sedang + Verb

In Indonesian, the verbs do not change for tense. A simple sentence like Saya makan can mean 'I eat' or 'I am eating' depending on the situation. In casual Indonesian, speakers often drop progressive markers entirely if the context or a time word like sekarang (now) already makes it obvious that the action is currently unfolding. However, when you want to be specific that an action is currently unfolding, you use sedang.

Key Rules:

• Placement: Sedang generally precedes the verb. The marker masih (still) emphasizes continuation, whereas sedang presents an action as in progress. Often one marker is enough: Saya masih makan (I am still eating) or Saya sedang makan (I am eating). The combination Saya masih sedang makan spells out both continuation and ongoing aspect; do not treat it as automatically ungrammatical. In casual contexts, native speakers usually use masih or the informal marker lagi independently. If they say masih [verb] lagi, it means 'still [verb] again' or 'still [verb] more'.
• No Verb Change: The verb remains in its base or prefixed form (e.g., meN- prefix, ber- basic activity, or di- passive). Sedang is frequently used with passive verbs (e.g., Mobil sedang dicuci - The car is being washed).
• Aspect, not Tense: Sedang describes an action in progress. Because it marks aspect rather than tense, it can be used for past, present, and future progressive actions by adding time markers (e.g., Kemarin jam 8, saya sedang makan - Yesterday at 8, I was eating; Besok pagi, saya sedang bekerja - Tomorrow morning, I will be working).
• Negation: To say you are not currently doing something, use tidak before sedang (e.g., Saya tidak sedang makan - I am not eating right now). You can also use sedang tidak to emphasize a current negative state or lack of mood (e.g., Saya sedang tidak ingin makan - I am currently not wanting to eat).
• Asking Questions: To ask what someone is currently doing, you can use Sedang apa? in formal or neutral contexts, or Lagi ngapain? in informal daily conversation.
• Informal Variant: In daily conversation, the word lagi is the most common way to express the progressive aspect. Note the word order: Saya lagi makan means 'I am eating', but Saya makan lagi means 'I am eating again'.
• Formal Variant: In very formal or literary contexts, you may see tengah used instead of sedang.

Important Note:
The word sedang has a few other common meanings. It can be an adjective meaning 'medium' or 'average' (e.g., ukuran sedang - medium size). Before an adjective or a prepositional phrase, it normally marks a temporary state meaning 'currently' (e.g., Dia sedang sakit - He or she is currently ill; Kami sedang di luar - We are currently outside). To express 'moderately' or 'fairly,' use agak or lumayan instead. Finally, it can act as a conjunction meaning 'whereas' or 'while' (e.g., Saya bekerja, sedang dia tidur - I am working, whereas he is sleeping), though this is often expanded to sedangkan.

Restrictions:
While sedang can be used with temporary states or emotions (e.g., sedang sakit - currently sick, sedang sedih - currently sad), it is not a general marker for every state. Tahu (to know) ordinarily occurs without it. However, suka and ingin can combine with sedang when presented as a current or temporary feeling; standard grammar explicitly accepts these combinations. Additionally, sedang cannot be used with nouns to mean 'currently being a [noun]'. For example, you cannot say Saya sedang guru to mean 'I am currently a teacher'.