In today’s post, we’re going to learn question words. We’ll also study with some examples for each of them. Let’s begin!
APA – What
Examples:
1.Apa kabar? – How are you?
2.Kamu bilang apa? – What did you say?
3.Kamu sedang melakukan apa? – What are you doing?
Usually “apa” can be placed at the beginning or at the end of a sentence, but NOT always. See the examples below:
Apa kabar? → you can’t put “apa” at the end of the sentence. So, you can’t say “Kabar apa?” for asking “How are you?”
Kamu bilang apa? → you can switch the position of “apa”. You may put “apa” at the end of the sentence OR at the beginning of the sentence. So, you can also say “Apa yang kamu bilang?”
SIAPA – Who
Examples:
1.Siapa namamu? – What is your name?
2.Siapa dia? – Who is she/he?
In Indonesian for asking someone’s name, we don’t use “what” like in English but we use “who”.
Mostly “siapa” can be placed at the beginning or at the end of a sentence.
Example: Siapa namamu → you can also say “Namamu siapa?”
Siapa dia? → you can also say “Dia siapa?”
KAPAN – When
Examples:
1.Kapan Anda akan pergi ke Jakarta? – When will you go to Jakarta?
2.Kapan kamu mulai belajar bahasa Indonesia? – When did you begin to study Indonesian?
DI MANA – Where
Examples:
1.Di mana Anda tinggal? – Where do you live?
2.Di mana kamu taruh buku itu? – Where did you put that book?
BAGAIMANA – How
Examples:
1.Bagaimana cuaca di sana hari ini? – How’s the weather there today?
2.Bagaimana mengatakan “thank you” dalam bahasa Indonesia? – How to say thank you in Indonesian?
KENAPA – Why
Examples:
1.Kenapa kamu tidak makan kue itu? – Why don’t you eat that cake?
2.Kenapa dia tiba terlambat? – Why did he arrive late?