There are many ways to use commas in Bahasa Indonesia. This rule is used to make sure that the meaning is on the point and that the information could be transferred well. So, check these out!
- Commas are used to separate words, phrases or numbers.
- For example:
- Toko Buku ‘XY’ menjual juga novel, komik, dan pigura.
- ‘XY’ Bookstore also sells novels, comics, and frames.
- Nasi goreng, kwetiaw goreng, atau capcay goreng tidak lagi hanya dijual saat malam hari.
- Fried rice, fried kwetiaw and fried capcay are no longer sold only at night.
- A comma is used before a conjunction, such as tetapi (but), melainkan (rather) and sedangkan (while/whereas), in a contradictory compound sentence.
- For example:
- Adik melukis pemandangan, sedangkan kakak lebih suka melukis geometris.
- The younger sister paints landscapes, while the older brother prefers geometric paintings.
- Ia sangat lapar, tetapi di rumah tidak ada makanan.
- He was very hungry, but there was nothing to eat at home.
- Commas are used to separate subordinate clauses that come before parent clauses.
- For example:
- Karena hujan lebat, tidak banyak yang datang ke konser.
- Not many people came to the concert because of the heavy rain.
- Kalau ingin lancar bahasa asing, harus sering berlatih.
- If you want to be fluent in a foreign language, you have to practise a lot.
- Do not use a comma if the parent clause is placed before the child clause.
- For example:
- Tidak banyak yang datang ke konser karena hujan lebat.
- Due to the heavy rain not many people came to the concert.
- Harus sering berlatih kalau ingin lancar bahasa asing.
- If you want to be fluent in a foreign language, you have to practise a lot.
- Commas are used after words or phrases that connect sentences, such as therefore (oleh karena itu), so ( jadi), thus (dengan demikian), in connection with (sehubungan dengan itu), and notwithstanding (meskipun demikian).
- For example:
- Kita harus menjaga kerukunan antar umat beragama. Dengan demikian, akan tercipta lingkungan yang aman dan tinggi toleransi terhadap sesama.
- We must maintain interfaith harmony. This will create a safe environment and high tolerance towards others.
- Commas are used before and/or after interjections such as o, ya, wah, aduh, or hai, and words used as greetings such as Bu, Dik, atau Nak.
- For example:
- Wah, baju itu indah sekali!
- Wow, that dress is so beautiful!
- O, benarkah?
- Oh, really?
- Harga 1 kg berasa berapa, Bu?
- How much does 1kg cost, Bu?
- A comma is used to separate a direct quotation from the rest of the sentence.
- For example:
- Kata ayahku, “Rajin menabung akan mendatangkan banyak manfaat.”
- My father used to say, “Saving hard will pay off in many ways.
- Do not use commas to separate direct quotes ending in question marks or exclamation marks from the following part of the sentence.
- For example:
- “Siapa yang mengambil donatku?” tanya adik.
- “Who took my doughnut?” my little brother asked.
- Commas are used between (a) names and addresses, (b) parts of addresses, (c) places and dates, and (d) place names and regions that are written in sequence.
- For example:
- Agung Gede, Jalan Persatuan no 1, Kelurahan Bersama.
- Commas are used after opening salutations (such as with respect (dengan hormat) or best wishes (salam sejahtera) ), closing salutations (such as our respects (salam takzim or hormat kami)) and the title of the person signing the letter.
- For example:
- Dengan hormat,
- With honour,
- Selamat pagi,
- Good morning,
- A comma is used between a personal name and the abbreviation of an academic degree that follows it in order to distinguish it from the abbreviation of a proper name, a surname or a clan name.
- For example:
- NB:
- Agung Gede, S.H.
- Agung Gede, M.Hum.
- Compare Siti Khadijah, M.A. (Siti Khadijah, Master of Arts) with Siti Khadijah M.A. (Siti Khadijah Mas Agung).
- Spaces are used to separate names from their abbreviated forms and to separate titles from their abbreviated forms.
- Commas are used in front of decimal numbers or between rupiahs and cents when they are expressed as numbers.
- For example:
- 10,5 m
- 2,5 kg
- Rp100.350,00
- Commas are used to enclose additional information or to append information to the text.
- For example:
- Di daerah kami, misalnya, masih banyak bahan tambang yang belum diolah.
- In our area, for example, there is still a lot of unprocessed mining material.
- Semua siswa, baik laki-laki maupun perempuan, harus mengikuti pelatihan paduan suara.
- All students, boys and girls, are required to attend choir training.
Compare this with the qualifiers that are not enclosed in a comma!
- Siswa yang lulus dengan nilai tinggi akan diterima di perguruan tinggi itu tanpa tes.
- Students who pass the exam with good marks will be admitted to the college without having to take an exam.
- A comma can be used after an adverb at the beginning of a sentence to avoid misunderstandings.
- For example:
- Dalam pengembangan bahasa Indonesia, kita dapat memanfaatkan bahasa daerah.
- In the development of bahasa Indonesia, we can make use of local languages.
- Bandingkan dengan kalimat berikut.
- Make a comparison with the following sentence.
- Dalam pengembangan bahasa kita dapat memanfaatkan bahasa daerah.
- In the development of bahasa Indonesia we can make use of local languages.
What do you think of learning commas in KBBI? That’s quite a lot. Isn’t it?
Make sure you remember these rules. They will help you speak Indonesian more fluently.
Have a good day and keep learning !
