akan + Verb

Future or Prediction with Akan

Level 1

akan + verb = will / going to

How It Works

The word akan primarily functions as a 'kata bantu aspek' (aspectual auxiliary verb) to mark the future, but it also has a specific role as a preposition.

1. Future Marker (Will/Going to)
It is placed before the verb to indicate a future time or prediction. Note that akan is strictly a time marker; it does not express 'willingness' or 'volition'. To express 'wanting' to do something, use mahu instead. In formal contexts, hendak is also used to show intention or that something is about to happen.

2. Prepositional Use (Toward/About)
In formal Malay, akan acts as a preposition (kata sendi nama) after words expressing emotion or mental states, such as sayang (love), benci (hate), or rindu (miss). It links the emotion to the object: rindu akan kampung (missing [toward] the village). In modern or casual speech, this is frequently replaced by kepada or terhadap, or omitted entirely.

3. Akan vs. Bakal and Seakan-akan
While akan is a general time marker, the word bakal is used for future roles, titles, or events destined to happen (e.g., bakal pengantin - bride-to-be). Do not confuse akan with seakan-akan, which means 'as if' or 'resembling'.

4. Passive Sentences
In passive constructions, the position of akan depends on the subject:

  • 1st/2nd Person: It comes before the pronoun (e.g., akan saya baca).
  • 3rd Person: It comes before the di- prefix (e.g., akan dibaca).

Examples (4)

  1. Saya akan makan nasi lemak esok.

    I will eat nasi lemak tomorrow.

    Word by Word: I will eat rice fat tomorrow.

    A simple future statement using 'akan' before the verb 'makan'.

  2. Hujan akan turun pada petang ini.

    Rain will fall this afternoon.

    Word by Word: Rain will descend at afternoon this.

    Using 'akan' to make a prediction about the weather.

  3. Dia sangat sayang akan ibunya.

    He loves his mother very much.

    Word by Word: He very love toward mother-his.

    In formal Malay, 'akan' acts as a preposition after emotive words like 'sayang' (love) or 'rindu' (miss) to link to the object.

  4. Buku itu akan saya pulangkan nanti.

    I will return that book later.

    Word by Word: Book that will I return later.

    In a first-person object voice sentence, 'akan' must come before the pronoun 'saya'.

Common Mistakes

  • Placing 'akan' between the pronoun and the verb in 1st/2nd person passive voice.

    Buku itu saya akan baca.
    Buku itu akan saya baca.

    In Malay object voice (passive) for 1st and 2nd person, the auxiliary 'akan' must precede the actor pronoun, not follow it.

  • Overusing 'akan' in very casual conversation.

    Saya akan pergi ke kedai sekarang.
    Saya nak pergi kedai jap.

    While not grammatically 'wrong', using 'akan' in casual speech sounds very stiff. Locals prefer 'nak' or simply using the bare verb if the context is clear.

How It Connects

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akan + VerbLevel 1Future or Prediction with Akan

Learn This First

To use 'akan' correctly, you need to understand the basic Malay sentence structure where markers are placed before the verb. It is also important to recognize that Malay uses particles rather than verb conjugations to indicate time, and to distinguish 'akan' from the more common 'mahu' used for immediate plans.

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