1. Learning Bahasa Indonesia the Easy Way!
SRI SUWANTI
CONTACT ME : 08222 022 7298
Interested in learning Bahasa Indonesia (or Indonesian language) yet you have no clue of
where you should start? Considering learning Indonesian language in the near future yet the idea
of having to learn a new language scares you off? You might also have many questions lingering
on your mind, making you even more hesitant to learn Bahasa Indonesia.
“Why should I learn bahasa?” and “Is learning Bahasa Indonesia really worth it?” are only few
of the questions we hear from non-Indonesian speaking people who live in Indonesia. They
happen to stay in Indonesia for some reasons, either it is because they have been hired to work in
one of multi national companies in Indonesia, or because they are housewives and children who
are following their husbands and fathers who are working in Indonesia, or even some seasonal
tourists who like to visit Indonesia many times.
It has long been known that there are NO many Indonesian people who can communicate in
English well, including those who are supposed to be able to speak in English, such as shop
assistants, office boys and girls, drivers, and others who have to interact with people around them
most of the time. Most of these people have learned how to speak English during school and yet
they don’t really know how to communicate with foreigners using the proper English language.
So there is no other choice for the expatriates in Indonesia other than trying to learn bahasa. It is
the only way for them to be able to communicate with the Indonesian people.
There are many ways to learn Indonesian language, and you can choose whether it is the easy
way or the not-so-easy way. Below are some words commonly used in daily conversation, which
can be a good start for you who want to learn Indonesian language the easy way:
Good morning Selamat pagi
Good afternoon Selamat siang/sore
Good evening Selamat malam
How are you? Apa kabar?
I’m just fine Saya baik-baik saja
Good bye Selamat tinggal
See you Sampai jumpa
2. Thank you Terima kasih
You’re welcomeSama-sama/kembali
Nice to see you Senang bertemu anda
More Indonesian phrases
Days of the week and numbers
Monday Senin One Satu Eight Delapan
Tuesday Selasa Two Dua Nine Sembilan
WednesdayRabu Three Tiga Ten Sepuluh
Thursday Kamis Four EmpatEleven Sebelas
Friday Jumat Five Lima Twelve Dua belas
Saturday Sabtu Six Enam ThirteenTiga belas
Sunday Minggu Seven tujuh Twenty Dua puluh
It has long been known that Indonesian language is one of the easiest languages in the world and
you can even make a good sentence despite your limited knowledge of Indonesian grammar. As
long as you know the KEY to arrange words into a sentence, you can make good sentences, and
even a paragraph. It's just that simple.
However it is the teacher's job to guide and direct the student so that the student can be later on
his/her own to develop his/her Indonesian language skill by practicing his/her Indonesian
language with the locals and eventually be able to speak Indonesian better and better.
Practice makes perfect. And the more you practice your Indonesian language and do your
teacher's assignment, the better your Indonesian language skill will be. These are the ground
rules you must always remember when learning Bahasa Indonesia.
3. LESSON 1
Selamat : using in combination with other words to form many greetings
Pagi : morning 06.00 – 10.00 hour
Siang : day time 10.00-15.00 hour
Sore : afternoon 15.00-18.00 hour
Malam : evening / night 18-00 – 16:00
Selamat pagi : good morning
Selamat siang : good day
Selamat sore : good afternoon
Selamat malam : good evening / night
4. Lesson 2
Halo : hallo (infomal greeting)
Apa : what
Kabar : news
Apa kabar : what’s new? / what’s going on ?
Terima : receive
Kasih : love (generally not used to express romantic love)
Terima kasih : thank you
Selamat tinggal : good bye
5. Lesson 3
Ya : yes
Tidak : no
Mungkin : possibly / maybe
Lain : other
Kali : an occassion or moment in time
Lain kali : another time
Jangan : dont ( as in “don’t do that” )
Bukan :not a ( as in “ this is not a .... )
6. Lesson 4
Saya : i, me, mine (formal)
Aku : i, (informal)
...ku : me (informal)
Mau : want
Ini : this
Itu : that
Perlu : need
Boleh : may ( to be allowd / permitted to ... )
Minta : ask for (politely)
Saya perlu ini : i need this
Boleh saya minta itu : may i have that?
