Language
Bahasa Indonesia - Pronunciation Guide
Indonesian (bahasa Indonesia) is straight-out phonetic, like Spanish and Italian, and relatively easy to pronounce. Like all languages it is idiomatic, but if you combine the vocabulary below as best you can, you will be understood.
Pronunciation of the Bahasa Indonesia Alphabet
A
B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z |
ah
bay chat day ay ef gay ha ee jay ka el em e o pay ki er es tay oo fay way eks yay zet |
VOWELS (Haruf Hidup)
a
ang e i o u |
like a in father
the same a sound as above; like ung in lung 1) like a in alone 2) line ay in day 3) sometimes like e in bet 4) omitted after “s” 1) like i in marcaroni 2) like I in hit or tin like o in open like oo in too |
anda (you)
alang (cross, across) sedang (while) bekarja (work) becak (a pedicab in Java) telephon (telephone) selamat (blessing) is pronounced slamat pagi (morning) ini (this) orang (person) satu (one) |
CONSONANTS (Huruf Mati)
b, d, f, l, m, n, v all pronounced as in English
b, d, f, l, m, n, v all pronounced as in English
c
g h j k kh ng ngg ny p r s t y |
like ch in child, charge, choice, etc.
like g in gun like h in hot (but with a hint of “ah”) like j in jug 1) like k in kiss 2) at the end of a word “k” is soft same as above like ng in singer like ng in finger like ny in canyon like p in pay like rr in barrow (r’s are rolled) like s in sit like t in toe like y in you |
kecil (small)
gamelan hari (day) jalan (street) kiri (left) khusus (special) datang (to come, to arrive) minggu (week) nyonya (married woman) apa (what?) pasar (market place) bisa (can) datang (to come, to arrive) saya (I, me, my) |
Note: the letters k, p, and t are not aspirated as they are in English; when pronouncing them, try to prevent an expression of breath.
DIPTHONGS
ai
au kh ng |
like y in my, ir ai in Aisle
like ow in cow, or au in Faust hard, like a strong “k” soft, as in “singer” |
baik (fine/good/nice)
mau (want/need) |
STRESS
The stress in Bahasa Indonesia usually falls on the second to the last syllable of an Indonesian word, as in: makan (eat).
However, if the vowel of the second last syllable is the neutral e, the stress usually falls on the last syllable, as in: bekerja (work).
The stress in Bahasa Indonesia usually falls on the second to the last syllable of an Indonesian word, as in: makan (eat).
However, if the vowel of the second last syllable is the neutral e, the stress usually falls on the last syllable, as in: bekerja (work).
SOME USEFUL BAHASA INDONESIA (INDONESIAN) WORDS AND PHRASES
Greetings
Hello / Halo
Welcome / Selamat datang
See you later / Sampai jumpa lagi
Goodbye (to person leaving) / selamat jalan
Goodbye (from person leaving) / permisi dulu, selamat tinggal
Permissions & Thanks
Please / silakan, tolong (to offer help, aid, or assistance)
silakan masuk (please come in) / silakan duduk (please sit down)
mempersilikan (to invite) / menyilakan (to invite)
May I? / bolekan saya?
Thank you / terima kasi
Thank you very much / terima kasi banyak
You are welcome / kembali, sama-sama (colloquial)
Excuse me / permisi
Pardon me / ma’af
I’m sorry / ma’af
It’s all right, It’s OK / bisalah
Time of Day
Morning (sunrise-11 AM) / pagi
Good morning / selamat pagi
Early afternoon (11 AM-3 PM) / siang
Good early afternoon / selamat siang
Late afternoon (3 PM-sundown) / sore
Good late afternoon / selamat sore
Evening (after sundown) / malam
Good evening / selamat malam
Good night, good sleep / selamat tidur
People
Mr. / Bapak, Pak
Mrs. / Ibu, Bu, Nyonya
Miss / Nona, (Saudari?)
I / Saya
Me / Saya
My / Saya
Mine / Saya punya
I want / saya mau
You / Anda, Saudara, kamu (informal)
Yours / punya Anda (formal), punyamu (informal), milik Anda
Your / . . . mu, . . . tuan, . . . Anda, . . . .saudara
Their / mereka
Them / mereka
They / mereka
Theirs / milik mereka
We & Our / kami (excludes person spoken to) / kita (includes person spoken to)
Ours / milik kami, milik kita (see above)
Husband / suami
Wife / istri
Son / anak laki laki
Daughter / anak perempuan
Man or person / orang
Woman / wanita, (perempuan?)
Male / lelaki, jantan
Female / perempuan, wanita, betina
Child / anak
Little Child / anak-anak
Boy / anak lelaki
Girl / anak perempuan, gadis, anak perawan
Adolescent / remaja
Adolescence / masa remaja
Objects
This / ini
How much is this? / Berapa harga ini?
That / itu
How much is that / Berapa harga itu?
Questions
What? / apa?
Where? / di mana?
Why? / mengapa?
Which? / yang mana?
