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Kata Nama (Nouns)

*Kata nama* is a word that serves as the name for a specific thing or group of objects.
Malay Pronouns Illustration.
© Universiti Malaya

Kata nama, or Nouns in English, is a word that serves as the name for a specific thing or group of objects, such as live creatures, places, acts, attributes, states of existence, or concepts.

Kata nama is separated into three groups in Malay language.

  • Kata Nama Khas (Proper Noun)
  • Kata Nama Am (Common Noun)
  • Kata Ganti Nama (Pronoun)

Kata Nama Khas (Proper Noun)

A specific name for a person, location, animal, or item is a kata nama khas. In most cases, the first letter of the proper name term should be capitalised.

Kata nama khas also is used to refer to something specific or special. For example:

Proton saga, National car
Proton Saga, first Malaysia’s national car. By davocano – Flickr, CC BY 2.0
Category Example of Proper nouns
Manusia (Human) Ali, Izzati, John, Sofea, Encik Ramu
Objek (Object) Proton Saga (car), Pilot (pen), Bonia (brand)
Haiwan (Animal) Si Kancil (mousedeer), Kitty (cat), Ayam Belanda (Turkey)
Tempat (Place) Johor (state), Kuala Lumpur (city), Malaysia, India, Amerika Syarikat (USA)
Bangunan (building) Menara KL, KLCC, Melbourne, Tabung Haji, Menara Eiffel (Eiffel Tower), Singapura

Kata Nama Am (Common Noun)

Kata nama am is a class or group name for a person, place, animal, or thing. In contrast to kata nama khas, kata nama am are not capitalised unless they begin a sentence or appear in a title.

List of kata nama am.

Manusia cikgu, doktor, tentera, pelajar, ibu
Haiwan ayam, burung, gajah, harimau, semut
Benda bola, kerusi, sudu, meja, buku
Tempat sekolah, universiti, balai polis, padang, kantin

Kata Ganti Nama (Pronouns)

Let’s take a look at these pronouns.

Types of Pronouns Singular (Tunggal) Plural (Jamak)
First-person pronouns Saya , Aku Kami , Kita
Second-person pronouns Anda, Awak, Kamu, Engkau (kau) Kamu semua, Awak semua, Anda semua
Third-person pronouns Dia, beliau, -nya, baginda Mereka
© Universiti Malaya
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