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Study in the app →Indonesian · BIPA 1 (A1) · Chapter 33
Naik apa ke sana? How do you get there?
Transport vocabulary: naik, kendaraan, bus, kereta, mobil, motor, sepeda, pesawat, jalan kaki, dengan. Key grammar: to go by a vehicle, use "naik" (to board/ride) + vehicle: "naik bus", "naik kereta", "naik motor". The pattern is subject + pergi ke + place + naik + vehicle: "Saya pergi ke kantor naik bus" (I go to the office by bus). You may also use "dengan" (with/by) + vehicle: "pergi dengan bus". For going on foot there is a special phrase "jalan kaki" (not "naik"). English says "by bus"; English speakers reach for "oleh" because "oleh" is the dictionary "by" — but "oleh" marks the DOER of a passive sentence ("dimakan oleh kucing" = eaten by the cat), not the means of transport: "Saya pergi oleh bus" ✗ → "Saya pergi naik bus" ✓. Sound corner: "naik", "kendaraan", "sepeda".
Dialogue
Naik atau "oleh"? — Naik or "oleh"?
- Budi Mike, kamu ke kampus naik apa? Mike, how do you get to campus?
- Mike Saya pergi oleh bus. I go by bus. (slip: not "oleh" — use "naik")
- Budi "oleh" itu untuk pelaku, misalnya "dimakan oleh kucing". Untuk kendaraan, pakai "naik bus". "oleh" is for the doer, e.g. "dimakan oleh kucing" (eaten by the cat). For a vehicle, use "naik bus".
- Mike Oh begitu. Saya pergi ke kampus naik bus. Oh, I see. I go to campus by bus.
- Budi Tepat! Atau "dengan bus". Kalau dekat? Exactly! Or "dengan bus". And if it is near?
- Mike Kalau dekat, saya jalan kaki. If it is near, I walk.
Dialogue
Ke pantai naik apa? — How to get to the beach?
- Sari Besok kita ke pantai. Kita naik apa? Tomorrow we go to the beach. How do we get there?
- Mike Kita naik kereta, lalu naik bus dari stasiun. We take the train, then a bus from the station.
- Sari Kenapa tidak naik mobil saja? Why not just go by car?
- Mike Jalannya macet. Naik kereta lebih cepat. The road is jammed. The train is faster.
- Sari Baik. Dari pantai ke hotel kita jalan kaki saja, ya. Alright. From the beach to the hotel let us just walk.
- Mike Setuju. Dekat, kok. Agreed. It is near, after all.
Vocabulary
| 汉字 | Pinyin | POS | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| naik | v. | to ride, go by, board | |
| kendaraan | n. | vehicle | |
| bus | n. | bus | |
| kereta | n. | train | |
| mobil | n. | car | |
| motor | n. | motorbike | |
| sepeda | n. | bicycle | |
| pesawat | n. | aeroplane | |
| jalan kaki | v. | to walk, go on foot | |
| dengan | prep. | with, by means of |
Grammar
naik + kendaraan — pergi dengan kendaraan naik + vehicle — going by transport
Untuk berkata kamu pergi dengan sebuah kendaraan, bahasa Indonesia memakai kata kerja "naik" (secara harfiah "naik/menaiki") langsung diikuti kendaraan: "naik bus", "naik kereta", "naik motor", "naik pesawat". Polanya: subjek + pergi ke + tempat + naik + kendaraan — "Saya pergi ke kantor naik bus". Alternatif yang lebih formal adalah "dengan" (dengan/memakai) + kendaraan: "Saya pergi dengan bus". Keduanya benar. Kekecualian penting: untuk berjalan, JANGAN pakai "naik" — ada ungkapan tetap "jalan kaki" (harfiah "jalan dengan kaki"): "Rumahnya dekat, jadi saya jalan kaki". Dalam bahasa Inggris kita berkata "by bus", "by train", jadi penutur Inggris mencari padanan "by" dan menemukan "oleh". Tapi "oleh" hanya menandai PELAKU pada kalimat pasif — "Nasi dimakan oleh kucing" (the rice was eaten by the cat) — bukan alat yang kamu tumpangi. Jadi "Saya pergi oleh bus" ✗ salah; yang benar "Saya pergi naik bus" ✓ (atau "dengan bus").
To say you go somewhere by a vehicle, Indonesian uses the verb "naik" (literally "to board/ride") directly followed by the vehicle: "naik bus", "naik kereta", "naik motor", "naik pesawat". The pattern is subject + pergi ke + place + naik + vehicle — "Saya pergi ke kantor naik bus" (I go to the office by bus). A more formal alternative is "dengan" (with/using) + vehicle: "Saya pergi dengan bus". Both are correct. Important exception: to walk, do NOT use "naik" — there is a fixed phrase "jalan kaki" (literally "walk on foot"): "Rumahnya dekat, jadi saya jalan kaki" (his house is near, so I walk). In English we say "by bus", "by train", so English speakers look for a match for "by" and find "oleh". But "oleh" only marks the DOER in a passive sentence — "Nasi dimakan oleh kucing" (the rice was eaten by the cat) — not the thing you ride. So "Saya pergi oleh bus" ✗ is wrong; the correct form is "Saya pergi naik bus" ✓ (or "dengan bus").
- Saya pergi ke kantor naik bus. I go to the office by bus.
- Dia pulang naik kereta. She goes home by train.
- Kami ke pasar naik motor. We go to the market by motorbike.
- Rumahnya dekat, jadi saya jalan kaki. His house is near, so I walk.
pronunciation
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