Indonesian doesn't conjugate verbs or mark plural the way English does, so its most common words are pronouns, particles, and connectors that carry grammar English packs into endings. Get comfortable with these hundred and full sentences start clicking into place.
How to use this list
Do not work through this list top to bottom. Read down it and mark only the words you could not have produced yourself. Those are your list. The rest are already yours, and reviewing them is wasted effort better spent on words you actually meet in reading, conversation, or subtitles.
The 100 words
| # | Indonesian | English | In use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | yang | that / which | Buku yang kubaca sangat menarik.The book that I'm reading is very interesting. |
| 2 | dan | and | Saya suka teh dan kopi.I like tea and coffee. |
| 3 | di | in / at | Kucing itu ada di atas meja.The cat is on the table. |
| 4 | itu | that | Rumah itu sangat besar.That house is very big. |
| 5 | dengan | with | Dia pergi ke sekolah dengan temannya.He goes to school with his friend. |
| 6 | untuk | for | Ini hadiah untuk kamu.This is a gift for you. |
| 7 | tidak | not | Saya tidak mengerti.I don't understand. |
| 8 | ini | this | Ini adalah rumah saya.This is my house. |
| 9 | dari | from | Dia berasal dari Jakarta.He comes from Jakarta. |
| 10 | akan | will | Kami akan pergi besok.We will go tomorrow. |
| 11 | pada | at / on (formal) | Rapat dimulai pada pukul sembilan.The meeting starts at nine o'clock. |
| 12 | juga | also | Saya juga suka musik.I also like music. |
| 13 | ke | to | Kami pergi ke pasar.We are going to the market. |
| 14 | karena | because | Dia menangis karena sedih.She cried because she was sad. |
| 15 | ada | there is / to have | Ada seekor kucing di taman.There is a cat in the garden. |
| 16 | atau | or | Kamu mau teh atau kopi?Do you want tea or coffee? |
| 17 | saya | I (formal) | Saya tinggal di Bandung.I live in Bandung. |
| 18 | aku | I (informal) | Aku sangat senang hari ini.I am very happy today. |
| 19 | kamu | you (informal) | Kamu mau ikut kami?Do you want to come with us? |
| 20 | Anda | you (formal) | Apa pekerjaan Anda?What is your occupation? |
| 21 | dia | he / she | Dia adalah dokter.He is a doctor. |
| 22 | mereka | they | Mereka tinggal di rumah besar.They live in a big house. |
| 23 | kita | we (inclusive) | Kita harus pergi sekarang.We have to go now. |
| 24 | kami | we (exclusive) | Kami baru saja tiba.We just arrived. |
| 25 | apa | what | Apa yang kamu lakukan?What are you doing? |
| 26 | siapa | who | Siapa nama orang itu?What is that person's name? |
| 27 | kapan | when | Kapan kamu akan datang?When will you come? |
| 28 | mana | where / which | Di mana kamu tinggal?Where do you live? |
| 29 | bagaimana | how | Bagaimana caramu melakukan ini?How do you do this? |
| 30 | mengapa | why | Mengapa kamu sedih?Why are you sad? |
| 31 | semua | all | Semua orang senang.Everyone is happy. |
| 32 | sesuatu | something | Aku ingin memberitahumu sesuatu.I want to tell you something. |
| 33 | banyak | many / much | Kami punya banyak pekerjaan hari ini.We have a lot of work today. |
| 34 | sedikit | a little / few | Waktu kita tersisa sedikit.We have little time left. |
| 35 | baik | good | Dia orang yang sangat baik.He is a very good person. |
| 36 | buruk | bad | Ini adalah ide yang buruk.This is a bad idea. |
| 37 | besar | big | Jakarta adalah kota besar.Jakarta is a big city. |
| 38 | kecil | small | Apartemen kami cukup kecil.Our apartment is quite small. |
| 39 | baru | new | Aku membeli ponsel baru.I bought a new phone. |
| 40 | lama | old / a long time | Aku menunggu bus untuk waktu yang lama.I waited for the bus for a long time. |
| 41 | adalah | to be (copula) | Ibuku adalah seorang guru.My mother is a teacher. |
| 42 | menjadi | to become | Dia ingin menjadi dokter.He wants to become a doctor. |
| 43 | punya | to have | Aku punya dua saudara perempuan.I have two sisters. |
| 44 | ingin | to want | Aku ingin belajar bahasa Indonesia.I want to learn Indonesian. |
| 45 | bisa | can / to be able | Bisakah kamu membantu saya?Can you help me? |
| 46 | harus | must | Aku harus pergi kerja.I have to go to work. |
| 47 | pergi | to go | Kami akan pergi berlibur.We are going on vacation. |
| 48 | datang | to come | Dia datang terlambat.He came late. |
| 49 | memberi | to give | Dia memberi aku hadiah.He gave me a gift. |
| 50 | mengambil | to take | Aku perlu mengambil payung.I need to take an umbrella. |
| 51 | bilang | to say | Dia bilang dia akan datang.He said he would come. |
| 52 | melihat | to see | Aku suka melihat film.I like watching movies. |
| 53 | mendengar | to hear | Aku suka mendengar musik.I like listening to music. |
| 54 | tahu | to know | Aku tidak tahu jawabannya.I don't know the answer. |
| 55 | mengerti | to understand | Aku sulit mengerti pertanyaan ini.I find this question hard to understand. |
| 56 | suka | to like | Aku suka membaca buku.I like reading books. |
| 57 | tinggal | to live / stay | Mereka tinggal di Surabaya.They live in Surabaya. |
| 58 | makan | to eat | Anak-anak sedang makan nasi.The children are eating rice. |
