Bangunan itu sangat tinggi.

In Malay, you often do not need a verb like is when describing something.

So:

Bangunan itu sangat tinggi
literally follows the pattern:

building + that + very + tall/high

This is a completely normal Malay sentence. In everyday Malay, adjective predicates usually do not need a copula.

So English needs is, but Malay does not.

Because in Malay, demonstratives like ini and itu usually come after the noun.

• bangunan itu = that building / the building
• bangunan ini = this building

This is the normal Malay word order.

So English says that building, but Malay says building that.

Literally, itu means that.
But in real sentences, it often also makes the noun feel definite, so English may translate it as either:

• that building
• the building

Which English version sounds best depends on context.

So in this sentence, bangunan itu could be understood as a specific building already known in the conversation.

Because sangat is an intensifier, like very, and in Malay it normally comes before the adjective.

• sangat tinggi = very tall/high
• sangat besar = very big
• sangat mahal = very expensive

So the pattern is:

sangat + adjective

That is why sangat tinggi is correct.

It can mean either tall or high, depending on what is being described.

For example:

• orang itu tinggi = that person is tall
• gunung itu tinggi = that mountain is high
• bangunan itu tinggi = that building is tall / high

In natural English, tall is usually the best translation for a building, even though high is also related in meaning.

So here, very tall is probably the most natural English translation.

By itself, bangunan does not clearly show singular or plural. Malay nouns often do not change form for number.

Context tells you whether it means:

• a building
• the building
• buildings

In this sentence, because of itu, it is most naturally understood as a specific singular building.

If you want to make it clearly plural, Malay can use reduplication:

• bangunan-bangunan itu = those buildings

You can, but the meaning changes.

• Bangunan itu sangat tinggi = That/The building is very tall
• Bangunan sangat tinggi = more general, less specific, and may sound incomplete without context

In many situations, Malay prefers some marker like itu, ini, or another clue if you are talking about one specific thing.

So itu helps make the sentence sound more natural when referring to a particular building.

Yes. That is also correct.

Both of these are natural:

• Bangunan itu sangat tinggi
• Bangunan itu tinggi sekali

Both mean The/That building is very tall.

A rough difference:

• sangat tinggi = straightforward very tall
• tinggi sekali = also very tall, sometimes a bit more emphatic or expressive

Learners should know that both patterns are common.

You usually use tidak before the adjective.

• Bangunan itu tidak tinggi = That building is not tall
• Bangunan itu tidak begitu tinggi = That building is not very tall / not that tall

For adjectives, tidak is the normal negator.

In everyday speech, you can often make it a question just by using question intonation:

• Bangunan itu sangat tinggi?

This would mean something like Is that building very tall?

In more formal Malay, you can also use adakah:

• Adakah bangunan itu sangat tinggi?

So spoken Malay often relies on intonation, while formal writing may use adakah.

The sentence follows a very common Malay pattern:

noun phrase + intensifier + adjective

Here:

• Bangunan itu = noun phrase, that/the building
• sangat = intensifier, very
• tinggi = adjective, tall/high

So the structure is:

Bangunan itu + sangat + tinggi

This is a standard way to make descriptive sentences in Malay.