Saya tidak mau itu : i dun want that
Saya tidak mau itu : i dont want that
Bisa : can / to be able to
Anda : you (polite, formal)
Kamu : you (informal)
Uang : money
7. Lesson 5
Mengerti : to understand
Bahasa : language
Bahasa Belanda : the dutch language
Bahasa Indonesia : the indonesian language
Bahasa Inggris : The english language
Anda : You
Bicara : to speak
Dapat : can to able to
Saya tidak mengerti bahasa indonesia : i dont understand
indonesian
Dapat bicara bahasa inggris? : can you speak english
Tolong : please
Pelan-pelan : slowly
Tolong bisa bicara pelan-pelan : could you please speak slowly?
8. Lesson 6
Dari : from
Saya dari indonesia : i am from indonesia
Orang : person
Saya orang indonesia : i am Indonesian
Orang hutan : orangutan/ forrest people
Belanda : The Netherlands
Amerika : American
Jepang : Japan
Perancis : France
Jerman : Germany
Italia : Italy
Cina : China
Spanyol : Spain
9. Lesson 7 food and drink
Saya suka : i like
Saya tidak suka : i dont like
Enak : delicious
Makan : to eat
Makanan : food
Minum : to drink
Minuman : drink (noun)
Air botol : bottled water
Nasi goreng : fried rce
Pedas : hot
Manis : sweet
Garpu : fork
10. Lesson 8 – dirrection and
location
Ma’af : sorry
Permisi : excuse me
Di : at
Di sini : (at) here
Di situ : (at) there
Di mana : (At) where
Ke : to / towards
Ke sini : to here
Ke sana : to there
Dari mana : from where
Hotel : hotel
Restaurant : Restaurant
Rumah sakit : Hospital
Kantor polisi : police station
11. Lesson 9 people by titles /
pronouns - 1
Mengerti : to understand : father, older man
Bahasa : language
Ibu /bu : mother, older woman
Nona : miss, younger woman
Nyonya : Mrs
Tuan ; Sir / Mister (high class)
Bapak : Father / older man
Saudara : brother, also used to adress a man of our own age or
status
Saudari : Sister, also used to adress a woman of our own age or
status
Dia / ia : He or she
Adik : Younger brother / sister
Kakak : Older brother / sister
Nenek : Grandmother
Kakek : Grandfather
12. Lesson 10
Anda: you, your, yours (formal)
Engkau : you, your, yours (in formal) not as commonly used
Kamu : you, your, yours (in formal) not as commonly used
Saya : I, me, mine (formal)
Aku : I, me, mine (informal)
Kalian : you all ( plural from you )
Mereka : they, them, theirs
Kita : we, us, and ours (excludes the person being spoken to)
Kita : we, us, and ours (includes the person being spoken to)
Lesson 11 introducing
yourself
Nama : named
Kenal : tobe acquinted with
Senang : hapy, content
13. Dengan : with
Juga : also / too
Benar/betul : true / correct
Baik : good /well
Sangat: very
Saya senang berkenalan dengan anda : i am happy to be acquinted
with you
Bahagia : happy (permanent)
Sekali : very
14. Lesson 12
Kepada : to / towards a person
Berkenalan : to introduce ( formal)
Kenalkan : to introduce ( informal)
Saya ingin kenalkan anda kepada dia : i want to introduce u to him
Mari : let
Mari saya kenalkan anda kepada .. : let me introduce you too..
Senang bertemu anda : happy to meet you
Sampai bertemu lagi : see u later
Sampai ketemu nanti : till we meet again
Lesson 13 :
Nomor : number
Nol : zero
Satu ; one
Dua : two
Tiga : three
Empat : four
Lima : five
15. Enam : six
Tujuh : seven
Delapan : eight
Sembilan : nine
Sepuluh : ten
Belas : suffex to form teens ( as seventeen)
Sebelas : eleven
Lesson 14
Detik : second
Menit : minute
Jam : hour
Jam berapa : what time is it
Jam enam pagi : six a.m.
