sebulan

Sebulan is a time-related term in Malay and Indonesian that denotes a duration of one calendar month or an action taking place over the course of a month. It functions as a unit of time and is used with verbs or modifiers to express duration or temporal scope, such as staying, working, or waiting for a month.

Etymology and form: Sebulan is formed from the prefix se- meaning “one entire” combined with bulan, the word for month. The resulting form conveys the sense of a complete month.

Usage and examples: Sebulan can indicate duration in statements like “Saya tinggal di sana sebulan” (I stayed there for a month) or “Dia bekerja sebulan” (He worked for a month). It also appears in phrases specifying temporal context, for example “sebulan terakhir” (the last month), “sebulan penuh” (a full month), or “sebulan yang lalu” (one month ago). In Indonesian, the expression is commonly used without a following noun, acting as a complete time unit.

Nuance and cross-dialect notes: In both Malay and Indonesian, sebulan behaves as a bound form that combines with other words to refine its meaning. The exact usage preferences can vary by dialect and style, but the core meaning—one month’s duration or a month-long period—remains consistent.

See also: bulan, setahun, sebulan terakhir, sebulan penuh.