dari

Source with Dari

Level 1

Dari is a preposition meaning 'from'. In standard Malay, it is strictly used for three things: Arah (Direction), Tempat (Place), and Masa (Time).

How It Works

In Malay, there are two words for 'from': dari and daripada. While English uses 'from' for almost everything, Malay is more specific.

1. Arah (Direction)
Use dari when describing the path or orientation something is coming from.
Example: Angin bertiup dari barat. (The wind blows from the west.)

2. Tempat (Place)
Use dari for physical locations, origins, or distance between places.
Example: Saya baru balik dari pasar. (I just returned from the market.) / Rumahnya dua kilometer dari sini. (His house is two kilometers from here.)

3. Masa (Time)
Use dari to indicate the starting point of a duration.
Example: Dia bekerja dari pagi hingga malam. (He works from morning until night.)

4. The Pairing Rule (From... To...)
When expressing 'from... to...', dari usually pairs with ke (for places and time) or sampai/hingga (for time and places). Note the 'Perimbangan Kata' (Word Balance) rule: phrases must be balanced, e.g., dari semasa ke semasa or dari masa ke masa, but never dari masa ke semasa.

Important Note: In casual conversation, many speakers use dari for everything. However, in formal writing, using dari for people, materials, or comparisons is considered a mistake; for those, you must use daripada. For institutions or organizations, use dari if referring to a physical place you are traveling from (e.g., pulang dari pejabat), but use daripada if it is an abstract source or sender (e.g., surat daripada kementerian). Daripada also covers two more categories: animals (e.g., susu daripada lembu - milk from a cow) and fractions or parts of a whole (e.g., satu daripada tiga - one out of three).

Examples (5)

  1. Dia datang dari Kuala Lumpur.

    He comes from Kuala Lumpur.

    Word by Word: He come from Kuala Lumpur.

    Here, 'dari' is used for a physical place (Tempat).

  2. Kereta itu datang dari arah kiri.

    That car is coming from the left direction.

    Word by Word: Car that come from direction left.

    Here, 'dari' is used for a direction (Arah).

  3. Kedai ini buka dari pukul lapan pagi.

    This shop is open from eight in the morning.

    Word by Word: Shop this open from o'clock eight morning.

    Here, 'dari' is used for a starting point in time (Masa).

  4. Rumahnya dua kilometer dari sini.

    His house is two kilometers from here.

    Word by Word: House-his two kilometer from here.

    Here, 'dari' is used to indicate distance (Jarak) from a point.

  5. Dari mana kamu datang?

    Where do you come from?

    Word by Word: From where you come?

    A common question using 'dari' to ask about origin.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'dari' for people or animals.

    Surat ini dari Ali.
    Surat ini daripada Ali.

    Ali is a person, not a place, direction, or time. Therefore, 'daripada' must be used instead of 'dari'.

  • Using 'dari' for materials.

    Meja ini dibuat dari kayu.
    Meja ini dibuat daripada kayu.

    When describing what something is made of (source material), 'daripada' is the correct choice.

  • Combining 'sejak' and 'dari' together.

    Dia kawan saya sejak dari kecil.
    Dia kawan saya sejak kecil.

    Using 'sejak' (since) and 'dari' (from) together is redundant in standard Malay. You should drop 'dari' and just use 'sejak'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

dariLevel 1Source with Dari

Learn This First

To understand 'dari', learners should first be familiar with the basic prepositional structure in Malay, specifically how markers like 'di' and 'ke' are used before nouns to indicate spatial relationships.

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Words in This Pattern

dari