Numbers In The Malay Language

To learn the Malay language, you have to know the basic phrases or words that they
use or can be used in everyday living. In this part, we can say that numbers are one
of the most common terms that they use most especially in telling in time (masa).
Below are the translations for the numbers to the Malay numbers and how to
pronounce all of these.

Number English Malay Translation Articulation

0 Zero Sifar Si-far

1 One Satu Sa-tu

2 Two Dua Du-wa

3 Three Tiga ti-ga

4 Four Empat Em-pat

5 Five Lima Li-ma

6 Six Enam E-nam

7 Seven Tujuh Tu-jooh

8 Eight Lapan La-pan

9 Nine Sembilan Sem-bi-lan

10 Ten Sepuluh Se-pu-looh

11 Eleven sebelas Se-be-las

12 Twelve Dua belas Du-wa-be-las

Please take note that all numbers stipulated above are based not on the 24-hours
(jam) clock format rather on the 12-hours (jam) clock format. Meaning from 1 am -12
noon and 1 pm to 12 midnight that is why you will only see from 1 – 12 numbers.
After knowing the numbers (nombor), let us now proceed on translating some
common adjectives and adverbs that refer to an actual time.
The O’Clock Translations In Malay Language
In this part, you will know the different translations of o’clock from English to the
Malay Language. It is an easy way to say the remnant of a time in clocks and people
told time by a variety of means, depending on where they were and what references
were available.

English Malay

O’clock Pukul

One o’clock Pukul satu

Two o’clock Pukul dua

Three o’clock Pukul tiga

Four o’clock Pukul empat

Five o’clock Pukul lima

Six o’clock Pukul enam

Seven o’clock Pukul tujuh

Eight o’clock Pukul lapan

Nine o’clock Pukul sembilan

Ten o’clock Pukul sepuluh

Eleven o’clock Pukul sebelas

 Twelve o’clock Pukul dua belas

Upon analyzing the o’clock it is just actually the combination of the pukul and
the nombor. The key to easy understanding and memorizing this pukul is that you
must first focus on familiarizing the numbers in the Malay Language. To move
forward let us see now the rendition of the parts of the day to Malay words.

Parts Of The Day In Malay Phrases

When we say about parts of the day it simply refers to the division of the entire 24
hours (jam) into 7 parts and these are Advance Morning, Middle Morning, Noon,
Afternoon, Advance Evening, Evening, Middle of the Night. To be clarified with
regards to this matter please see the definition below:

Pagi (Morning)
In Malay, the morning is referred to as “pagi.” When telling the time in the morning,
Malaysians often use the phrase “Pukul vbvcberapa pagi?” which translates to “What
time is it in the morning?” For example, “Pukul tujuh pagi” means “Seven o’clock in
the morning.”

Tengahari (Noon)
“Tengahari” in Malaysia is the word for “noon.” To express a specific time during this
period, you can use phrases like “pukul dua belas tengahari” (12 o’clock noon) or
“pukul satu tengahari” (1 o’clock in the afternoon).

Petang (Afternoon)
In Malaysia, the afternoon is referred to as “petang.” When telling the time in the
afternoon, Malaysians typically use the phrase “Pukul berapa petang?” which means
“What time is it in the afternoon?” For instance, “Pukul tiga petang” translates to
“Three o’clock in the afternoon.”

Malam (Evening/Night)
“Malam” is the Malay word for “evening” or “night.” Malaysians commonly use the
phrase “Pukul berapa malam?” when inquiring about the time in the evening. For
example, “Pukul lapan malam” means “Eight o’clock in the evening.” Useful to know
if you are heading out to meet friends for a night on the town in Kuala Lumpur.

Tengah Malam (Midnight)

To refer to midnight in Malaysia, the phrase “tengah malam” is used. For instance,
“Pukul dua belas tengah malam” translates to “Twelve o’clock midnight.”

Okay, let’s go through which hour it is in each section of the day.

1. Early Morning (awal pagi) is known as the breaking of the sun’s light which
sheds to the heart. Usually, it is between 5 am to 9 am.
2. Middle Morning (tengah pagi) is where the sun is set above the world
surface. Typically, it is between 10 (pagi) to 11 (pagi).
3. Noon (tengah hari) is considered the half of the day already in where the sun
is fully set above the earth’s surface. Usually, this is known as 12 noon.
4. Afternoon (selepas tengah hari) is the start where the sun is slowly setting
down on the other side of the earth. Typically, it starts from 1 pm to 5 pm.
5. Early Evening (awal petang) is taking place or being presented in the prior
part of the evening (petang). Usually, it starts from 6 pm to 8 pm.
6. Evening (petang) is considered to be around 9 pm to 11 pm.
7. Middle of the night (tengah malam) is considered to be from 12 midnight to
4 am of the next morning (pagi).
Quarter, Half, And Other Terms For Telling
Time
Separuh (Half)
When expressing the concept of half past the hour, the word “separuh” is used. For
example, “Pukul satu separuh” means “Half past one.”

Kuartar (Quarter)
The term “kuartar” is used to express quarter past the hour. For instance, “Pukul dua
kuartar” means “Quarter past two.”

Setengah Kuartar (Quarter to…)

To indicate quarter to the next hour, Malaysians use the phrase “setengah kuartar.”
For example, “Pukul tiga setengah kuartar” translates to “Quarter to three.”

Tengah (Sharp)
When expressing the exact hour, Malaysians often use the word “tengah,” which
means “sharp” or “exactly.” For instance, “Pukul lima tengah” means “Five o’clock
sharp.”

Lebih (More/Over)
To express a time that is slightly past the hour or a little over one hour, the word
“lebih” is used. For example, “Pukul satu lebih” means “A little past one.”

Lebih kurang (Around/Approximately)

When the time is uncertain or approximate, Malaysians use the phrase “lebih
kurang.” For instance, “Pukul empat lebih kurang” translates to “Around four o’clock.”

Awal (Early)
To refer to an early hour, the word “awal” is used. For example, “Pukul tujuh pagi
awal” means “Seven o’clock early in the morning.”

Lambat (Late)
On the other hand, when expressing a late hour, Malaysians use the word “lambat.”
For instance, “Pukul sembilan malam lambat” translates to “Nine o’clock late in the
evening.”

Other Expressions For Telling Time In Malay

Below are the common phrases or locutions that is telling time which you can use in
case you will be speaking to a Malay-speaking person. You can also bear in mind
that upon asking about the hours (jam) or time, you can either make a gesture or
point to your wrist. Since body gesture is one of the easy ways also to let your
listener understand what you are asking or talking about.
English Malay Language

Later Nanti

Now Sekarang

Ahead of Time Mendahului Masa

Next Year Tahun Hadapan

Last Month Bulan Lepas

Half day Setengah Hari

In a second Dalam beberapa saat

Just wait a few minutes Tunggu beberapa minit sahaja

What is the actual time now? Apakah masa sebenar sekarang?

How much time do we have? Berapa banyak masa yang kita ada?