Would you describe yourself as a curious person?
If you’re learning Indonesian, we imagine that you probably do!
You can make that curiosity work for your Indonesian skills, too! When you talk to people, they’ll be interested in who you are and what’s driven you to learn their language. And the bread and butter of that is questions.
Statistically, questions make up a big part of conversation in any language. By preparing yourself with the most common Indonesian questions and answers, you’ll become familiar and comfortable with these conversational keystones and come off as a skilled conversationalist.
Table of Contents
- Your Name
- Your Origin Story
- Language Matters
- Traveling Around
- A Personal Question
- A Taste of Indonesia
- Work-day Life
- What’s up?
- The Price is Right
- Conclusion
1. Your Name
In Indonesian, you’re going to be confused at first with the pronouns. There are a lot of different ways that people can address you, so in this article, we’ll stick to the tried-and-true saya/kamu mix.
But let’s break that rule right away, because if someone’s asking your name, they’re going to be polite with you. Don’t worry: only the pronoun changes in this Indonesian question.
- Siapa nama Anda?
“What’s your name?”
The word nama is a cognate of the English word “name,” but it actually comes from Sanskrit instead of a more modern European language as you might assume.
To answer the question, switch the words around and say:
- Nama saya Denis.
“My name is Denis.”
2. Your Origin Story
People you tend to meet and chat with in Indonesia are even more likely to ask this question than the last. It can be so quick and to the point that you might miss it if you don’t pay attention!
- Dari mana?
“Where are you from?”
As you can see, it’s not that necessary to include the pronouns. At a restaurant or cafe, you might hear Dari mana, kak? where kak is the basic form of address for young people who are older than you.
To answer, you’ll be using the dari, or “from,” preposition again.
- Saya dari Melbourne.
“I’m from Melbourne.”
Something you’ll pick up pretty quickly when it comes to the pragmatics, or conversation rules, of Indonesian is the way people repeat back new information. So in this short scenario above, person A would ask, person B would respond, then person A would repeat dari Melbourne back in a knowing tone of voice.
They’re not correcting your pronunciation—they’re just holding up their end of the conversation!
3. Language Matters
The Indonesian questions here are those you’re very likely to hear while in the country, and they’re about the language itself.
- Apakah kamu bisa berbahasa Indonesia?
“Do you speak Indonesian?”
You certainly do! Also, as Indonesia’s influence in Southeast Asia grows, more and more people are picking up the language all around the region. You shouldn’t shy away from trying out this phrase in other countries!
The answer is probably not tidak, or “no,” for obvious reasons. Instead, if you’re not comfortable speaking Indonesian just yet, you can say:
- Maaf, tidak begitu lancar.
“Sorry, not very fluently.”
If you manage to answer like that, you’ll get a great reaction, something like Sudah bagus! meaning “It’s already great!” And perhaps this follow-up:
- Sudah berapa lama belajar bahasa Indonesia?
“How long have you been studying Indonesian?”
To answer, we’ll use the word sudah again to note that it’s already been a certain amount of time, then simply add the relevant unit and amount of time.
- Sudah enam bulan.
“Six months already.”
4. Traveling Around
If you happen to meet an Indonesian abroad and speak Indonesian with them, you’ll invariably get this question:
- Sudah ke Indonesia?
“Have you been to Indonesia?”
That translation is pretty broad, because what’s literally happening here is: “Already to Indonesia?” To answer, you don’t even have to change the word order.
- Iya, sudah ke Jakarta (dua kali).
“Yeah, I’ve already been to Jakarta (twice).”
Don’t get thrown off by this separate but similar question: Sudah lama di Indonesia? or “Have you been living in Indonesia for a long time?” In that case, you could reply with the same time-related words as before.
5. A Personal Question
In Indonesian culture, questions can get pretty personal. It’s common for people to get married in their twenties, so someone aged twenty to thirty-five or so is liable to get some variation of these questions:
- Sudah menikah belum?
“Are you married yet?”
- Sudah beristri?
“Do you have a wife?”
- Sudah bersuami?
“Do you have a husband?”
Culturally, you don’t answer “no” to this question. In Indonesian, it’s much better to say belum, meaning “not yet.” And if the answer is yes, it’s still a one-word deal: Sudah! (You’ve got to say it enthusiastically, especially if your spouse is there with you.)
