Kening abang saya tebal, dan bibirnya selalu bergerak perlahan apabila dia membaca dengan kuat.

In Malay, a linking verb like is/are is often left out in simple descriptive sentences.

So:

• Kening abang saya tebal = My brother’s eyebrows are thick

Literally, it is more like:

• Eyebrows of my brother thick

This is completely normal in Malay. You do not need a word like is here.

Malay often shows possession with the thing owned first, followed by the owner.

So:

• kening abang saya literally = eyebrows older-brother my naturally = my brother’s eyebrows

This pattern is very common:

• buku saya = my book
• rumah Ali = Ali’s house
• nama guru itu = that teacher’s name

So kening abang saya is the normal Malay order.

Abang usually means older brother.

So abang saya most naturally means:

• my older brother

In Malay, family words often give more detail than English does. For example:

• abang = older brother
• adik = younger sibling / younger brother or sister
• kakak = older sister

Also, in everyday speech, abang can sometimes be used more broadly as a friendly form of address for a man, but in this sentence abang saya is most naturally understood as my older brother.

Malay nouns usually do not have to show singular or plural clearly unless the speaker wants to.

So kening can be understood from context. In this sentence, English naturally says eyebrows, but Malay often leaves number unmarked.

If needed, Malay can show plural in other ways, such as:

• reduplication: kening-kening
• context
• words like dua or banyak

But in normal sentences, Malay often just uses the base noun.

Bibirnya means his lips, her lips, or sometimes its lips, depending on context.

The ending -nya is a common possessive ending in Malay. It can mean:

• his
• her
• its

So:

• bibirnya = his/her lips

This is very common and natural.

You can also say:

• bibir dia = his/her lips

But bibirnya is more compact and often sounds smoother in written Malay.

In this sentence, -nya refers back to abang saya, so it means my brother’s lips.

Yes, they refer to the same person.

• bibirnya = his lips
• dia = he

Malay often repeats reference like this quite naturally. The sentence structure is:

• His lips always move slowly
• when he reads aloud

So even though both point to the same person, they play different grammatical roles:

• -nya shows possession with bibir
• dia is the subject of membaca

This is normal and not awkward in Malay.

Selalu means always, and in Malay it commonly goes before the verb.

So:

• bibirnya selalu bergerak = his lips always move

This is a very common placement pattern:

• Saya selalu makan di sini = I always eat here
• Dia selalu datang awal = He always comes early

So selalu bergerak is the expected word order.

Malay does not usually change adjectives into a different adverb form the way English does.

So:

• perlahan can mean slow or slowly, depending on how it is used

In this sentence:

• bergerak perlahan = move slowly

This is normal Malay usage. Many words can function this way without needing a special ending like -ly in English.

Both can relate to slowness, and in many contexts both can be used adverbially.

• perlahan = slowly, gently, at a slow pace
• pelan = slow; also sometimes soft/quiet depending on context

In this sentence, perlahan sounds very natural for lip movement:

• bibirnya selalu bergerak perlahan

It gives the sense of moving slowly or gently.

Yes. Apabila means when.

In this sentence:

• apabila dia membaca dengan kuat = when he reads aloud

Compared with other similar words:

• apabila = when; a bit more formal or written
• bila = when; common in speech
• ketika = when/during, sometimes a bit more literary
• semasa = during/while

So apabila is perfectly correct and natural, especially in standard written Malay.

Membaca is the verb form with the prefix mem-, and it means to read / reads / is reading, depending on context.

The root word is:

• baca = read

With the prefix:

• membaca = to read / reading / reads

This prefix often appears with active verbs in standard Malay.

So:

• dia membaca = he reads / he is reading

Using baca by itself is possible in some casual speech, but membaca is the standard form here.

Malay verbs usually do not change form for tense the way English verbs do.

So membaca can mean:

• reads
• is reading
• was reading
• will read

The exact time usually comes from context or from time words such as:

• sekarang = now
• semalam = yesterday
• esok = tomorrow
• selalu = always

In this sentence, selalu helps give a habitual meaning, so English naturally translates it as something like always move / when he reads aloud.

Dengan kuat literally means with strength or strongly/loudly, but in this context it means out loud or aloud.

So:

• membaca dengan kuat = read aloud = read out loud

This is a common Malay way to express manner: dengan + adjective/noun.

Examples:

• bercakap dengan perlahan = speak slowly/softly
• menjerit dengan kuat = shout loudly

So even though the literal wording may seem unusual to an English speaker, the meaning is very natural.

Yes, membaca kuat-kuat can also mean read aloud or read loudly, especially in everyday speech.

But there is a slight difference in style:

• membaca dengan kuat = more neutral / standard
• membaca kuat-kuat = very common and conversational

Both are understandable, but dengan kuat sounds a bit more formal or careful.

Like many Malay nouns, bibir does not always mark number clearly.

Depending on context, it can refer to:

• a lip
• lips

In this sentence, English naturally says his lips, because that is what is meant.

So:

• bibirnya selalu bergerak perlahan = his lips always move slowly

Context tells us that both lips are intended.

Because of selalu (always), the sentence suggests a habitual or repeated characteristic.

So it means something like:

• his eyebrows are thick, and
• his lips always move slowly
• whenever he reads aloud

Without selalu, it could more easily describe just one situation. With selalu, it sounds like a usual behavior.