Lelaki tua itu meninggal semalam.

The sentence follows a very common Malay pattern:

Subject + Verb + Time expression

• Lelaki tua itu = the old man / that old man
• meninggal = passed away / died
• semalam = yesterday / last night, depending on context

So the whole sentence is built very straightforwardly: [the old man] [passed away] [yesterday]

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

So:

• lelaki tua = old man
  literally man old

This is normal Malay word order. English usually puts adjectives before the noun, but Malay usually puts them after.

More examples:

• rumah besar = big house
• budak kecil = small child
• kereta baru = new car

Itu is a demonstrative word. It often means that, but in many sentences it can also make something feel definite, like the in English.

So:

• lelaki tua itu can mean that old man
• in context, it can also be understood as the old man

A key thing for learners is that itu comes after the noun phrase:

• lelaki tua itu
• not itu lelaki tua

Because in Malay, demonstratives such as ini and itu normally come after the noun and its adjective.

Pattern:

noun + adjective + ini/itu

So:

• lelaki tua itu = that old man
• rumah besar itu = that big house
• budak kecil ini = this small child

This is very different from English, where this/that goes at the front.

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

That means a noun can often stand without any article:

• lelaki = a man / the man / man, depending on context

When Malay uses itu, it often helps make the noun more specific or definite, which is why lelaki tua itu can feel like the old man or that old man.

So Malay relies much more on context than English does.

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

So meninggal stays meninggal whether the action is present, past, or future. Time is usually understood from:

• time words, like semalam
• context
• optional markers such as sudah or telah

In this sentence, semalam already makes it clear that the event happened in the past.

You could also say:

• Lelaki tua itu telah meninggal semalam
• Lelaki tua itu sudah meninggal semalam

But in many cases, those extra markers are not necessary.

Not exactly.

• meninggal is a more polite and respectful word, similar to pass away
• mati is the more basic word for die or be dead

For people, meninggal is usually the safer and more natural choice, especially in neutral or respectful speech.

So:

• Lelaki tua itu meninggal semalam sounds respectful
• using mati for a person can sound blunt or harsh, depending on context

You may also hear:

• meninggal dunia = passed away

Yes, semalam can sometimes be understood as yesterday or last night, depending on context and regional usage.

In a sentence like:

• Lelaki tua itu meninggal semalam

it is often translated simply as yesterday, but last night may also be possible in some contexts.

If someone wants to be more specific, they might use another expression such as:

• malam tadi = last night

So context matters.

Yes, but it means something slightly different.

• lelaki tua itu = the old man / that old man
  (tua describes the noun inside the noun phrase)

• lelaki itu tua = the man is old
  (tua is now the predicate of the sentence)

So the difference is:

• lelaki tua itu = one noun phrase
• lelaki itu tua = full sentence saying something about the man

Usually, no. The simpler and more natural form is:

• lelaki tua itu

In Malay, a basic adjective can normally follow the noun directly without yang.

However, yang can appear in some cases:

• lelaki yang tua itu

This can sound a bit more explicit or contrastive, something like that man who is old / that older man depending on context. But for a simple phrase like old man, lelaki tua itu is the standard choice.

Because orang tua can be tricky.

While it can literally suggest old person, it very often means:

• parents
• or an elderly person, depending on context

So lelaki tua is clearer if you specifically mean an old man.

Compare:

• lelaki tua = old man
• perempuan tua = old woman
• orang tua = parents / elderly person / old people, depending on context

For learners, orang tua is one of those expressions that is worth treating carefully.

No. In this sentence, meninggal is used intransitively, so it does not take a direct object.

That means:

• Lelaki tua itu meninggal semalam is complete by itself.

You do not need to add anything after meninggal unless you want to add extra information such as time, place, or cause.

If you say:

• Lelaki tua meninggal semalam

it becomes less definite. It may sound more like an old man died yesterday or just old man died yesterday, depending on context.

With itu:

• Lelaki tua itu meninggal semalam

the listener is more likely to understand that you mean a specific old man already known in the conversation.

So itu helps anchor the noun phrase to a particular person.