SAMPLE LESSONS
Beginners
In this lesson you will learn simple sentences and questions.
VOCABULARY
"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.
| Dodi | Maaf, nama anda Peter? |
| Peter | Ya, betul |
| Dodi | Selamat datang di Indonesia |
| Peter | Terima kasih. Siapa nama anda? |
| Dodi | Nama saya Dodi |
| 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 |