are broken.

But in isolation, Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak is understood mainly as present or general worry, unless context suggests otherwise.

Is this sentence formal, informal, or neutral? Would it sound natural in everyday conversation?

Saya risau brek motosikal itu rosak is neutral and natural. It’s suitable for:

• everyday conversation
• texting/chat
• polite speech
• most written contexts (emails, notes, messages)

It’s not extremely formal, but still polite because of saya and the simple structure.

In very casual speech, someone might say:

• Aku risau brek motor tu rosak.
  
  • aku – informal “I”
  • motor – colloquial for motosikal
  • tu – informal pronunciation of itu

In more formal writing, you might see:

• Saya bimbang bahawa brek motosikal itu telah rosak.

But your sentence as given is a good, natural standard Malay form.