terjadi

Terjadi is an Indonesian verb meaning “to happen” or “to occur.” It is formed from the root jadi (to become/to happen) with the prefix ter-, which often marks a passive, completed, or accidental sense. As a result, terjadi emphasizes that an event came into being or took place, rather than focusing on the agent or doer of the action. The word is intransitive and does not require a subject performing the action; the event is described as having occurred to the subject or in a given situation.

Etymology and usage notes: ter- plus jadi yields terjadi, a common lexical item in both spoken and written Indonesian. The prefix can convey a sense of surprise, inevitability, or involuntary occurrence, though terjadi is largely neutral and widely used for a broad range of events. Indonesian does not mark tense in verbs, so temporal information is supplied by time expressions or context (e.g., kemarin, hari ini, saat itu).

Typical contexts and examples:

- Gempa bumi terjadi pada malam itu. (An earthquake occurred that night.)

- Kejadian itu terjadi karena korsleting listrik. (That incident happened due to an electrical short circuit.)

- Terjadi kemacetan di pusat kota. (There is/was a traffic jam in the city center.)

- Tidak terjadi apa-apa. (Nothing happened / nothing out of the ordinary.)

Related terms include kejadian (event/occurrence) and peristiwa (incident or happening). Terjadi is a versatile verb in Indonesian that helps describe events, accidents, disasters, or everyday occurrences without specifying the agent.