Kagum

Kagum is a verb in Malay and Indonesian that means to be impressed, to admire, or to feel a sense of awe toward someone or something. It describes a mental state of admiration and is commonly used to express positive appraisal of a person, an achievement, a performance, or a situation. In everyday speech, kagum is typically paired with prepositions such as dengan or pada, for example: Saya kagum dengan keberanianmu, Dia kagum pada karya seni itu.

Kagum is native to both Malay and Indonesian and forms part of the core vocabulary of these languages. It has related forms that extend its meaning: mengagumkan (to impress or to astonish someone) and terkagum (being amazed or astonished). The noun form is kaguman, referring to the feeling of admiration or awe.

Usage notes and nuance: Kagum conveys admiration rather than surprise. It is suitable for describing genuine appreciation of qualities, accomplishments, or beauty. In formal or literary contexts, the word may appear alongside synonyms such as terpana or mengagumkan to vary tone. For emphasis on the subject’s action that provoked admiration, mengagumkan can be used transitively (sesuatu itu mengagumkan), while kagum itself is typically intransitive, focusing on the observer’s state.

Overall, kagum is a common, neutral term for expressing admiration in Malay and Indonesian, with established verbal derivatives that broaden its expressive range.