Learn Hardcore Malay: Saya menulis blog tentang kehidupan di asrama dan kerja sambilan saya. - I write a blog about life in the dormitory and my part-time job.

tulis = the root/base form, like “write” as a dictionary form or a command.
- Example (command): Tulis nama kamu di sini. = Write your name here.
menulis = the normal finite verb “to write / writing”, used in sentences with a subject.
- Example: Saya menulis blog. = I write a blog / I am writing a blog.

So in a full sentence with a subject (Saya), you usually use menulis, not bare tulis.

Can I say Saya menulis sebuah blog? Do I need sebuah in front of blog?

You can say Saya menulis sebuah blog, but sebuah is optional and not necessary here.

sebuah is a classifier (like “a” for certain countable things), often used with physical objects or specific items:
- sebuah buku (a book)
- sebuah kereta (a car)

With loanwords like blog, Malay speakers often just say:

Saya menulis blog. = I write a blog / I blog.

Adding sebuah ( Saya menulis sebuah blog ) sounds like you are emphasizing “one specific blog”, e.g. contrasting with writing several blogs. In everyday speech, most people would drop sebuah here.

What exactly does tentang mean, and could I use mengenai or pasal instead?

tentang means about / regarding / on the topic of.

In this sentence:

blog tentang kehidupan di asrama dan kerja sambilan saya
= a blog about life in the dorm and my part-time job.

You could replace tentang with near-synonyms:

mengenai – also about, slightly more formal/written.
- blog mengenai kehidupan di asrama…
pasal – about, but more colloquial/informal.
- blog pasal kehidupan di asrama…

All three are understandable, but:

tentang and mengenai = neutral to formal.
pasal = casual, spoken, may sound less formal in writing.

What is the nuance of kehidupan di asrama? Why not just hidup di asrama?

Both are related but not identical:

hidup = life/existence, but also “to live” (verb).
kehidupan = the noun “life” (the way of life, lifestyle, daily life).

kehidupan di asrama = “life in the dorm” in the sense of the lifestyle/experience there.

If you said hidup di asrama, it would more naturally be read as a verb phrase “to live in a dorm” (where someone lives). To mean “life in the dorm” as a topic, kehidupan di asrama is the more natural noun phrase.

What does asrama mean exactly? Is it like a dorm, hostel, or boarding school?

asrama is a general term for a dormitory / hostel / boarding accommodation.

Depending on context, it can mean:

School dormitory (especially at a boarding school).
University dorm.
Hostel-style accommodation associated with an institution.

In kehidupan di asrama, most learners would naturally understand it as “life in the dorms” (e.g. at school or university), unless the wider context says otherwise.

Why is saya only at the end of kerja sambilan saya and not also after kehidupan, as in kehidupan saya di asrama?

In Malay, possession is shown by placing the pronoun after the noun:

kehidupan saya = my life
kerja sambilan saya = my part-time job

In your sentence:

Saya menulis blog tentang kehidupan di asrama dan kerja sambilan saya.

saya at the beginning is the subject (“I”).
saya at the end is the possessor of kerja sambilan (“my part-time job”).

The phrase kehidupan di asrama does not explicitly say “my life in the dorm”, only “life in the dorm”. The sentence literally reads:

“…about life in the dorm and my part-time job.”

If you want to clearly say “my life in the dorm and my part-time job”, you can make possession explicit for both:

…tentang kehidupan saya di asrama dan kerja sambilan saya.
= …about my life in the dorm and my part-time job.

Malay often relies on context, but if you need clarity, repeat saya.

Does the saya after kerja sambilan also apply to kehidupan di asrama, like in English “my life in the dorm and my part-time job”?

Grammatically, no. saya only clearly attaches to kerja sambilan.

The structure is:

(kehidupan di asrama) and (kerja sambilan saya)

So the most literal reading is:

“…about life in the dorm and my part-time job.”

However, in context, listeners may still infer that the life in the dorm is your life. If you want the grammar to clearly match the English “my life in the dorm and my part-time job”, use:

…tentang kehidupan saya di asrama dan kerja sambilan saya.

What exactly does kerja sambilan mean? Is it the same as “part-time job”?

Yes, kerja sambilan literally means part-time work / part-time job.

kerja = work/job
sambilan = part-time / done on the side

Other common terms:

kerja separuh masa – also “part-time work”; sometimes a bit more formal or literal (“half-time work”).
kerja sambilan saya = my part-time job.

In everyday contexts, kerja sambilan is a very standard way to say “part-time job”.

Why is the subject pronoun Saya repeated at the end (kerja sambilan saya)? Isn’t it already clear from the first Saya?

The two saya have different roles:

Saya at the start is the subject (“I”).
- Saya menulis blog… = I write a blog…
saya at the end is a possessive pronoun (“my”).
- kerja sambilan saya = my part-time job.

Malay does not use the subject pronoun as a “global owner” for everything in the sentence. If you want to say something belongs to you, you usually mark possession on that specific noun:

rumah saya = my house
kawan saya = my friend
kerja sambilan saya = my part-time job

So repeating saya in different positions is normal and often required for clarity.

Can I change the word order to Saya menulis blog tentang kerja sambilan saya dan kehidupan di asrama?

Yes, that is grammatically fine:

Saya menulis blog tentang kerja sambilan saya dan kehidupan di asrama.

Now the order of the two things is swapped:

“about my part-time job and life in the dorm.”

The meaning is very close to the original, just with a different emphasis/order. Native speakers may choose either order depending on what they want to mention first.

How is tense expressed in Saya menulis blog? Does it mean “I write a blog” or “I am writing a blog”?

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. menulis stays the same whether it’s past, present, or future. So:

Saya menulis blog could mean:
- I write a blog. (habitually)
- I am writing a blog. (right now)
- I write/blog (as an activity in general).

To be more specific, Malay uses time words or aspect markers:

Saya sedang menulis blog. = I am (currently) writing a blog.
Saya pernah menulis blog. = I have written a blog before.
Saya akan menulis blog. = I will write a blog.

Without those, context decides whether you understand it as general, present, or ongoing.

Is blog considered a Malay word here, or is it just English kept inside Malay?

blog is an English loanword that is now widely accepted and used in Malay.

It follows Malay grammar rules like a normal noun:

As object: Saya menulis blog.
With a classifier: sebuah blog
With possession: blog saya (my blog).

So even though it comes from English, Malay treats it as part of its vocabulary, and you can combine it freely with Malay words and affixes around it.