Dunia ini besar.

In Malay, demonstratives such as ini (this) and itu (that) usually come after the noun they describe.

So:

dunia ini = this world
not ini dunia in normal noun phrase order

This is one of the first word-order differences English speakers notice in Malay.

Malay often does not use a separate word for is/am/are when linking a subject to an adjective.

So:

Dunia ini besar.
literally: This world big.
natural English: This world is big.

This is completely normal in Malay. The adjective besar works as the predicate without needing a copula like English is.

Besar is an adjective meaning big, large, or sometimes great depending on context.

In this sentence, it is a predicate adjective. That means it describes the subject directly:

Dunia ini = the subject
besar = what is being said about it

So even though there is no word for is, besar is still functioning like big in The world is big.

Literally, dunia ini means this world.

However, in real use, it can sometimes sound natural in places where English might simply say the world, especially when speaking generally about the world we live in.

So the phrase keeps the literal sense of this world, but in context it may feel broader and less contrastive than English this world sometimes does.

Usually, dunia means world rather than the planet Earth in a scientific sense.

If you specifically mean the planet Earth, Malay often uses Bumi.

So:

dunia = world
Bumi = Earth

In everyday speech, though, dunia is very common when talking about the world in a general human sense.

Not for the same meaning.

Dunia ini besar is the correct way to say This world is big.

If you move ini to the front, it changes the structure. Ini dunia... usually means This is a world... or This is the world..., depending on what follows, so it is not the same sentence pattern.

You would usually say:

Dunia itu besar.

Just replace ini (this) with itu (that).

Malay pattern:

noun + demonstrative + adjective

So:

dunia ini besar = this world is big
dunia itu besar = that world is big

You would say:

Dunia ini tidak besar.
= This world is not big.

Use tidak to negate adjectives and verbs.

This is important because English speakers often wonder whether to use tidak or bukan. Here, since besar is an adjective, the correct negator is tidak, not bukan.

Malay does not normally use articles like English a, an, and the.

So dunia can mean world, a world, or the world, depending on context.

In this sentence, the presence of ini helps make it specific:

dunia ini = this world

Malay relies much more on context and demonstratives than on articles.

A simple English-friendly guide is:

doo-nee-ah ee-nee buh-sar

A few notes:

• du sounds like doo
• ni sounds like nee
• a is usually a clear ah
• besar is roughly buh-SAR, with the second syllable often more prominent

Malay pronunciation is generally quite regular, so once you know the spelling rules, it becomes easier to read aloud.

Besar is the normal, basic word for big or large, so it works well here.

But depending on nuance, Malay might also use other words. For example:

• besar = big, large
• luas = wide, vast, spacious

So:

Dunia ini besar = This world is big
Dunia ini luas = This world is vast / wide

For a beginner sentence, besar is the most straightforward choice.