How to Form and Place Adjectives in Indonesian

Understanding Adjectives in Indonesian

In Indonesian, adjectives are words that describe or modify nouns, similar to English. However, their formation and placement in sentences differ from English, which is important for learners to understand.

Formation of Adjectives

Most Indonesian adjectives are simple words that do not change form based on gender, number, or case. For example, besar means "big" and cantik means "beautiful". There are also some adjectives formed by adding prefixes or suffixes, but these are less common.

Placement of Adjectives

Unlike English, where adjectives usually come before the noun (e.g., "big house"), in Indonesian, adjectives typically come after the noun they describe. For example, rumah besar means "big house" (literally "house big").

This placement rule applies to most adjectives, making it easier to identify the noun and its description in a sentence.

Examples of Adjective Placement

Here are some examples to illustrate adjective placement in Indonesian:

• buku baru – new book
• mobil cepat – fast car
• anak pintar – smart child
• kue manis – sweet cake

Adjectives Used as Predicates

When adjectives are used as predicates (after the verb to be), Indonesian often omits the verb. For example, Rumah itu besar means "That house is big." Here, besar is the adjective placed after the noun and verb.

Adjective Reduplication for Emphasis

Sometimes, adjectives are repeated to emphasize the quality or to indicate variety. For example, besar-besar means "very big" or "big ones" (plural). This reduplication is a common feature in Indonesian.

Summary of Key Points

• Adjectives usually come after the noun in Indonesian.
• Adjectives do not change form for gender or number.
• Reduplication of adjectives can add emphasis or plurality.
• No verb "to be" is needed when using adjectives as predicates.