Placement & Directions
Here / disini
There / di sana
Left / kiri
Right / kanan
In front (of) / depan
Behind / belakang
Straight ahead / terus
Up / di atas
Go up / naik
Down / bawah, di bawah
To get down, To go down / turun
Speed
Fast / cepat
Go fast / jalan cepat
Slow / pelan
Go slow / jalan pelan
Street / jalan
jalan=street, road, avenue, way, path, method or means way
jalan raya= boulevard, highway, main road
jalan-jalan= go for a walk, walk leisurely
jalan kaki=go for a walk
Want / mau, ingin, kekurangan
I want / Saya mau / ingin / kekurangan
I do not want / tidak mau Saya
I do not want this / tidak mau saya ini
I do not want that / tidak mau saya itu
Go / pergi
I want to go to Ubud / Saya mau pergi Ubud
Let’s go home / Pergi kami rumah
Let’s go to my house / Pergi kami rumah Saya
Let’s go back / mundur
To go by / berlalu
To go down / turun
To go in / musuk
To go on / meneruskan
To go out / keluar
Go asleep / tertidur
Come / datang
Come here / mari
Come home / pulang
Come back / kembali
Please (silakan) come back soon / Silakan kembali lekas
Come in / masuk
Come up / timbul
Size & Amount
Large, big / besar
Small / kecil
More / lebih
Again / lagi
Even more / lebih lagi (“One more glass”= Satu gelas lagi)
Many / banyak
Less / kurang
A few or A little / sedikit
Time
Now / sekarang
Today / hari ini
This morning / pagi hari
This early afternoon / siang hari
This late afternoon / sore hari
This evening / malam hari
Tomorrow / besok
Tomorrow morning / pagi besok
Tomorrow early afternoon / siang besok
Tomorrow late afternoon / sore besok
Tomorrow evening / malam besok
Day after tomorrow / besok lusa
Yesterday / kemarin
Yesterday morning / pagi kemarin
Yesterday early afternoon / siang kemarin
Yesterday late afternoon / malam kemarin
Two days ago / keramin lusa
Greetings
Hello / Halo
Welcome / Selamat datang
See you later / Sampai jumpa lagi
Goodbye (to person leaving) / selamat jalan
Goodbye (from person leaving) / permisi dulu, selamat tinggal
Permissions & Thanks
Please / silakan, tolong (to offer help, aid, or assistance)
silakan masuk (please come in) / silakan duduk (please sit down)
mempersilikan (to invite) / menyilakan (to invite)
May I? / bolekan saya?
Thank you / terima kasi
Thank you very much / terima kasi banyak
You are welcome / kembali, sama-sama (colloquial)
Excuse me / permisi
Pardon me / ma’af
I’m sorry / ma’af
It’s all right, It’s OK / bisalah
Time of Day
Morning (sunrise-11 AM) / pagi
Good morning / selamat pagi
Early afternoon (11 AM-3 PM) / siang
Good early afternoon / selamat siang
Late afternoon (3 PM-sundown) / sore
Good late afternoon / selamat sore
Evening (after sundown) / malam
Good evening / selamat malam
Good night, good sleep / selamat tidur
People
Mr. / Bapak, Pak
Mrs. / Ibu, Bu, Nyonya
Miss / Nona, (Saudari?)
I / Saya
Me / Saya
My / Saya
Mine / Saya punya
I want / saya mau
You / Anda, Saudara, kamu (informal)
Yours / punya Anda (formal), punyamu (informal), milik Anda
Your / . . . mu, . . . tuan, . . . Anda, . . . .saudara
Their / mereka
Them / mereka
They / mereka
Theirs / milik mereka
We & Our / kami (excludes person spoken to) / kita (includes person spoken to)
Ours / milik kami, milik kita (see above)
Husband / suami
Wife / istri
Son / anak laki laki
Daughter / anak perempuan
Man or person / orang
Woman / wanita, (perempuan?)
Male / lelaki, jantan
Female / perempuan, wanita, betina
Child / anak
Little Child / anak-anak
Boy / anak lelaki
Girl / anak perempuan, gadis, anak perawan
Adolescent / remaja
Adolescence / masa remaja
Objects
This / ini
How much is this? / Berapa harga ini?
That / itu
How much is that / Berapa harga itu?
Questions
What? / apa?
Where? / di mana?
Why? / mengapa?
Which? / yang mana?
Placement & Directions
Here / disini
There / di sana
Left / kiri
Right / kanan
In front (of) / depan
Behind / belakang
Straight ahead / terus
Up / di atas
Go up / naik
Down / bawah, di bawah
To get down, To go down / turun
Speed
Fast / cepat
Go fast / jalan cepat
Slow / pelan
Go slow / jalan pelan
Street / jalan
jalan=street, road, avenue, way, path, method or means way
jalan raya= boulevard, highway, main road
jalan-jalan= go for a walk, walk leisurely
jalan kaki=go for a walk
Want / mau, ingin, kekurangan
I want / Saya mau / ingin / kekurangan
I do not want / tidak mau Saya
I do not want this / tidak mau saya ini
I do not want that / tidak mau saya itu
Go / pergi
I want to go to Ubud / Saya mau pergi Ubud
Let’s go home / Pergi kami rumah
Let’s go to my house / Pergi kami rumah Saya
Let’s go back / mundur
To go by / berlalu
To go down / turun
To go in / musuk
To go on / meneruskan
To go out / keluar
Go asleep / tertidur
Come / datang
Come here / mari
Come home / pulang
Come back / kembali
Please (silakan) come back soon / Silakan kembali lekas
Come in / masuk
Come up / timbul
Size & Amount
Large, big / besar
Small / kecil
More / lebih
Again / lagi
Even more / lebih lagi (“One more glass”= Satu gelas lagi)
Many / banyak
Less / kurang
A few or A little / sedikit
Time
Now / sekarang
Today / hari ini
This morning / pagi hari
This early afternoon / siang hari
This late afternoon / sore hari
This evening / malam hari
Tomorrow / besok
Tomorrow morning / pagi besok
Tomorrow early afternoon / siang besok
Tomorrow late afternoon / sore besok
Tomorrow evening / malam besok
Day after tomorrow / besok lusa
Yesterday / kemarin
Yesterday morning / pagi kemarin
Yesterday early afternoon / siang kemarin
Yesterday late afternoon / malam kemarin
Two days ago / keramin lusa