The best way to learn Malay is a mix: mostly Malay you can understand, plus review and real conversation, with the balance set by your goal. Malay you can mostly understand is called comprehensible input. Below, you'll see what each way of learning builds and the mix that suits six common goals.
Which Ways of Learning Malay Work Best?
Reading and listening to Malay at your level works best, and each other method adds one skill on top of it.
| Method | What it builds | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Reading and listening at your level | Words, grammar and listening | Most of your time |
| A structured course | An order for the basics | Your first months |
| A tutor or conversation partner | Speaking and quick replies | Using what you know |
| Flashcards or other review | Words that stay with you | A few minutes each session |
| Cartoons, radio and the news | Malay at natural speed | Fun, once you follow most of it |
| Grammar study | How prefixes build new words | Patterns that confuse you |
Input is the base of the mix: a 2016 review of 49 studies in Reading in a Foreign Language, a University of Hawaii journal, found that reading a lot of easy material improves reading in a new language.
What Is the Best Way to Learn Malay for Your Goal?
For every goal, the best way is the same base of reading and listening, with the rest of your time on the skill that goal needs most.
- Travel in MalaysiaSpend most of your time on short dialogues about ordering food and getting around, and say each one out loud.
- Talk With Family or FriendsRead and hear lots of everyday conversations, and spend the rest of your time talking with them or with a tutor.
- Watch Malaysian Cartoons and DramasPut most of your time into listening, starting with Upin & Ipin with the Malay captions on and moving on to dramas later.
- Live in MalaysiaRead and hear Malay about shops, food and neighbors, and listen to Malay radio in RTMKlik to hear how people talk.
- Read the NewsSpend most of your time reading short stories, and move on to Berita Harian or BERNAMA once everyday conversations feel easy to follow.
- Work in MalaysiaRead and hear Malay about your field most of the time, and practice the formal Malay of meetings and emails with a tutor.
To see how many hours each stage takes, read how long it takes to learn Malay.
What Are the Best Resources for Each Part?
Each part of the mix has a good free option, such as StoryWeaver for easy stories or Kamus Dewan for looking up words, and an app or service for when you want more. Bubblegum, which appears in a few rows, is a language app where Poppy, an AI tutor, writes Malay lessons at your level about things you like.
| Part | Free option | App or service |
|---|---|---|
| A course for the basics | Mango Languages, free with a card at many public libraries | Ling, or uTalk for words and phrases with audio |
| Reading and listening at your level | Bubblegum's Malay lessons on this site, and storybooks sorted by level on StoryWeaver | Bubblegum, or LingQ for Malay you bring in yourself |
| Cartoons and news | Upin & Ipin on YouTube, and SBS Bahasa Melayu for short news episodes | Language Reactor, which shows Malay captions beside a translation on YouTube |
| Review | Readlang, which saves the words you look up as flashcards | Bubblegum's Regenerative Review™, which brings saved words back in new lessons |
| Conversation | A language exchange on HelloTalk | A tutor on italki or Preply |
| Grammar | The Kamus Dewan dictionary on PRPM, which lists the words built from each root | LingoDeer, which explains grammar step by step |
What Should You Avoid?
Avoid anything that keeps you away from real Malay sentences you can follow.
- Indonesian Courses by MistakeAn office is pejabat in Malay and kantor in Indonesian, so check that your first course teaches Malay.
- Lists With No SentencesSave words from lines you have read, so each one comes with an example of how it is used.
- TV News You Can't Follow YetTV news such as Astro Awani is fast and formal, so save it for after you can follow Upin & Ipin with the Malay captions on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it better to learn Malay with an app or a teacher?
Use an app for the hours of reading and listening, and a teacher for speaking and corrections. Lessons with a tutor on italki or Preply are paid, so spend that time talking, and do your reading and listening on your own. Preply has a page of tutors who teach Malay to English speakers.
Should I learn Malay grammar first?
No. Start reading and listening right away, and look a pattern up when it confuses you. A rule is easier to learn once you have seen it a few times: after saya sudah makan (I have already eaten) and dia sudah tidur (she is already asleep), it is easy to see that sudah shows something has already happened.
Which Malay app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Malay, start with Bubblegum. Poppy writes lessons at your level about things you like. Our Malay app comparison covers courses, tutors and vocabulary apps too.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
The Malay lessons on this site are also free and need no account.
Sources
- Jeon and Day (2016), The effectiveness of ER on reading proficiency: A meta-analysis, Reading in a Foreign Language 28(2), University of Hawaii
- Mango Languages for libraries (free access with a library card)
- StoryWeaver: Malay stories (sorted into four levels)
- Readlang, free plan (saves the words you translate as flashcards)
- HelloTalk, Malaysia (free language exchange)
- Kamus Dewan (PRPM): ajar (belajar and mengajar listed under the root)
- Wikipedia: Comparison of Indonesian and Standard Malay (pejabat and kantor)
- Wikipedia: Malay grammar (verbs not marked for tense; sudah for already)
- r/bahasamelayu: I want to improve my Malay. Any tips on how? (cartoons first, TV news such as Astro Awani last)
- r/bahasamelayu: learning spoken/informal malay? (Malay radio for casual speech)
