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Indonesian · BIPA 1 (A1) · Chapter 12

Saya punya dua kucing I have two cats

Count with a measure word: NUMBER + MEASURE WORD + NOUN. dua ekor kucing (ekor = animals), tiga buah buku (buah = things), empat orang teman (orang = people). Pick the right one. (In casual speech it is often dropped: dua kucing.) New vocabulary: buah, ekor, kucing, anjing, buku, meja, kursi, gelas, pulpen, tas, barang. Pronunciation corner: measure words with clear vowels.

Ekor untuk Hewan — ekor for Animals

  1. Budi Mike, kamu punya berapa kucing? Mike, how many cats do you have?
  2. Mike Saya punya dua buah kucing. I have two cats. (slip: animals take "ekor", not the default "buah" — "dua ekor kucing")
  3. Budi "Dua ekor kucing", Mike — kucing pakai "ekor", bukan "buah". It's "dua ekor kucing", Mike — cats use "ekor", not "buah".
  4. Mike Oh, saya punya dua ekor kucing! Oh, I have two cats!

Buah untuk Benda — buah for Things

  1. Sari Mike, kamu punya berapa buku? Mike, how many books do you have?
  2. Mike Saya punya tiga ekor buku. I have three books. (slip: "ekor" is for animals — books take "buah": "tiga buah buku")
  3. Sari "Tiga buah buku", Mike — "ekor" untuk hewan; buku pakai "buah". It's "tiga buah buku", Mike — "ekor" is for animals; books use "buah".
  4. Mike Oh, saya punya tiga buah buku! Dan dua ekor anjing. Oh, I have three books! And two dogs.
汉字PinyinPOSMeaning
buah n. (measure: things)
ekor n. (measure: animals)
kucing n. cat
anjing n. dog
buku n. book
meja n. table
kursi n. chair
gelas n. glass
pulpen n. pen
tas n. bag
barang n. thing, goods

Kata bantu bilangan Measure words

Untuk menghitung benda atau makhluk tertentu, pakai kata bantu bilangan: ANGKA + KATA BANTU + BENDA. Tiga jenis utama: ekor untuk hewan (dua ekor kucing), buah untuk benda (tiga buah buku), orang untuk manusia (empat orang teman). buah adalah kata bantu umum untuk benda. Memilih yang tepat adalah keterampilan inti. Catatan: dalam percakapan santai, kata bantu sering dilesapkan (dua kucing) — tetapi bentuk baku memakainya.

To count specific things or creatures, use a measure word: NUMBER + MEASURE WORD + NOUN. Three main types: ekor for animals (dua ekor kucing), buah for things (tiga buah buku), orang for people (empat orang teman). buah is the general measure word for objects. Choosing the right one is the key skill. Note: in casual speech the measure word is often dropped (dua kucing) — but the standard (baku) form keeps it.

  • Saya punya dua ekor kucing. I have two cats.
  • tiga buah buku three books
  • empat orang teman four friends
  • dua buah meja dan empat buah kursi two tables and four chairs

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