SAMPLE LESSONS

Beginners

In this lesson you will learn simple sentences and questions.

VOCABULARY

Indonesian
English
maaf
excuse me
betul
right
nama
name
selamat datang
welcome
anda
you, your
dan
and
saya
i, my, me
ya
yes
siapa
who,
"what" referring to a person
translates as "siapa" (literally "who")

DIALOGUE

Dodi, an Indonesian boy, is expecting to see his new English friend, Peter Smith. They have known each other for 6 months through chatting on the Internet. Right now they are meeting at the airport and Dodi is trying to recognize Peter. Dodi is holding Peter's picture.

Indonesian
Dodi Maaf, nama anda Peter?
Peter Ya, betul
Dodi Selamat datang di Indonesia
Peter Terima kasih. Siapa nama anda?
Dodi Nama saya Dodi
English
Dodi Excuse me, is your name Peter?
Peter Yes, that's right
Dodi Welcome to Indonesia
Peter Thank you, what's your name?
Dodi My name is Dodi

STRUCTURE

A. Personal Pronouns


1. saya i (standard)
  ku my (informal speech)
  anda you, your (standard)
  mu your (informal speech)
  kita our (when the person spoken to is included)
  kami our (when the person spoken to is excluded)
  dia he/she he for man and she for woman
  nya his/her his for man and her for woman
  mereka they, their  
2. Possesive pronoun always follows the object. Learn the order of each phrase
  nama saya my name name of mine
  nama anda your name  
  nama kita our names  
  nama kami our names  
  namanya his me (note that it translates one word)
  namanya her name (note that it translates one word)
  nama mereka their names  
3. Personal pronouns, such as my-saya, your-anda, their -mereka, his/her-nya;come after the object possessed.
  nama anda Peter your name is Peter
  nama mereka Peter dan Susan Their names are Peter and Susan
  namanya Peter his name is Peter
  namanya Susan her name is Susan
4. No gender distinction is used for personal pronouns , he and she, his and her.
Learn this example
  saya Peter i am Peter
  nama saya Peter my name is Peter
  nama anda Susan you are Susan
  kami Peter dan Susan we are Peter and Susan
  nama kami Peter dan Susan Our names are Peter and Susan
  dia Peter he is Peter
  namanya Peter his name is Peter
  dia Susan she is Susan
  namanya Susan her name is Susan
  mereka Peter dan Susan They are Peter and Susan
  nama mereka Peter dan Susan Their names are Peter and Susan

B. Questions


1. Either apa or apakah is used to stress an affirmative question. However, you may drop those two question words, when you have a high intonation at the end of the question. Try the following substitution drills:
  Maaf, nama anda Peter ? Excuse me, is your name Peter ?
  Maaf, nama mereka Peter dan Susan ? Excuse me, are their names Peter and Susan ?
  Maaf, namanya Peter ? Excuse me, is his name Peter ?
  Maaf, namanya Susan ? Excuse me, is her name Susan ?
2. What when referring to a person translates as siapa in this question : what is your name ?  - Siapa nama anda?
  Siapa nama anda ? What is your name ?
  Siapa nama mereka ? What are their names ?
  Siapa namanya ? What is his/her name ?
  Siapa namamu ? What is your name ?

WORD ORDER

The verb to be, e.g.  is, am, are has no equivalent in Indonesian. The articles, a and an are not expressed as such in a simple conversation.
Learn these sentences and their patterns:

1. Ini mobil 2. Itu rumah 3. Rumah besar
  This is car   That is a house   A house is big
  Ini Bulpen   Itu meja   Bulpen Kecil
  This is a pen   That is a table   A pen is small
  Ini bulpen saya   Itu meja anda   Teman baik
  This is my pen   That is your table   A friend is good
4. Nama saya Peter 5. Mobil anda bersih 6. Temannya sakit
  My name is Peter   Your car is clean   His friend is sick
  Buku saya baru   Meja kami kotor   Anak mereka sehat
  My book is new   Our table is dirty   Their child is healthy (fine)
  Rumah anda besar   Kursi kita kotor   Bukunya baru
  Your house is big   Our chairs are  dirty   Her book is new

EXCERCISES

a. Translate the following sentences into English.

1. Ini buku
2. Ini buku kita
3. Itu mobil
4. Itu mobil mereka
5. Itu rumah anda
6. Pulpennya kecil
7. Dia tinggi
8. Mejanya pendek
9. Mereka teman saya
10. Meja dan kursi besar

b. Translate the following sentences into Indonesian.

1. That is a house
2. That is our car
3. A table is high
4. A chair is short
5. Your friend is good
6. His pen is old
7. My table is old and dirty
8. That is her chair
9. he is my child
10. You are healthy