Learn Hardcore Malay: Tolong buat latihan ini dengan betul.

In a sentence like Tolong buat latihan ini dengan betul, tolong is softening the command, making it more polite: Please do this exercise correctly.
On its own, tolong! can mean Help! (as in asking for help in an emergency).
In front of a verb phrase, tolong ≈ please (help to) …:
- Tolong buka pintu. – Please open the door.
- Tolong jelaskan lagi. – Please explain again.

So tolong can mean either help or please, depending on context and sentence structure.

What does buat mean here, and could I use a different verb?

Buat is a very common, general verb meaning to do or to make.

In this sentence, buat latihan ini = do this exercise.
It’s neutral and widely used in both spoken and written Malay.

You can replace buat with other verbs, with slightly different nuances:

Kerjakan latihan ini – Do/work on this exercise (a bit more formal or “school-like”).
Lakukan latihan ini – Perform this exercise (also more formal; common in written instructions).

So Tolong kerjakan latihan ini dengan betul is also correct and sounds a bit more formal than Tolong buat….

Why is it latihan ini and not ini latihan?

Malay normally puts the demonstrative (this/that) after the noun:

latihan ini – this exercise
latihan itu – that exercise

So:

latihan = exercise
ini = this

Ini latihan is also grammatical, but it means This is an exercise, not this exercise.
So:

Ini latihan. – This is an exercise.
Buat latihan ini. – Do this exercise.

What is the function of dengan in dengan betul, and why can’t we just say buat latihan ini betul?

Dengan means with, but here it’s used to form an adverbial phrase expressing manner: in a correct way / correctly.

betul by itself is an adjective: correct, right, true.
dengan betul = in a correct way, i.e. correctly.

Malay often uses dengan + adjective to mean in an X way:

dengan cepat – quickly
dengan perlahan – slowly
dengan teliti – carefully

Buat latihan ini betul is not natural; you need dengan (or another structure) to turn betul into something like an adverb here, so dengan betul is the normal form.

What exactly does betul mean here? Is it “correct” or “true”?

Betul can mean both correct / right and true, depending on context.

In Tolong buat latihan ini dengan betul:

dengan betul = in a correct way / correctly (do the exercise correctly).

Other uses:

Jawapan kamu betul. – Your answer is correct/right.
Itu tidak betul. – That’s not true / that’s not correct.
Betul ke? – Really? / Is that true? (colloquial speech).

So here, it has the sense of correct, but in other contexts it can carry the idea of true.

Who is being addressed? Where is the word for “you” in this sentence?

There is no explicit you in the sentence. Malay often drops the subject when giving commands or requests.

Tolong buat latihan ini dengan betul.
Literally: Please do this exercise correctly.
The you is understood: (You) please do this exercise correctly.

This is normal for imperatives in Malay:

Buka pintu. – (You) open the door.
Tulis nama kamu. – (You) write your name.

If you really want to specify the person, you can add a pronoun, but it’s not usually necessary in simple instructions.

How polite or formal is this sentence? Could it sound rude?

Tolong buat latihan ini dengan betul is polite and suitable in many everyday contexts.

A teacher to a student: very natural and polite.
Between colleagues or friends: still fine and polite.

Adjusting the level of formality:

More formal: Sila buat latihan ini dengan betul. (sila is formally polite, often in written instructions, announcements, official contexts.)
Softer / a bit more pleading: Tolonglah buat latihan ini dengan betul. (-lah can make it sound more gentle or pleading, depending on tone.)

Without tolong or sila, just Buat latihan ini dengan betul, it’s a direct command. It’s not automatically rude, but it is more blunt and depends heavily on tone and context.

Can I say Tolong kerjakan latihan ini dengan betul instead? What’s the difference from buat?

Yes, Tolong kerjakan latihan ini dengan betul is correct and natural.

Differences in nuance:

buat – very general do/make, casual, common in everyday speech.
kerjakan – from kerja (work) + -kan; often used for doing tasks/homework/assignments, feels a bit more academic or task-focused.

Examples:

Teacher to class, casual: Tolong buat latihan ini.
Written in a textbook or exam paper: Sila kerjakan latihan berikut dengan teliti.

So using kerjakan instead of buat sounds slightly more formal or task-oriented, but the meaning is essentially the same.

Is there any difference in meaning if we remove dengan betul and just say Tolong buat latihan ini?

Yes, the meaning becomes more general.

Tolong buat latihan ini. – Please do this exercise.
Tolong buat latihan ini dengan betul. – Please do this exercise correctly.

The second one specifically adds the idea of doing it the right way (not carelessly, not incorrectly). The first one only asks you to do it, without specifying how well or how carefully.

Could this sentence mean “Please help me do this exercise correctly”?

On its own, Tolong buat latihan ini dengan betul is understood as Please do this exercise correctly, addressing the listener, not help me.

To clearly say Please help me do this exercise correctly, you would normally say something like:

Tolong bantu saya buat latihan ini dengan betul.
(bantu = help; saya = me/I)

So:

Tolong buat… – Please (you) do…
Tolong bantu saya buat… – Please help me (to) do…