dalam arti

In the Sense of

Level 6

Use dalam arti to define exactly what you mean by a specific word or concept, often to prevent misunderstanding or to narrow a broad term.

How It Works

The phrase dalam arti is a sophisticated tool for precision in Indonesian. While it is a staple of formal and academic writing, it also occurs in spoken explanations.

1. Definitional Clarification
It is most commonly used to clarify a term that might be ambiguous. For example, if you say someone is "rich," you might clarify: kaya dalam arti banyak teman (rich in the sense of having many friends).

2. Introducing Clauses with Bahwa
When dalam arti introduces a full clause rather than just a noun phrase, it is a standard convention in formal writing to make the content explicit with the conjunction bahwa (that). For example: bebas dalam arti bahwa mereka dapat memilih sendiri (free in the sense that they can choose for themselves).

3. The "Not X but Y" Construction
A very common rhetorical pattern is bukan dalam arti... melainkan dalam arti... (not in the sense of... but rather in the sense of...). In formal Baku (standard) Indonesian, melainkan is a clear conventional pairing with bukan for contrasting nouns or prepositional phrases. However, in everyday spoken Indonesian or less formal writing, native speakers frequently and naturally use bukan dalam arti... tetapi dalam arti....

4. Technical Academic Usage: Luas vs. Sempit
In legal and social science contexts, this phrase is often paired with luas (broad) or sempit (narrow) to define the scope of a concept. For example, hukum dalam arti luas refers to the entire legal system, while hukum dalam arti sempit might refer only to statutory legislation.

5. Literal vs. Figurative Meanings
To distinguish between literal and figurative meanings, speakers frequently use the fixed phrase dalam arti yang sebenarnya (in the true/literal sense) or its negative counterpart bukan dalam arti yang sebenarnya (not in the literal sense / figuratively). Another highly frequent collocation is dalam arti kata... (in the sense of the word...), which is often used to emphasize the exact definition of a specific word. These are frequently combined into the idiom dalam arti kata yang sebenarnya (in the truest sense of the word).

6. Variants and Register
Unlike other prepositions, dalam is fixed here. You cannot say di arti. Note that dalam artian is a very common and accepted variant in high-level academic, constitutional, and legal documents. The word artian is officially recognized in the KBBI (Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia) as meaning arti, tafsiran, or pengertian, making dalam artian a standard, highly frequent, and acceptable variant, not just slang. Additionally, the synonym dalam pengertian (in the understanding/sense of) is used almost interchangeably in academic and formal contexts (e.g., dalam pengertian luas). While dalam arti is more concise, all are appropriate for formal registers. To distinguish registers, note that in casual conversation, speakers also use maksudnya (meaning / the meaning is) to clarify their point.

Initial Position: A framing phrase can begin a sentence, as in Dalam arti luas, teknologi mencakup lebih dari perangkat keras. Artinya can instead introduce an independent explanation or inference. Do not treat every initial dalam arti as incorrect.

Examples (4)

  1. Dia orang yang bebas, bukan dalam arti tidak punya aturan, melainkan dalam arti bebas dari tekanan mental.

    He/she is a free person, not in the sense of having no rules, but in the sense of being free from mental pressure.

    Word by Word: He/she person who free, not in sense not have rules, but rather in sense free from mental pressure.

    This example shows the formal 'bukan... melainkan...' structure used to correct a potential misunderstanding of the word 'free' by contrasting two definitions.

  2. Istilah konkret di sini digunakan dalam arti pasti dan tertentu.

    The term concrete is used here in the sense of definite and specific.

    Word by Word: Term concrete here used in sense definite and specific.

    Dalam arti specifies how a term is being used in this discussion. This metalinguistic definition does not impose a universal requirement that every Indonesian passive patient be concrete or definite.

  3. Teknologi dalam arti luas mencakup alih pengetahuan ilmiah, bukan hanya perangkat keras.

    Technology in the broad sense includes the transfer of scientific knowledge, not just hardware.

    Word by Word: Technology in sense broad include transfer knowledge scientific, not only device hard.

    This demonstrates how 'dalam arti' can be modified by adjectives like 'luas' (broad) or 'sempit' (narrow).

  4. Kita harus sukses, dalam arti mencapai target yang sudah ditetapkan.

    We must be successful, in the sense of reaching the targets that have been set.

    Word by Word: We must success, in sense reach target which already determined.

    In this context, 'dalam arti' defines the specific criteria for 'success' in a professional setting.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'di arti' or 'pada arti' instead of the fixed phrase.

    Dia sukses di arti banyak uang.
    Dia sukses dalam arti banyak uang.

    'Dalam arti' is a fixed idiomatic expression. The preposition 'dalam' cannot be replaced by other location prepositions like 'di' or 'pada'.

How It Connects

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dalam artiLevel 6In the Sense of

Learn This First

To understand 'dalam arti' (in the sense of), a learner needs to be comfortable with basic Indonesian prepositions and how they form phrases. Since this pattern is used to narrow definitions or provide explicit interpretations, familiarity with the copula 'adalah' (for definitions) and the complementizer 'bahwa' (to introduce explanatory clauses) is essential for constructing complete sentences with this expression.

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Words in This Pattern

arti