Jam tujuh malam : seven p.m. (7 in the evening)
Lewat/ lebih : used to express minutes past the hour
Kurang : used to xpress minutes to the hour
Sekarang : now
16. Kemaren : yeterday
Besok : tomorrow
Lusa : the day aftet tomorrow
Lesson 15 : month and dates
Januari/ februari : january / february
Maret / april : March / april
Mei / juni : may / June
Juli agustus : July / August
September/ oktober : September / Oktober
November desember : November / Desember
Tanggal : Date
Bulan ; Month
Tahun : Year
17. Lesson 16 : expressing love
Aku suka kamu : i like you
Aku sayang kamu : i love you ( note sayang donates care or dear)
Bear-benar : really very
Sangat: extremely
Bahagia : happy ( as in a long term trait like happy personality)
Buah hati : sweetheart
Kasih sayang : love, affection
Hari kasih sayang : valentin’s day
Jatuh cinta ; fall in love
Cinta monyet : puppy love
Pacar : boyfriend or girlfrind
Kekasih : darling
18. Lesson 17 ordering food 1
Rumah : house
Restoran : restaurant
Meja : table
Untuk ; for (the receiver of something )
Tolong : please
Tolong meja untuk dua orang : table for two please
Daftar makanan : menu
Pesan : to order
Istimewa / spesial : special
Yang : whic is (that is)
Makanan apa yang istimea : what food is special?
Tolong : please
19. Lesson 18 more food and the
bill
Ayam : chiken
Ikan : fish
Sapi : beef
Babi : pork
Bon : bill
Boleh saya minta bon : may i have the bill
Bungkus : wrap
Sisa makanan : leftover from the meal
Berapa? : how much ( or how many)?
Berapa totalnya? : how much is the total ?
Tolong tunggu sebentar : please wait a little bit
Sate : satay (grilled meat on a steak)
Sayur : vegetable
20. Lesson 19 more on drinks
Putih : white
Air putih : drinking water
Kopi : caffee
Gula : sugar
Teh : tea
Manis : sweet
Pahit : bitter
Teh manis : sweet tea
Air jeruk : oranges juice
Soda : soda
Anggur : wine / grape
Bir : beer
Selamat minum : cheers or bottoms up
21. Lesson 20 days of the week
Hari : day
Minggu : week / Sunday
Senin : Monday
Selasa : Tuesday
Rabu ; Wednesday
Kamis : thursday
Jumat : Friday
Sabtu : Saturday
Hari ini : today (this day)
Kemaren : yesterday
Besok : tomorrow
Hari Ini hari apa : what day is today ?
Lusa : the day after tomorrow
22. Lesson 21
Ratus : hundred
Seratus : one hundred
Ribu : thousand
Seribu : one thousand
Juta : million
Sejuta : one million
Lima ribu dua ratus : five thousand two hundred
Tujuh ratus lima puluh ribu : seve hundred fifty thousand
Dua ribu delapan : two thosand eight
Uang : money
23. Lesson 22 emergency
expessions
Tolong : please help
Bantu : to help
Tolong bantu saya : please help me
Panggil : to call
Polisi : police
Ambulan : ambulance
Tolong panggil polisi : please call the police
Sekarang ; now
Panggil ambulan sekarang : call an ambulance now
Ini darurat : this is an emergency
Sakit : sick
Dokter : doctor
Saya perlu dokter : i need a doctor
Kantor polisi : policy station
Rumah sakit : hospital
24. Lesson 23
Copet : pickpocket
Ada : there is / there are
Tolong ada copet : help there pickpocket
Pencuri : thief
Awas : watch out
Hati – hati : be careful
Gangu : to disturb
Jangan ganggusaya : dont disturb me
Pegang : to touch
api : fire
kebakaran : a fire ( a burning)
pemada kebakaran : firefigter
25. lesson 24
apa ini : what is this
harga : price
berapa harganya :what is the price? / how much is it
mahal : expensive
terlalu mahal : too expensive
murah : cheap
bisa (harganya ) dikurangi : can (the price) be reduced.
