Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang.

I like to walk by the edge of the river in the evening.

Breakdown of Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang.

• saya: I
• suka: to like
• berjalan: to walk
• pada: in
• waktu petang: the evening
• di: by
• sungai: the river
• pinggir: the edge

Questions & Answers about Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang.

What does saya tell me about formality? Could I use aku here instead?

Saya is the neutral, polite “I” in Malay. It is safe in almost all situations: with strangers, at work, in writing, etc.

Aku also means “I”, but it is informal/intimate and usually used:

• with close friends
• with siblings or people younger than you
• in some song lyrics, poems, or prayers

In this sentence, Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang, you can replace saya with aku in an informal context:

• Aku suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang.

The meaning is the same, but the tone becomes more casual and personal. In doubt, use saya.

Is suka closer to “like” or “love” in English? When would I use something else?

Suka is usually best translated as “like”.

• Saya suka berjalan… → I like walking…

If you want to say “really like / am fond of”, you might also see gemar:

• Saya gemar berjalan di pinggir sungai. (a bit more formal/literary)

For deep romantic love or strong emotional love, Malay usually uses cinta (romantic) or sayang (affectionate):

• Saya cinta awak. / Saya sayang awak.

In this sentence, suka is the normal, natural choice: a general preference for an activity.

Is berjalan here more like “to walk” or “walking” in English?

Malay does not mark verbs for infinitive / -ing the way English does.

Berjalan simply means “to walk / walking” (the action of walking), and Saya suka berjalan can be translated both as:

• I like to walk, and
• I like walking.

There is no form change in berjalan; context (and your English translation choice) decides whether you say to walk or walking in English.

Why do we use berjalan instead of just jalan? Aren’t both used?

Both appear, but they differ in register and structure:

• Berjalan is the standard verb form meaning “to walk / to go on foot.”

  • Prefix ber- turns the root jalan (road / way / to walk) into a verb.
  • Saya suka berjalan is standard, correct Malay.

• Jalan on its own can function:

  • as a noun: jalan = road / street
  • as a verb in colloquial speech, often with a subject:
    
    • Saya suka jalan kaki. (informal: I like walking on foot.)

In formal or neutral written Malay, berjalan is safer and more correct here.

Could I say Saya sukakan berjalan? I see -kan sometimes after verbs.

In this sentence, Saya sukakan berjalan is not natural.

Patterns:

• suka + verb (activity) → Saya suka berjalan. (I like to walk / walking.)
• suka + noun/pronoun, sometimes with -kan, when the thing is the object:
  • Saya suka kopi. (I like coffee.)
  • Saya sukakan dia. (I like him/her.) — possible but more formal/literary.

But when you like doing an action, the natural structure is suka + base verb:

• Saya suka berjalan. ✅
• Saya sukakan berjalan. ❌ (sounds odd / incorrect)

Is berjalan here a simple walk or more like “going for a stroll”? What about berjalan-jalan?

Berjalan by itself usually just means to walk (on foot), a neutral action.

Berjalan-jalan (reduplication) means to stroll / to walk around for leisure, often with a sense of relaxing, sightseeing, window-shopping.

So:

• Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai.
  → I like walking by the riverside (could be for exercise, to get somewhere, or for leisure – neutral).

• Saya suka berjalan-jalan di pinggir sungai.
  → I like strolling/wandering by the riverside (clearly a leisurely, recreational walk).

Both are correct; choose depending on the nuance you want.

What does di pinggir sungai literally mean, and why do we need di?

Breakdown:

• di = at / in / on / by (location preposition)
• pinggir = edge / side / margin
• sungai = river

So di pinggir sungai literally means “at the edge/side of the river”, which in natural English is “by the river / by the riverside.”

You need di because Malay normally requires a preposition before a location:

• di rumah – at home
• di sekolah – at school
• di pinggir sungai – at/by the riverbank

Leaving out di (pinggir sungai alone) is not grammatical as a location phrase in this sentence.

Is there a difference between pinggir sungai and tepi sungai?

Both are very close in meaning and both can mean “by the river / at the riverbank.”

• pinggir sungai

  • literally “edge/margin of the river”
  • slightly more neutral/standard

• tepi sungai

  • literally “side of the river”
  • very common in everyday speech, also fine in standard Malay

In this sentence you could say:

• Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang. ✅
• Saya suka berjalan di tepi sungai pada waktu petang. ✅

Most of the time, there is no practical difference in meaning.

Why do we say pada waktu petang? Can I just say pada petang or only petang?

Pada waktu petang breaks down as:

• pada = at/on (time preposition)
• waktu = time
• petang = late afternoon / early evening

So it literally means “at the time (of) late afternoon/evening.”

Variations:

1. Pada waktu petang – fully explicit, sounds a bit more formal/complete.
2. Pada petang – also correct and quite common; waktu is understood and can be omitted.
3. Petang alone – in casual speech, people often drop pada:
   • Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai petang. (informal/spoken)

For clear and standard Malay, pada waktu petang or pada petang are good choices.

Does petang mean “afternoon” or “evening”? Where is the boundary with malam?

Petang covers late afternoon to early evening – roughly from about 4 p.m. until around sunset or just after.

Very roughly:

• tengah hari – midday / around noon
• petang – late afternoon / early evening
• malam – night (after dark)

So pada waktu petang is more like “in the (late) afternoon / early evening” rather than late night. The exact boundary can be fuzzy and depends on local habit and context, but petang is definitely before full night (malam).

Is this talking about a habitual activity (something I often do) or just one specific time?

Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang is naturally understood as a general preference / habit:

• I like (in general) walking by the riverside in the evening.

If you want to strongly emphasize that it is a regular habit, you can add words like:

• setiap petang – every evening
• selalu – always / often

Examples:

• Saya suka berjalan di pinggir sungai setiap petang.
  → I like walking by the riverside every evening.

How would I say “I don’t like walking by the riverside in the evening”? Do I use tidak or bukan?

To make this sentence negative, you use tidak, because you are negating a verb/verb phrase (suka berjalan):

• Saya tidak suka berjalan di pinggir sungai pada waktu petang.
  → I don’t like walking by the riverside in the evening.

General rule:

• tidak – negates verbs and adjectives

  • Saya tidak suka… (I don’t like…)
  • Dia tidak penat. (He/She is not tired.)

• bukan – negates nouns and identity, or corrects a statement

  • Ini bukan rumah saya. (This is not my house.)

So in this sentence, tidak is the correct negative.