Nanti (“later”) is also used as a specific time reference indicating future tense, often after mau + verb:
Saya (akan) pergi nanti. I will go later.
Saya mau pergi nanti. I intend to go later.
2.05
Past tense
Sudah (“already”) is used in Indonesian to indicate most forms of the past tense in English. It is placed before the verb, and is often not translated in English.
Dia sudah pergi? Has he gone already?
Ya, dia sudah pergi. Yes, he has gone already.
Saya sudah satu bulan belajar Bahasa Indonésia.
I have [already] been studying Indonesian one month.
Kemarin (“yesterday”) and tadi (“just now, earlier”) are specific time references used to indicate the past.
Kemarin saya bicara dengan dia. I spoke with him/her yesterday.
Saya datang tadi. I arrived just now.
Past tense with waktu (“the time when”)
Waktu (“time” or “the time when”) is another time reference used to indicate actions which occurred in the past. Followed by itu (“that”) it means “by that time” or “at that time” and indicates what in English would be a pluperfect (past perfect) tense.
Waktu dia datang, kita sedang makan.
When (at the time) he arrived, we were eating.
Waktu itu saya baru pulang.
At that time, I had just come home.
Waktu may also be combined with sudah to indicate the past perfect tense:
Waktu dia datang, kita sudah makan.
When he arrived, we had already eaten.
Waktu itu saya sudah pergi.
By that time I had already gone.
Past tense with pernah (“ever”)
Pernah is a word meaning “been” or “ever.” When placed before the main verb, like sudah, it expresses the past tense, but is not usually translated in English. It is commonly used together with sudah to emphasize past action.
Saya pernah lihat itu. I have seen that.
Saya sudah pernah lihat itu. I have seen that before.
Pernah is often used on its own.
Anda pernah ke sana? Have you ever been there?
Saya pernah ke sana. I have been there before.
When used negatively with tidak or belum, pernah has the sense of “never” or “not yet”:
Saya tidak pernah makan daging. I have never eaten meat.
Saya belum pernah ke sana. I have not yet been there.
2.06
Negation
Tidak, meaning “not,” is the most common negative word, used to negate verbs and adjectives. Spoken contracted forms of tidak are ndak, gak and nggak/enggak.
Hotél ini tidak bagus. This hotel is not good.
Dia tidak pergi. He/she is not going.
Kenapa John enggak datang? Why didn’t John come?
Whenever possible, however, Indonesians prefer to use kurang (“less”) or belum (“not yet”) instead of tidak because the latter seems to carry a sense of “finality” or to be too “strong.” Kurang in this sense means “not really” or “not very”:
Hotél ini kurang baik.
This hotel is not very good.
Saya kurang suka itu.
I don’t really like it.
Dia kurang mengerti.
He doesn’t really understand.
Kenapa Joe belum datang?
Why hasn’t Joe arrived yet?
Belum (“not yet”) is also more commonly used than tidak, as a response to a question involving time or action.
Dia sudah pergi? Belum. Has he gone? Not yet.
Anda sudah pernah ke Bali? Belum.
Have you ever been to Bali? Not yet.
Bukan is used to negate nouns. Tidak is used to negate adjectives, as explained earlier.
Bukan ini, itu. Not this (one), that (one).
Itu bukan lukisan tapi batik.
That is not a painting but batik.
Itu bukan urusan saya.
That is not my business.
Jangan! (“Don’t!”) is used to express negative imperatives instead of tidak.
Jangan pergi! Don’t go!
Jangan mau! Don’t want!
(lit: Don’t accept it!)
