The Prefix 'se-' and 'satu'

01

When to use 'Satu'

Use the full word satu when you are counting numbers in a sequence, reading phone numbers, or doing mathematics. You also use it when you need to emphasize the specific quantity "one" in contrast to "two" or "many."

• Satu, dua, tiga, empat.

  One, two, three, four.

• Saya hanya punya satu pertanyaan.

  I only have one question.

• Nomor telepon saya dimulai dengan nol satu dua.

  My phone number starts with zero one two.

02

When to use 'Se-' (A/An)

The most common use of se- is to function like the English articles a or an. It is used with classifiers (measure words) and units of time or measurement to indicate a single unit. In these cases, using the full satu can sound unnatural or overly emphatic.

• Dia membeli sebuah mobil baru.

  He bought a new car.

• Saya menunggu di sini selama sejam.

  I waited here for one hour.

• Ada seekor kucing di atas meja.

  There is a cat on the table.

03

Se- indicating "The Same"

Beyond counting, se- attaches to nouns to indicate that two subjects share the same location, attribute, or origin. In this context, it translates to "the same" or "sharing a."

• Kami tinggal serumah.

  We live in the same house.

• Mereka adalah teman sekelas.

  They are classmates (friends of the same class).

• Kita sependapat dalam hal ini.

  We are of the same opinion on this matter.

04

Se- for Comparisons

When se- is attached to an adjective, it creates a comparison meaning "as... as." This structure is used to show that two things are equal in a specific quality.

• Dia tidak setinggi kakaknya.

  He is not as tall as his older brother.

• Rumah ini sebesar istana.

  This house is as big as a palace.

05

Words Built With se-

Many everyday words began as se- plus a root, and are now learned as words of their own.

• belum not yet - sebelum before
• lama long - selama during, for (a length of time)
• kali time, occasion - sekali once; very
• ratus hundred - seratus one hundred
• ribu thousand - seribu one thousand
• segera soon - sesegera as soon as

The numbers sepuluh (ten) and sebelas (eleven) are built the same way, and so are sesuatu (something), semoga (hopefully), sebagai (as) and sebelah (side, next to).

06

se-...-nya

With -nya added at the end, se- builds adverbs.

• benar true - sebenarnya actually
• sebelum before - sebelumnya previously