Learn Hardcore Malay: Anak kecil itu menangis di taman. - That small child cries in the park.

So anak kecil is more specific: it suggests a young, small child, not just any child.
If you say only anak itu menangis di taman, it just means “that child cried / is crying in the park” without emphasizing that the child is little.

What exactly does itu mean here? Is it “that” or “the”? Why does it come after anak kecil?

itu by itself means that (as in “that one over there”), but it is also used a lot like the English definite article the.

In noun phrases, itu usually comes after the noun (and any adjectives):

anak kecil itu
literally: child small that
functionally: that little child / the little child

So:

anak kecil itu = that/the little child
rumah besar itu = that/the big house

Malay does noun + adjective + itu, not that + little child like English.

What is the difference between ini and itu in this kind of sentence?

Both come after the noun phrase:

ini = this
itu = that

Examples:

anak kecil ini menangis di taman
= this little child cried / is crying in the park.
anak kecil itu menangis di taman
= that little child / the little child cried / is crying in the park.

So if the child is near you (physically or in context), you’d more naturally use ini. If the child is farther away, already mentioned, or just “the” child you’re talking about, you use itu.

Why is the verb menangis and not just nangis or tangis? What’s going on with that me- prefix?

Base root: tangis = cry (as a noun idea: “crying” / “weeping”).
The meN- prefix forms an active verb:

meN- + tangis → menangis = to cry / to be crying

So:

menangis = to cry (verb)
tangis = crying, tears (noun/root form, not normally used as the main verb in a simple sentence)
nangis = colloquial / informal spoken form of menangis

In standard written Malay, you’d use menangis. In casual speech you might hear:

Anak kecil itu nangis di taman.

How do I know if this sentence means “is crying”, “was crying”, or “cried”? There’s no tense marker.

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. Menangis can mean:

is crying
was crying
cried
has cried

The exact time is understood from context or added time words. For example:

Tadi anak kecil itu menangis di taman.
Earlier / just now, the little child cried in the park.
Sekarang anak kecil itu menangis di taman.
Now the little child is crying in the park.
Besok anak kecil itu akan menangis di taman.
Tomorrow the little child will cry in the park.

To emphasize “right now / in the middle of crying” you can add sedang:

Anak kecil itu sedang menangis di taman.
= The little child is crying (currently) in the park.

What does di mean, and how is it different from ke?

di is a preposition meaning at / in / on (location).

di taman = in the park / at the park

ke means to (direction, movement toward a place).

Compare:

Anak kecil itu menangis di taman.
= The little child is crying in/at the park. (location)
Anak kecil itu pergi ke taman.
= The little child went to the park. (movement)

So:

di → where something is
ke → where something is going

Could I move di taman to the front, like Di taman anak kecil itu menangis? Does that sound natural?

Yes, you can move the place phrase to the front to emphasize the location:

Anak kecil itu menangis di taman.
Neutral: The little child cried / is crying in the park.
Di taman, anak kecil itu menangis.
Slight emphasis on “In the park”.

Both are grammatical. The default, unmarked word order is:

Subject – Verb – (Place/Time/etc.)
Anak kecil itu – menangis – di taman

Does anak kecil itu mean one child or can it also mean several children? How do you say “the little children”?

By default, anak kecil itu is understood as one child, unless the context strongly suggests otherwise.

To clearly show plural, Malay often uses reduplication:

anak-anak kecil itu = the little children
- anak-anak = children (plural of anak)

You can also see:

para anak kecil = the little children (more formal, using para)
But in everyday speech, anak-anak kecil itu is the most straightforward way to say “the little children.”

What’s the difference between anak kecil, kanak-kanak, and budak?

They all relate to children, but with different nuances:

anak kecil
- Literally: little child
- Focus on being young/small.
kanak-kanak
- Means: children / kids (collective; often used in formal or neutral contexts)
- Example: taman kanak-kanak = children’s playground.
budak
- Means: kid / child, often informal; in some regions also “boy/girl” or “helper/servant” depending on context.
- Example: budak itu = that kid.

In this sentence, anak kecil highlights that it is a young, small child.

Why is kecil after anak? In English we say “little child”, not “child little”.

In Malay, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.

Pattern:

Noun + Adjective

Examples:

anak kecil = little child
rumah besar = big house
baju merah = red shirt

So anak kecil literally looks like “child little”, but that order is normal and correct in Malay.

How do you pronounce anak kecil itu menangis di taman?

Approximate pronunciation (using English-like sounds):

anak → ah-nak
- a as in “father”, final k is a short glottal stop.
kecil → kə-chil
- e like the a in “about”; c in Malay is always “ch”.
itu → ee-too
menangis → mə-nah-ngis
- ng as in “sing”; final s is like English s.
di → dee
taman → tah-man
- both a as in “father”.

Stress is relatively even and light, often on the second-to-last syllable:

a-NAK kə-CIL I-tu mə-NA-ngis DI TA-man

How would I say “The little child is not crying in the park”?

Use tidak (not) before the verb:

Anak kecil itu tidak menangis di taman.
= The little child is not crying in the park.
(Also: did not cry / does not cry in the park, depending on context.)

General pattern:

Subject + tidak + Verb (+ other parts)

How would I say “The little child is crying in the park now” more explicitly, making it very clear it’s happening right now?

Add sedang (in the process of) and a time word like sekarang (now):

Sekarang anak kecil itu sedang menangis di taman.
= Now the little child is (currently) crying in the park.

You can also say:

Anak kecil itu sedang menangis di taman sekarang.

Both clearly describe an action happening right now.