Last updated on January 16, 2024
Verbs in Indonesian distinguish between accidental and deliberate action. The verb with prefix ter- also forms a term for a variety of uncontrolled actions, unintended, unexpected, involuntary or sudden.
Deliberate
- Tasnya ditinggalkan di kantor.
- His bag was left at the office.
Accidental
- Tasnya tertinggal di kantor.
- His bag was left at the office.
Ter-verbs can be either intransitive or transitive. When used as intransitive, ter- suggests the following meanings.
- The subiect experiences some forced or involuntary motion.
- The subiect displays spontaneous expressions.
Examples:
Intransitive
- Maman tertidur di kelas.
- Maman fell asleep in class.
Transitive
- Buku saya terbawa oleh kamu.
- You took my book by mistake.
Passive Voice
The prefix ter- is also used to express the passive voice, and the agent is of no importance.
- Penumpang itu terlempar ke laut.
- The passenger was accidentally thrown outside.
- Kaki orang itu terinjak oleh Ahmad.
- The man’s foot was accidentally trampled on by Ahmad.
- Rumahnya terbakar tadi malam.
- The house was burned down by accident last night.