Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini.

I feel very motivated today.

Breakdown of Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini.

• saya: I
• sangat: very
• hari ini: today
• berasa: to feel
• bermotivasi: motivated

Questions & Answers about Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini.

Why berasa and not just rasa? What’s the difference between saya berasa and saya rasa?

Both are correct, but they differ in style and nuance:

• Saya berasa… = I feel… (more neutral/formal, slightly more careful speech).
• Saya rasa… can mean:
  • I feel… (emotion/physical feeling), and also
  • I think… (opinion), like “I think that…”.

In everyday conversation, Saya rasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini would sound natural and a bit more casual. Saya berasa… is a little more formal and unambiguously about a feeling, not an opinion.

What does the ber- prefix in berasa and bermotivasi do?

ber- is a verb-forming prefix. Roughly, it often means:

• “to be in a state/condition of X”
• “to have X / to do X (intransitively)”

So:

• berasa: be in a state of feeling → to feel
• bermotivasi: be in a state of motivation → to be motivated

You don’t have to split this every time in real life, but it helps you see why bermotivasi acts like “am motivated,” not like a simple noun.

Could I say Saya sangat bermotivasi hari ini without berasa? Is that still correct?

Yes, very much so.

• Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini. = I feel very motivated today.
• Saya sangat bermotivasi hari ini. = I’m very motivated today.

Both are grammatical and natural. Dropping berasa just makes it a bit shorter and more direct. In speech, Saya sangat bermotivasi hari ini is probably more common.

Is bermotivasi the most natural word, or would Malaysians say something else for “motivated”?

Bermotivasi is correct and common in more formal or neutral contexts (school, work, writing, speeches).

In casual spoken Malay, people often use:

• bersemangat = full of spirit, enthusiastic
• bertenaga = energetic
• rajin hari ini = diligent today

So in everyday talk you might hear:

• Hari ini saya bersemangat betul. – I’m really fired up today.
• Saya rasa sangat bersemangat hari ini.

Bermotivasi is not wrong in speech, it just sounds slightly more “textbook” or formal.

What’s the difference between bermotivasi, termotivasi, and just motivasi?

• motivasi (without prefix) is a noun: motivation

  • Dia ada banyak motivasi. – He/She has a lot of motivation.

• bermotivasi is an intransitive verb / stative verb:

  • Dia bermotivasi. – He/She is motivated.

• termotivasi often implies “has become motivated / was motivated (by something)” – result of an external cause:

  • Pelajar-pelajar termotivasi selepas mendengar ucapan itu.
    The students became motivated after hearing that speech.

In your sentence, bermotivasi is the standard choice. Termotivasi would sound like you are highlighting the “caused by something” aspect.

Can I move hari ini to the front: Hari ini saya berasa sangat bermotivasi? Is that natural?

Yes, that’s completely natural:

• Hari ini saya berasa sangat bermotivasi.
• Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini.

Both are correct. Putting Hari ini at the front just emphasises the time frame, similar to English “Today, I feel very motivated.” It’s common in both speech and writing.

Do I always have to say saya? Could I say Berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini without a subject?

In standard Malay, you usually keep the subject pronoun. Berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini sounds like a sentence fragment, as if something is missing.

You can drop saya only if:

• It’s very clear from context (for example, in short answers in dialogue), or
• You are writing note-style / diary-style where the subject I is understood.

For a full, normal sentence, Saya berasa… is better.

What’s the difference between saya and aku here?

Both mean I, but they differ in formality:

• saya – polite, neutral, safe in almost all situations (formal or informal).
• aku – informal, close friends/family, or when expressing strong emotion, poetry, songs.

So:

• Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini. – neutral/polite.
• Aku rasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini. – casual, to a friend or in a diary.

As a learner, using saya is the safest default.

Is sangat the only way to say “very”? How does it differ from amat, sungguh, or begitu?

All can intensify an adjective, but they have slightly different feels:

• sangat – very common and neutral:

  • sangat bermotivasi – very motivated

• amat – often a bit more formal / literary:

  • amat bermotivasi – very highly motivated (formal speech/writing)

• sungguh – can mean “truly/really”:

  • sungguh bermotivasi – really motivated

• begitu – more like “so (much) / that (much)”:

  • begitu bermotivasi – so motivated (often part of a comparison or explanation)

In your sentence, sangat is the most straightforward and natural choice.

Does berasa cover both emotional and physical feelings, like “I feel sick” and “I feel happy”?

Yes. Berasa can be used for both:

• Emotional:

  • Saya berasa sedih. – I feel sad.
  • Saya berasa gembira. – I feel happy.

• Physical:

  • Saya berasa penat. – I feel tired.
  • Saya berasa sakit. – I feel sick / I feel pain.

Context usually makes it clear which kind of feeling you mean.

Is bermotivasi an adjective or a verb in Malay?

Malay doesn’t split “adjectives” and “stative verbs” as strictly as English. Bermotivasi behaves like a stative verb meaning “to be motivated,” but in many contexts it plays the role that an adjective plays in English.

You can think of it as:

• Saya bermotivasi. – literally “I am-in-a-state-of-motivation,” functionally “I am motivated.”

So, practically, treat it as “adjective-like,” but remember it is morphologically a verb with ber-.

Would this sentence sound formal, casual, or neutral in Malay?

Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini. sounds neutral to slightly formal:

• Saya – neutral/polite
• berasa – a bit more careful/formal than rasa
• bermotivasi – somewhat “bookish” / formal-ish vocabulary

In everyday casual speech, many people would say something like:

• Hari ini saya rasa sangat bersemangat.

How would a very informal, spoken-Malay version of “I’m feeling very motivated today” sound?

Several natural informal options (especially in Malaysia) could be:

• Hari ni aku rasa semangat gila. – Today I feel crazy motivated.
• Aku rasa bersemangat betul hari ni. – I feel really fired up today.
• Hari ni aku rajin gila. – Today I’m super hardworking. (colloquial way of saying “very motivated to work”)

These are clearly more colloquial than Saya berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini.

How would I say the negative: “I don’t feel very motivated today”?

You can negate it with tidak (often tak in casual speech):

• Standard / neutral:

  • Saya tidak berasa sangat bermotivasi hari ini.
  • Saya tidak begitu bermotivasi hari ini. (sounds a bit smoother/natural)

• Informal:

  • Hari ni aku tak rasa sangat bermotivasi.
  • Hari ni aku tak bersemangat sangat. – I’m not very fired up today.

Is the pronunciation of berasa similar to beras (rice)? How do I avoid confusion?

They are different:

• beras (uncooked rice): be-ras (2 syllables)
• berasa (to feel): be-ra-sa (3 syllables)

In berasa, make sure you pronounce the middle a clearly: be-RA-sa. Context also helps: in a sentence about feelings, berasa is expected, not beras.