Anak perempuan saya duduk di riba nenek sambil memeluk bantal kecilnya.

My daughter sits on Grandma’s lap while hugging her small pillow.

Breakdown of Anak perempuan saya duduk di riba nenek sambil memeluk bantal kecilnya.

• duduk: to sit
• kecil: small
• sambil: while
• saya: my

Questions & Answers about Anak perempuan saya duduk di riba nenek sambil memeluk bantal kecilnya.

Does anak perempuan saya literally mean my female child, or is it just the normal way to say my daughter?

It literally means my female child, but in normal usage it very often means my daughter.

• anak = child
• perempuan = female / girl / woman
• anak perempuan = daughter

So anak perempuan saya is a very standard and natural way to say my daughter.

There is also puteri/putri, but that is less neutral in everyday conversation and can sound more formal or literary in some contexts.

Why is saya placed after anak perempuan? Why not before it?

In Malay, possession usually works as:

thing possessed + possessor

So:

• anak perempuan saya = my daughter
• literally: daughter my

This is normal Malay word order. More examples:

• rumah saya = my house
• ibu saya = my mother
• buku Ali = Ali's book

So unlike English, Malay usually does not put the equivalent of my before the noun.

What exactly does duduk di riba nenek mean? Is it sit on grandmother's lap?