Classifiers (measure words)

By Speak Indo, from the Speak Indo Indonesian course.

When counting things, use a classifier: 'orang' for people, 'ekor' for animals, 'buah' for objects.

How it works

Like Mandarin or Japanese, Indonesian uses classifiers with numbers: • orang, for people (tiga orang anak = three children) • ekor, for animals (dua ekor kucing = two cats) • buah, for objects / generic (lima buah apel = five apples) • batang, for long/stick-like things (cigarettes, trees) • helai, for thin sheets (paper, clothing) In casual speech, classifiers are often dropped: 'dua kucing' is fine.

Examples

• Ada tiga orang di sana.
  There are three people over there.
• Saya punya dua ekor anjing.
  I have two dogs.
• Beli lima buah mangga.
  Buy five mangoes.