Learn Hardcore Malay: Kami menjelaskan adat keluarga kami kepada seorang pelancong Jepun. - We explained our family customs to a Japanese tourist.

In the sentence Kami menjelaskan adat keluarga kami kepada seorang pelancong Jepun, the listener (the Japanese tourist) is not part of the speaker’s family group that is explaining the customs, so kami is correct: we (but not you) explained….

If the speaker wanted to include the listener (for example, speaking to a member of the same family), they could say kita instead, but that would change who is included in we.

What exactly does menjelaskan mean, and how is it related to jelas?

jelas = clear (adjective)
- e.g. Arahan itu jelas. = The instructions are clear.
menjelaskan = to explain / to make clear (verb, active, transitive)

So menjelaskan literally means to make something clear.
In the sentence, menjelaskan takes a direct object:

menjelaskan apa? → adat keluarga kami (our family customs)

You could also use menerangkan in many contexts with a similar meaning (to explain), but menjelaskan is slightly more like to clarify / to make clear.

What does adat mean here? Is it just customs, or is there more nuance?

adat is usually translated as custom(s) or traditional practices, but it often carries a cultural or traditional nuance stronger than everyday habits.

adat → customs, traditions, culturally rooted practices
tradisi → traditions (often more formal/abstract, like tradisi lisan = oral tradition)
budaya → culture (broader: arts, values, way of life)

In adat keluarga kami, adat suggests the family’s established customs, possibly tied to culture, heritage, or long‑standing family practices, not just random daily habits.

Why is the phrase adat keluarga kami in that order? Why not something like keluarga adat kami?

Malay noun phrases are generally ordered head noun + modifier, similar to “X of Y” in English.

adat (head noun)
keluarga kami (modifier = “our family”)

So adat keluarga kami = the customs of our family / our family’s customs.

keluarga adat kami would be odd or unclear; it would literally look like “our custom family”, which is not what is meant. The main thing being talked about is adat (customs), so it comes first.

Why is kami repeated in adat keluarga kami? Didn’t we already say kami at the start?

The first kami is the subject pronoun: Kami menjelaskan… = We explained…

In adat keluarga kami, the second kami shows possession: our family.

Malay does not automatically “carry over” the subject to show possession. To say our family, you need to add a possessive pronoun after the noun:

keluarga kami = our family
keluarga saya = my family
keluarga mereka = their family

So both kami are doing different jobs:

subject (Kami menjelaskan…)
possessor (adat keluarga kami)

Why is kepada used, and how is it different from untuk or pada?

In this sentence, kepada marks the indirect object / recipient of the action:

kepada seorang pelancong Jepun = to a Japanese tourist

Rough guideline:

kepada – to (a person/recipient, abstract or literal)
- Saya menulis surat kepada ibu. = I wrote a letter to my mother.
untuk – for (purpose/benefit)
- Hadiah untuk ibu. = A present for my mother.
pada – at/on/in (time, location, or sometimes abstract “on”)
- Pada hari Isnin… = On Monday…
- Buku itu ada pada saya. = I have the book (the book is with me).

Since we are explaining to someone (a person), kepada is the natural choice here.

What is the role of seorang before pelancong? Can I just say kepada pelancong Jepun?

seorang is a numeral classifier for people, roughly “one person / a person”.

seorang pelancong Jepun = a Japanese tourist (one person, singular)

You can say kepada pelancong Jepun, but the meaning changes:

kepada seorang pelancong Jepun → to a (single) Japanese tourist
kepada pelancong Jepun → to Japanese tourists / the Japanese tourist(s) (more general or plural, or a specific one already known from context)

So seorang makes it clear that you’re talking about one individual tourist, not tourists in general.

Why is Jepun placed after pelancong and not before it?

In Malay, descriptive words (including nationalities used like adjectives) usually come after the noun:

pelancong Jepun = Japanese tourist
pelajar Malaysia = Malaysian student
kereta merah = red car

So the pattern is noun + description, unlike English, which often uses adjective + noun (“Japanese tourist”).

Also, Jepun must be capitalised here because it is a proper name (Japan) used as a nationality word.

Could the word order be Kami menjelaskan kepada seorang pelancong Jepun adat keluarga kami?

That order is possible in Malay, but it sounds more formal or marked, and the focus can shift slightly.

Common, neutral order:

Kami menjelaskan adat keluarga kami kepada seorang pelancong Jepun.
→ Focus feels more on what was explained (our family customs).

Alternative order:

Kami menjelaskan kepada seorang pelancong Jepun adat keluarga kami.
→ Grammatically okay, sometimes used in more formal or written styles, but less natural in everyday speech. It can sound like extra emphasis on the recipient first (to a Japanese tourist) and then what was explained.

For everyday spoken Malay, the original word order is better.

Can I omit the subject Kami and just say Menjelaskan adat keluarga kami kepada seorang pelancong Jepun?

You can drop the subject in some contexts, but then the subject must be clear from context. For example, in a narrative where it’s already obvious who “we” are, people might omit it.

However, the standalone sentence:

Menjelaskan adat keluarga kami kepada seorang pelancong Jepun.

sounds incomplete on its own, like a fragment: “(Someone) explaining our family customs to a Japanese tourist.” In most normal sentences, you should keep Kami so the sentence is complete and clear.

How do we know if this sentence is in the past, present, or future? There is no tense marker.

Malay verbs generally do not change form for tense. Time is understood from context or from time expressions/particles:

Kami menjelaskan adat keluarga kami…
could mean:
- We explained our family customs…
- We are explaining our family customs…
- We will explain our family customs…

You can make the time clearer with optional words:

Kami telah menjelaskan… = We have already explained…
Kami sedang menjelaskan… = We are currently explaining…
Kami akan menjelaskan… = We will explain…

In the basic sentence, you choose the English tense based on the surrounding context.

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

The sentence Kami menjelaskan adat keluarga kami kepada seorang pelancong Jepun is standard and neutral. It’s perfectly fine for:

everyday conversation,
written Malay, and
formal contexts.

There is nothing slangy or overly formal in it. In very casual speech, people might shorten or drop some parts, but this is a good, natural standard form.

Could adat be replaced with budaya or tradisi here, and would the meaning change?

You could say:

budaya keluarga kami = our family culture
tradisi keluarga kami = our family traditions

They are understandable, but the nuance shifts:

adat keluarga kami
→ emphasises customary practices / rituals / norms of the family.
budaya keluarga kami
→ broader sense of culture, maybe including values, lifestyle, etc.
tradisi keluarga kami
→ traditions that have been passed down, perhaps specific repeated practices.

All three can work context‑dependently, but adat is the most direct match for customs and is very natural in this sentence.