Learn Hardcore Malay: Kami menggunakan dua dadu dan beberapa kad berwarna dalam permainan itu. - We use two dice and some colored cards in that game.

In this sentence, kami suggests the speaker is talking about their group only, not including the listener.
If the listener was also a player in the game, you would normally say:

Kita menggunakan dua dadu dan beberapa kad berwarna dalam permainan itu.
→ We (you and I) use/used two dice and some colored cards in that game.

Can I say guna instead of menggunakan?

Yes, you can, but there is a nuance:

menggunakan = more formal/complete verb (literally “to use [something]”)
guna = shorter, more informal; common in speech

For casual conversation, you might say:

Kami guna dua dadu dan beberapa kad berwarna…

In writing (essays, textbooks, news), menggunakan is more common and sounds more standard.

Why is it menggunakan, not just guna with a separate word?

Malay often forms transitive verbs (verbs that take an object) with prefixes:

guna (root) → meng-guna-kan → menggunakan

Here:

meng- marks it as an active verb
-kan often links it clearly to a direct object

So menggunakan strongly means “to make use of [something]”.
The object here is dua dadu dan beberapa kad berwarna.

Why don’t we say dadu-dadu or kad-kad for the plural?

Malay usually does not need plural markers when:

There is a number:
- dua dadu already means two dice.
There is a quantity word like beberapa (“several/some”):
- beberapa kad already implies plural.

Reduplication (e.g. kad-kad) can show plurality, but here it would be redundant and sound unnatural:

dua dadu ✔️ natural
dua dadu-dadu ✖️ wrong/very odd
beberapa kad ✔️ natural
beberapa kad-kad ✖️ wrong/very odd

Do I need a classifier, like biji or keping? For example, dua biji dadu or beberapa keping kad?

Classifiers are optional here. You may see both styles:

Without classifier (very common and fine):
- dua dadu
- beberapa kad
With classifier (a bit more explicit or careful):
- dua biji dadu (biji = small roundish things, generic counter)
- beberapa keping kad (keping = flat things like cards, slices)

All of these are grammatically acceptable. In everyday speech, many people drop the classifier when the noun is clear.

What does berwarna literally mean, and why does it come after kad?

Literally:

warna = color
berwarna = “having color / colored”

In Malay, adjectives usually come after the noun:

kad berwarna = colored cards
kad merah = red cards
kad besar = big cards

Putting berwarna before the noun (berwarna kad) is ungrammatical.
So the correct order is always noun + adjective: kad berwarna.

Is there any difference between kad berwarna and something like kad warna-warni?

Yes, there’s a nuance:

kad berwarna
- Just means colored cards (not black-and-white).
- Neutral about how many colors.
kad warna-warni
- Suggests colorful / multicolored cards (many colors, bright, varied).
- More vivid/imaginative.

Both are correct; choose based on the image you want to create.

Why is it beberapa kad berwarna, not berwarna beberapa kad?

The typical order in Malay is:

Quantity word / number, then
Noun, then
Adjective

So:

beberapa (some/several) → quantity
kad → noun
berwarna → adjective

Correct order:

beberapa kad berwarna

The order berwarna beberapa kad is wrong for standard Malay.

What is the difference between dalam permainan itu and using di instead, like di permainan itu?

In this context:

dalam = in/inside (often “during” when used with events/activities)
di = at/in (location)

dalam permainan itu can be understood as:

in that game
during that game

di permainan itu sounds more like “at that game (as a place/event)” and is less natural for describing what you use while playing.
For actions done as part of the game, dalam permainan itu is the usual phrasing.

What is the difference between permainan and mainan?

Both come from the root main (to play), but:

permainan
- Means game or the activity of playing.
- More abstract/formal.
- Example: permainan kad = card game.
mainan
- Usually means toy or plaything.
- Example: mainan kanak-kanak = children’s toys.

In this sentence, permainan itu clearly refers to that game, not a toy.

What does itu add to permainan itu? Can I just say dalam permainan?

itu = that (demonstrative, like “that/the” referring to a specific one).

permainan itu = that game / the game (we both know about)
permainan alone = just a game / games in general, not specific

If you say dalam permainan, it sounds more like:

in games / in a game (in general)

To refer to a particular game already known in the context, permainan itu is more natural.

How do we know if this sentence is past, present, or future? It looks like just “We use…”.

Malay verbs do not change form for tense.
Kami menggunakan dua dadu… can mean:

We used two dice… (past)
We use two dice… (present, habitual)
We will use two dice… (future; less common to read it this way without extra words)

You add time markers if you need to be explicit:

Semalam kami menggunakan… = Yesterday we used…
Sekarang kami menggunakan… = Now we are using…
Esok kami akan menggunakan… = Tomorrow we will use…

Is dadu singular or plural? How would I say “one die” vs “two dice”?

dadu itself can be singular or plural, depending on context. To be clear:

satu dadu or sebiji dadu = one die
dua dadu or dua biji dadu = two dice

English distinguishes die vs dice; Malay relies on numbers and context, not a different noun form.