Tertarik : interested
Saya tidak tertarik : i amnot interested
Baik , saya ambil : fine, i will take
Toko : shop
Jual , beli : to sell to buy
Penjual , pembeli : seller , buyer
26. Less 25 ore on shopping
Bayar : to pay
Uang : money
Uang kembalian : change (money you get back)
Kartu kredit : credit card
Kartu debit : debit card
Anda uang kembalian : is there some change
Anda terima kartu kredit :do u accept credit card
Punya : to have
Ukuran : size / measurement
Baju : shirt
Celana : trousers
Lebih : more
Besar / kecil : big / small (little)
Lesson 26 : past present and
future
Belajar : to learn o to study
27. Pergi : to go
Sudah : already
Telah : already
Akan : will
Sedang : a word that indicates an action that is currently
happening
Belum : not yet
Pernah : to have ever done something in the past
Belum pernah : have never
Selalu : always
Masih : a word to indicate we are still in the middle of going
something
Akan selalu : will always
28. Lesson 27 store hours
Buka : to open
Tutup : to close
Jam buka : openning hour
Jam tutup : closing hours
Toko : shop / small store
Jam berapa anda buka :what time do u open?
Datang : to come
Sampai : until
Biasanya : usually
Bisa saya datang besok pagi : can i come tomorrow morning ?
Kami buka dari jam ... sampai jam... : we open from ... until ...
29. Lesson 28
Saya tersesat : i am lost
Pakai : to use or to weae
Telepon : telephone
Tinggal : to stay or live someplace
Antar : to accompany or to escorst someone
Penduduk : citizen
Kedutaan : Embassy
Konsul : Consulate
Boleh saya pakai telepon anda? : may i use your telephone?
Tolong antar saya ke rumah : please escort me to my house
Pinjam : to borrow
Kembali : to return ( something you have borrowed )
Nanti : later
Boleh saya pinjam telepone : may i borrow your telephone
Saya akan kembalikan telepon anda : i will return your telephone
30. Lesson 29
Bagaimana : how
Belok : to turn
Kiri : left
Kanan : right
Jalan : to walk or to travel
Terus : continue on
Berhenti : to stop
Selama : as long as ( a period time)
Kemudian : then ( as a next step)
Raffic light ( red light )
Simpang empat : a crossroads ( 4 way intersection)
Pertama : first
Kedua : second
Ketiga / sebelah : third / side ( as in on the left side)
Lesson 30 describing people
Baik : kind , nice , good
31. Jahat : bad ( as in someone with bad intentions)
Cantik : beautiful
Kurus : thin
Gemuk : fat
Big : besar
Kecil : small
Tinggi : tall
Pendek : short
Ramah : fiendly
Kacamata : eye glasses
Lesson 31 more describing
people
Wanita : woman
Pria : man
Rambut : hair
Panjang: long
Pendek : short
32. Muda :Young
Tua : old
Laki-laki : man
Perempuan : woman
Anak : child
cerdas / pintar : smart clever
bodoh : stupid
lesson 32
pikir : to think
rasa : to feel
tahu : to know
percaya : to believe
bahwa : that (as in i believe that )
bagus : good or fine
lucu : funny
lebih ; more ( as in this is more.... than...)
dai pada : than
paling : the most
33. jauh : far
dekat : near / close
bersi : clean
kotor : dirty
lesson 33 : asking question
bagaimana : how
di mana : (at) where
ke mana : (to) where
apa : what
kapan : when
mengapa : why
yang mana ; which one
siapa : who whom
lagi : again
terjadi : happened
kapan ini trejadi : when did it happen
siapa kamu : who are you?
34. Lesson 33 conjunction
Ayah : father
Dan : and
Atau : or
Buku : book
Buku yang ini : this book
Jalan : to walk (ingeneral)
Jalan-jalan : to takee a stroll
Pantai : beach
Walaupun : although
Walaupun saya suka makanan indonesia, saya tidak suka makanan
pedas : although i like indonesian food, i don’t like spicy food
Kalau/ jika : if
Setiap / setiap hari : every / every day
35. Lesson 35
Karena : because
Saya : so that
Tetapi/ tapi : but
Pintar : smart /clever
Keras : hard
Lancar : fluent
Saya belajar bahasa indonesia supaya saya bisa berbicara dengan
lacar : i learn the indonesian language so that i can speak fluently
Mary sangatcerdas karena dia belajar keras. Mary is very smart
because she studies hard.