sedang

Sedang is a word used in Indonesian and Malay to indicate that an action or state is in progress or happening at the moment. It functions as an adverb and a verbal aspect marker, conveying the sense of “currently,” “in the middle of,” or “in progress.”

In grammar, sedang typically precedes a verb to mark present continuous aspect. For example, saya sedang membaca means “I am reading.” It can also indicate that something was in progress in the past, as in saya sedang makan ketika telepon berbunyi, meaning “I was eating when the phone rang.” Negation is formed with tidak: saya tidak sedang bekerja sekarang.

Sedang can also modify adjectives or describe a temporary status. Examples include cuaca sedang panas (the weather is currently hot) and proyek itu sedang dalam tahap perancangan (the project is currently in the design phase). This usage helps express that a condition is ongoing rather than habitual or completed.

Usage notes and variation: sedang is common in both formal and informal Indonesian and Malay. In casual speech, speakers may opt for lagi to express ongoing action, but sedang provides a clearer aspect marker in many contexts. It is also used in relative clauses and interrogatives: apa yang sedang kamu lakukan? (what are you doing right now?)

In summary, sedang is a versatile marker of ongoing action or state in Indonesian and Malay, used to express present progress, ongoing processes, and temporary conditions across various syntactic constructions.