Anjing itu menyalak kuat.

That dog barks loudly.

Breakdown of Anjing itu menyalak kuat.

• itu: that
• anjing: the dog
• kuat: loud
• menyalak: to bark

Questions & Answers about Anjing itu menyalak kuat.

Why is itu placed after anjing instead of before it?

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

So:

• anjing itu = that dog / the dog
• anjing ini = this dog

This is a very common pattern in Malay:

• rumah itu = that house
• buku ini = this book

In everyday Malay, itu can also make the noun feel more definite, so anjing itu often means something like the dog even if English would not always use that.

What does menyalak mean grammatically? Is it a basic word or a changed form?

Menyalak is a derived verb.

Its root is salak, which is related to the sound or act of barking.
When the verbal prefix meN- is added, it becomes menyalak.

This happens because of a common sound change in Malay:

• roots beginning with s often change with meN- so that the s disappears and ny appears
• salak → menyalak

This is part of a larger pattern in Malay verb formation. For learners, the main thing to remember is:

• salak = root
• menyalak = to bark