Indonesian Verbs

Welcome to the 10th lesson about verbs in Indonesian. We will first learn about the present tense, followed by the past tense, and future tense. We will also analyze some grammar rules, and finally practice how to ask for direction in Indonesian.

Verbs are used to express an action (I swim) or a state of being (I am). The present tense in Indonesian conveys a situation or event in the present time. Here are some examples:

Present Tense - Indonesian
I speak English saya berbicara bahasa inggris
you speak French anda berbicara bahasa perancis
he speaks German ia berbicara bahasa jerman
she speaks Italian ia berbicara bahasa italia
we speak Arabic kami berbicara dalam bahasa arab
they speak Chinese mereka berbicara bahasa cina

The past tense in Indonesian conveys a situation or event in the past time. Here are some examples:

Past Tense - Indonesian
I visited France saya mengunjungi prancis
you visited Italy anda mengunjungi italia
he visited Morocco ia mengunjungi maroko
she visited China ia mengunjungi cina
we visited Mexico kami mengunjungi meksiko
they visited Kenya mereka berkunjung ke kenya

The future tense in Indonesian conveys a situation or event which is anticipated to happen in the future. Here are some examples:

Future Tense - Indonesian
I will drink milk saya akan minum susu
you will drink coffee anda akan minum kopi
he will drink tea dia akan minum tehh
she will drink water dia akan minum air putih
we will drink apple juice kami akan minum jus apel
they will drink tea mereka akan minum teh

Now let's take a break and refresh our vocabulary by learning the body parts.

ear telinga

eye mata

mouth mulut

nose hidung

hair rambut

face wajah

head kepala

heart jantung

hand tangan

fingers jari jemari

leg kaki

feet kaki

Travel Phrases in Indonesian

Imagine yourself in some Indonesian speaking country. The following travel phrases are highly important and can help you avoid misunderstanding. Try to memorize them and practice!

English - Indonesian
Can you help me? bisakah anda tolong saya?
Can I help you? bisa saya bantu?
Where is the airport? dimana bandara udara?
Go straight lurus
Then lalu
Turn left belok kiri
Turn right belok kanan

I hope this lesson about the verbs in Indonesian was not hard for you. Please check out our main menu here for more lessons: homepage. To see the full menu, you can also click on the "Menu" icon on the left side.