basic indonesian slang
lhoa huge part of most languages is slang. like any other language, indonesian has lots of slang, but the slang can vary in different regions due to the mixing of indonesian with regional dialects.
the slang i’m going to teach you today, is indonesian - javanese slang, mostly used in Central Java, Yogyakarta, and East Java. some of the words may overlap with other regional dialects, but then again, that’s the beauty of dialects, isn’t it?
nggak / ngga / gak / ga / g : shortened version of tidak (no, not)
halah / alah : usually used in exasperation, frustration, or sarcasm.
“halah, bukan gitu!”
“that’s not how you do it!”
yuk : shortened version of ayo (let’s go)
“ke mall, yuk!”
“let’s go to the mall!”
kuy : basically just yuk, but reversed.
“ke mall, kuy!”
“let’s go to the mall!”
yah / ya : a phrase used in exasperation, or when asking someone about something
“yah, nggak jadi ke mall.”
“aw man, we’re not going to the mall.”
“maaf ya,”
“sorry” (but a bit more polite)
“lagi makan, ya?”
“are you/they eating?”
lho : emphasizes something
“belajar bahasa indonesia itu gampang, lho!”
“learning indonesian is easy, you know!”
“aku mau pindah rumah, lho!”
“i’m going to be moving, you, know!”
dong : understand, or to emphasize something positive
“dong nggak?”
“do you understand?”
“iya, dong!”
“of course!”
lah : emphasizer or used in exasperation
“lah, kukira mau ke mall!”
“lah, i thought we were going to the mall!”
“ya iyalah!”
“of course!”
masa / masak : often used in irony or sarcasm
“dia cantik, ya?” “siapa, gurunya?” “ya iyalah! masa papan tulisnya!”
“she’s pretty, right?” “who, the teacher?” “of course, masa the whiteboard!”
nih : shortened form of ini (this)
tuh : shortened form of itu (that)