6. A Taste of Indonesia
You can find just about any type of food you want in Indonesian cities, particularly if your tastes skew East Asian. Home-grown Indonesian food can’t be beat, however, and you’re sure to have people asking about your opinions.
- Apakah kamu suka makanan Indonesia?
“Do you like Indonesian food?”
The apakah bit is kind of optional. Since the question is being asked to you, it doesn’t need that explicit marker.
In your answer, the best way to keep the conversation going is to name a specific type of Indonesian food that keeps you coming back.
- Iya, suka! Makanan kesukaanku adalah nasi goreng.
“Yes, I love it! My favorite food is nasi goreng.”
Let’s briefly examine the word kesukaanku, which means “my favorite.” It’s made up of four individual parts.
First, the root is suka, meaning “to like,” which we just saw in the question. Adding the prefix ke– and the suffix -an turns it into a noun: “favorite.”
Finally, the suffix -ku is a possessive meaning “mine.” So you could have:
- mi kesukaanku – “my favorite noodles”
- ayam goreng kesukaanku – “my favorite fried chicken”
- minuman kesukaanku – “my favorite drink”
7. Work-day Life
Many people in Indonesia will assume that you’re traveling there, like most foreigners. However, sometimes something in your body language will indicate to them that you’ve been there a while. They may ask:
- Kamu bekerja apa?
“What do you do?”
- Apa pekerjaanmu?
“What’s your work?”
These questions are interchangeable, but they illustrate two ways to use the root word kerja, or “work,” in a sentence.
First, there’s pekerjaan, with the pe-an circumfix making it a concrete noun: “employment.” Then there’s bekerja, a verb meaning “to have a job.”
To answer, you could either replace the -mu, or “your,” possessive suffix with the -ku, or “my,” one we saw earlier:
- Pekerjaanku doktor.
“I am a doctor.”
Or you could avoid dealing with extra suffixes and simply say:
- Saya bekerja sebagai doktor.
“I work as a doctor.”
The word sebagai is optional here, but you’ll find it used more often than not.
8. What’s up?
Not every conversation happens with the same opening and closing lines. However, in Indonesian, you could be forgiven for thinking they do!
This phrase is a standard friendly greeting for Indonesians all over the place. You can kind of think of it as mapping to an idiomatic English equivalent.
- Apa kabar?
“What’s up?”
Literally, though, you’re saying “What news?” Now this is unusual, because the answer is always baik, meaning “good.”
In some textbooks, you’ll probably see the phrase bagaimana kabarmu as a more formal equivalent, but nobody really talks like that.
In a formal situation with one person speaking to a group of people, they’ll often say this standard greeting:
- Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.
“May peace be upon us all.”
You can also say:
- Assalamualaikum.
“Peace upon us.”
This one does have a set response:
- Waalaikum salam.
“And upon you.”
As this is a loanword (or loan phrase) from Classical Arabic, it shows up written and pronounced in slightly different ways from person to person. If you, as a foreigner, manage to pull it off in the correct context, people will immediately perk up and pay attention.
9. The Price is Right
Rounding off here, this is one of the questions you’ll probably end up using the most day-to-day in Indonesia.
- Berapa harganya?
“How much is it?”
The root word harga means “price,” and the -nya makes it refer to a specific price. Namely, the price of the thing you’re pointing at in the restaurant or in the shop.
Mostly, people will just reply with the number:
- Tiga puluh ribu.
“Thirty thousand.”
As you can see, it’s not necessary here—or in many other phrases—to reply with a complete sentence! The context takes care of filling in any grammatical gaps.
10. Conclusion
To be honest, as long as you master the questions about your name, where you’re from, and how much things cost, you’ll be miles ahead of other learners. And all of that can be picked up in a couple of hours!
The next step is adding detail.
Where are you going in Indonesia? How much does two of these things cost?
You can come up with follow-up questions in English and then look for them in Indonesian while listening to and reading Indonesian content.
Speaking of which, IndonesianPod101.com is the logical next step to take when you’re expanding your conversation horizons. With our guided lessons, flashcards, and reading material, you’ll never be lost for words.
Have a look right now at some of the podcast dialogues, and see for yourself what kind of questions can be asked and answered!
Before you go, why not practice some of these Indonesian questions and answers straight away? Try answering one or more of the questions from this article in Indonesian, and leave your answers in the comments section. We look forward to hearing from you!
