Last updated on January 16, 2024
When me- prefix is combined with a noun, the new word could mean one of the following:
To put the noun on some other noun
cat (paint) → mengecat (to paint)
Example:
- Dia mengecat pintu.
- He paints the door.
To indicate that the subject turns into the noun (most of the times, figuratively)
batu (stone) → membatu (to turn to stone)
Example:
- Dia membatu.
- Literally means He/she turns to stone. To indicate that he/she doesn’t move for hours)
kuping (ear) → menguping (to turn to ear i.e. to eavesdrop)
Example:
- Dia suka menguping.
- He/she likes to eavesdrop)
To produce the noun
sambal (chili) → menyambal (to make chili)
We can also say “membuat sambal”.
Example:
- Ibu sedang menyambal di dapur.
- OR Ibu sedang membuat sambal di dapur.
- Mother is making ‘sambal’ in the kitchen.
To do work with the noun
bajak (plow) → membajak (to plow)
Note: Membajak can also mean to hijack.
Example:
- Banyak petani di desa masih membajak sawah menggunakan kerbau.
- Many farmers in the village still plow the fields using buffalo.
- Presiden Belarusia Alexander Lukashenko membela aksinya dalam membajak pesawat RyanAir.
- Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko defended his actions in hijacking the RyanAir plane.
Note: The trickiest part of me- is when it is being combined with noun. Not all nouns can be combined with me- and the meaning is highly dependent on the contex and culture.