Bagaimana

Bagaimana is a question word used in Indonesian and Malay to mean “how” or “in what way.” It asks about manner, method, condition, or degree and can introduce direct questions or appear in indirect questions within a sentence. In everyday use, it appears in contexts ranging from asking how something works to inquiring about someone’s state or feelings.

In direct questions, how to use it is straightforward: “Bagaimana cara kerja mesin ini?” means “How does this machine work?” or “Bagaimana kabarmu?” means “How are you?” It can also introduce conditional or hypothetical inquiries, such as “Bagaimana kalau kita mencoba?” meaning “What if we try?” The word also forms common phrases and idioms, for example “bagaimanapun” (however, in any case) and “bagaimanakah” (an emphatic question form).

Etymology and usage notes: bagai mana historically derives from the combination of “bagai” (like) and “mana” (which/what), contracted into a single word in Indonesian and Malay. The term is used in both languages with largely parallel meanings; however, in everyday Indonesian, speakers may prefer “Apa kabar?” for greeting questions, while “bagaimana” remains common in more formal or written contexts. It functions as a versatile interrogative that can introduce clauses describing methods, processes, conditions, or assessments of how something is done.

Related functions include forming relative clauses like “cara bagaimana” (the way in which) and serving as the basis for various compound expressions that convey emphasis or hypothetical scenarios. Bagaimana is not a proper noun and is not used as a name.