| 59 | minum | to drink | Aku ingin minum air dingin.I want to drink cold water. |
| 60 | waktu | time | Kami tidak punya banyak waktu.We don't have much time. |
| 61 | hari | day | Hari ini cuacanya bagus.Today the weather is nice. |
| 62 | malam | night | Tadi malam sangat dingin.Last night it was very cold. |
| 63 | tahun | year | Dia pergi ke India setiap tahun.He goes to India every year. |
| 64 | rumah | house | Aku sedang pulang ke rumah.I am going home. |
| 65 | orang | person | Banyak orang datang ke pesta itu.Many people came to that party. |
| 66 | laki-laki | man | Anak laki-laki itu sedang bermain sepak bola.That boy is playing football. |
| 67 | perempuan | woman | Perempuan itu berdiri di pasar.That woman is standing in the market. |
| 68 | anak | child | Anak itu sedang tidur.The child is sleeping. |
| 69 | ibu | mother | Ibuku sedang memasak.My mother is cooking. |
| 70 | ayah | father | Ayahku seorang dokter.My father is a doctor. |
| 71 | teman | friend | Dia adalah teman terbaikku.He is my best friend. |
| 72 | air | water | Tolong berikan aku segelas air.Please give me a glass of water. |
| 73 | buku | book | Buku ini sangat menarik.This book is very interesting. |
| 74 | sekolah | school | Anak-anak pergi ke sekolah.The children are going to school. |
| 75 | kota | city | Jakarta adalah kota yang ramai.Jakarta is a busy city. |
| 76 | negara | country | Indonesia adalah negara yang besar.Indonesia is a big country. |
| 77 | dunia | world | Dunia ini sangat luas.This world is very vast. |
| 78 | hal | thing / matter | Ini adalah hal yang penting.This is an important matter. |
| 79 | tempat | place | Ini adalah tempat favoritku.This is my favorite place. |
| 80 | jalan | road / way | Jalan ini menuju ke pantai.This road leads to the beach. |
| 81 | uang | money | Dia tidak punya banyak uang.He doesn't have much money. |
| 82 | nama | name | Namaku Budi Santoso.My name is Budi Santoso. |
| 83 | pertanyaan | question | Dia mengajukan sebuah pertanyaan.He asked a question. |
| 84 | jawaban | answer | Jawabannya benar sekali.His answer is completely correct. |
| 85 | senang | happy | Kami senang bertemu denganmu.We are happy to meet you. |
| 86 | sedih | sad | Dia terlihat sedih akhir-akhir ini.He has looked sad lately. |
| 87 | cantik | beautiful | Taman ini sangat cantik.This garden is very beautiful. |
| 88 | cepat | fast / quickly | Kereta itu berjalan sangat cepat.The train moved very fast. |
| 89 | sekarang | now | Sekarang aku tinggal di Bali.Now I live in Bali. |
| 90 | besok | tomorrow | Sampai jumpa besok pagi.See you tomorrow morning. |
| 91 | kemarin | yesterday | Kemarin aku pergi ke pantai.Yesterday I went to the beach. |
| 92 | selalu | always | Aku selalu minum kopi di pagi hari.I always drink coffee in the morning. |
| 93 | sudah | already | Dia sudah pergi.He has already left. |
| 94 | belum | not yet | Aku belum selesai.I haven't finished yet. |
| 95 | masih | still | Dia masih di kantor.He is still at the office. |
| 96 | lagi | again / more | Tolong katakan itu lagi.Please say that again. |
| 97 | sangat | very | Film ini sangat bagus.This movie is very good. |
| 98 | tetapi | but | Aku lelah, tetapi bahagia.I am tired, but happy. |
| 99 | kalau | if | Kalau kamu punya waktu, telepon aku.If you have time, call me. |
| 100 | supaya | so that | Dia belajar keras supaya lulus ujian.He studies hard so that he passes the exam. |
The ones English speakers get wrong
saya, aku, kamu, and Anda
saya is the neutral, polite 'I' used in most situations, while aku is casual and intimate, used with close friends or family. In the same way, kamu is casual 'you' while Anda is formal and respectful, used with strangers, elders, or in professional settings. Mixing registers, like using aku in a business email, can sound oddly familiar.
No verb tense
Indonesian verbs don't change form for past, present, or future. Instead, time is shown with separate words: sudah (already, marking completed action), akan (will, marking the future), and sedang (in the process of, marking an ongoing action). Dropping these words entirely can leave a sentence ambiguous about when something happened.
di as a preposition versus di- as a prefix
di written as its own word means 'at' or 'in': di rumah (at home). But di- attached directly to a verb marks the passive voice: dimakan (eaten, as in 'eaten by someone'). The spacing is the only visual difference, and it changes the grammar completely.
Reduplication for plural
Indonesian usually doesn't mark plural at all: buku can mean 'book' or 'books' depending on context. When the language does mark plurality explicitly, it repeats the whole word: buku-buku (books), orang-orang (people). There's no plural suffix like English '-s'.
Adjectives follow the noun
Where English says 'a beautiful garden', Indonesian reverses the order: taman cantik, literally 'garden beautiful'. This holds consistently across the language, so translating word for word from English produces backwards phrases.
What to do next
A list this size is about two weeks of light daily review, and it is the difference between decoding Indonesian and following it.