Indonesian Prepositions Posted by asimonoff on Apr 23, 2017 in Uncategorized
A preposition is a word which is placed before a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase to show its relationship with other words. Try to memorize the prepositions below, because they’re very important and used daily.
| Meaning | Bahasa Indonesia | English equivalent | Example |
| Indicating location or place | di
dalam |
In, at, on, upon
in, within |
Saya tinggal di Jatinegara. I live in Jatinegara.Dia tidak mengatakan apa pun dalam suratnya. She did not say anything about it in her letter. |
| Indicating movement to | ke | to, toward a thing or a place | Mirna sudah pergi ke sekolah. Mirna has gone to school. |
| Indicating movement from | dari | from | Dia menerima sebuah surat dari Inggris.
He/she received a letter from England. |
| Indicating that an action is directed to people or abstract things |
kepada
|
to, towards a person
|
Tolong kirim salam saya kepada ibu Anda.
Please send my regards to your mom. |
| Indicating agent or instrument | dengan
oleh |
by, with
by |
Orang Indonesia lebih suka makan dengan tangan.
Indonesians prefer to eat with their hands.
Ia ditegur oleh atasannya. He/she was reprimanded by his/her boss. |
| Indicating specific time | pada
|
at, on | Mereka berangkat ke bandara pada jam 6 pagi.
They left for the airport at six o’clock in the morning.
|
| Indicating duration | selama
sampai, hingga
sejak
untuk |
during, for (as long as)
up to, until
since
for |
Keluarga kami tinggal di Amerika selama 10 tahun
My family lived in America for 10 years.
Anak saya belajar dari jam dua sampai jam empat. My son studies from two to four o’clock.
Suami saya tidur sejak jam delapan malam. My husband has been sleeping since eight o’clock at night.
Kakak perempuan saya akan tinggal di Bangkok untuk four years. My older sister will live in Bangkok for four years. |
LET’S PRACTICE
Exercise 1
Complete the following sentence with di, ke, dari
- Ari ada _______________ mana? Apakah dia ada _____________________ kamar?
- Apakah Bambang berasal _________ Bandung? Tidak. Dia _____________ Solo.
- Tuti dan Rusli pergi _________________ pasar naik mobil.
- Pejabat itu datang __________________ kantor kami kemarin.
- ______________ mana mobil dia?
- Kami pergi ________________ kantor naik sepeda.
- Mertua dia tinggal _________ kota Balikpapan _______ propinsi Kalimantan Timur.
- _________________ museum, kami pergi _______________ rumah makan.
- Ibu Maringka berasal ______________ Menado dan suami dia ____________ Denpasar.
- Siapa makan ______________ ruang makan?
Exercise 2
Complete the following sentence with ke, pada, kepada.
- Anak-anak akan pergi ____________ sekolah.
- Mereka akan berangkat __________ jam 6 pagi.
- Pak Budi bicara __________ Bu Budi.
- Dia akan datang ________ sini nanti sore.
- Keluarga mereka akan pindah __________ Bandung tahun depan.
- Pak Doni pulang ________ Indonesia _________ tahun 2015.
- Ibu Sundari memperkenalkan pegawai baru
- Saya memberi surat itu ____________ Pak Dulatif.
- Kita pergi_____________ restoran Sarinah di Alexandria.
- _________ hari Sabtu banyak turis pergi ke museum-museum di Washington DC.
Exercise 3
Complete the following sentence with dari, sampai, selama.
- Murid-murid belajar Bahasa Indonesia _________ jam 8 ____________ jam 10.
- Mereka akan belajar di sini ____________ bulan Maret.
- Suami saya akan bertugas di Indonesia ___________ 3 tahun.
- Bayi itu tidur siang __________ jam 11.00 _______ jam 12.30 siang.
- Kami keluar makan siang _________ jam 2.30 hari ini.
- Anak-anak main bola _____________ siang ______________ sore.
- Saya sudah bekerja di sini ______________ 5 tahun.
- ___________ musim panas banyak turis yang berkunjung ke Washington DC.
- Kami naik pesawat terbang ________ bandara Soekarno Hatta.
- Kakak saya berlibur _______ seminggu di pulau Bali.
Answer Keys
| Number | Exercise 1 | Exercise 2 | Exercise 3 |
| 1 | di, di | ke | dari, sampai |
| 2 | dari, dari | pada | pada |
| 3 | ke | kepada | selama |
| 4 | ke | ke | dari, sampai |
| 5 | di | ke, pada | pada |
| 6 | ke | ke, pada | dari, sampai |
| 7 | di, di | kepada | selama |
| 8 | dari, ke | kepada | pada |
| 9 | dari, dari | ke | dari |
| 10 | di | pada | selama |
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About the Author: asimonoff
I’m an Indonesian language instructor, instructional material developer, reading test developer, and interpreter. I have been teaching Indonesian to adult students for 15 years, and have been teaching students from many backgrounds, such as private, military and diplomatic service employees. I’m Indonesian, but am living in the US now; my exposure to different cultures in my home country and in the US has enriched my knowledge in teaching Indonesian as a second language. I approach the teaching of the Indonesian language by developing students’ critical cultural awareness and competence. This method of teaching has been proven to be a key to the success of my students. Students become conscious of the essential role culture plays in the language.