Diphtong

'ai' becomes 'é'

In daily spoken Indonesian, diphtongs are often contracted. In some words diphthong 'ai' can change/contract into 'é' as in 'egg'.

Examples 'ai' to 'é'

Formal Word Colloquial Meaning
bulai bulé caucasian
capai capé, capék tired
cabai cabé chilli
cerai ceré divorced
gulai gulé curry, spicedmeat soup
pakai paké use, wear
satai saté satay
sampai sampé until, arrive, up to

'au' becomes 'o'

Examples 'au' to 'o'

Formal Word Colloquial Meaning
hijau ijo green
kacau, mengacau ngaco disturb
kerbau kebo buffalo
kalau kalo if, when, unless
pulau pulo island
ramai rame crowded, busy
saudara sodara gentleman, relative




e-Learning

The University of Hawaii at Manoa offers three dedicated distance education e-learning courses for advanced Indonesian under the supervision of Dr. Uli Kozok, coordinator of the Indonesian language program at the University of Hawaii. The three courses offered are available not only to UH students but to anyone anywhere. You can enrol through UH Outreach College.