Significado
Making a phone call to a peer
Contexto cultural
It is common to send a 'P' (Ping) or a short message like 'Bisa telepon?' (Can I call?) before actually calling, to ensure the person is free. During the call, it is polite to use religious greetings like 'Assalamualaikum' if both parties are Muslim, or 'Shalom' for Christians, especially in more traditional families. Calling a friend often implies a long conversation. If you only have a quick question, you might specify 'Telepon bentar aja' (Just a quick call). Older Indonesians might still refer to the 'Wartel' era when talking about the importance of calling friends, as it was a significant part of youth culture in the 90s.
Drop the prefix
In casual talk, just say 'telepon'. 'Menelepon' is for your Indonesian teacher or a boss.
Watch the time
Don't call friends during prayer times (Maghrib) or very late at night unless it's an emergency.
Significado
Making a phone call to a peer
Drop the prefix
In casual talk, just say 'telepon'. 'Menelepon' is for your Indonesian teacher or a boss.
Watch the time
Don't call friends during prayer times (Maghrib) or very late at night unless it's an emergency.
Use 'Lagi'
Add 'lagi' before 'telepon' to say you are currently doing it: 'Saya lagi telepon teman'.
Teste-se
Fill in the blank with the correct word for 'call'.
Saya mau ____ teman saya sekarang.
'Telepon' is the correct verb for making a phone call.
Which sentence is the most natural for a casual conversation?
How do you say 'I am calling a friend' to a peer?
In casual speech, 'lagi' is used for the continuous tense and the prefix 'me-' is dropped.
Match the Indonesian phrase with its English meaning.
Match the following:
These are common variations of the phrase.
Complete the dialogue.
A: Kamu sibuk? B: Iya, bentar ya, saya lagi ____.
'Telepon teman' fits the context of being busy on a call.
Match the situation to the correct phrase.
You are late and need to inform your friend.
Calling is the best way to inform someone you are late.
🎉 Pontuação: /5
Recursos visuais
Formal vs Informal
Banco de exercicios
5 exerciciosSaya mau ____ teman saya sekarang.
'Telepon' is the correct verb for making a phone call.
How do you say 'I am calling a friend' to a peer?
In casual speech, 'lagi' is used for the continuous tense and the prefix 'me-' is dropped.
Combine cada item a esquerda com seu par a direita:
These are common variations of the phrase.
A: Kamu sibuk? B: Iya, bentar ya, saya lagi ____.
'Telepon teman' fits the context of being busy on a call.
You are late and need to inform your friend.
Calling is the best way to inform someone you are late.
🎉 Pontuação: /5
Perguntas frequentes
10 perguntasYes, in casual Indonesian, the noun 'telepon' is used as a verb meaning 'to call'.
Technically yes, but it's the most common way people spell it in text messages.
'Telepon' is specifically for phone calls, while 'hubungi' means 'to contact' via any method.
You can say 'Saya lagi teleponan' or 'Saya lagi ada telepon'.
No, 'telepon teman' is correct. The 'ke' is unnecessary.
It's an Indonesian-English slang for calling someone and hanging up immediately to get their attention.
It depends on the friend, but generally, 9 PM is the cutoff for polite calls in Indonesia.
Most people just say 'VC' (ve-se) or 'Video call'.
It means 'public phone', though they are very rare in Indonesia now.
Yes, people say 'Telepon WA' all the time.
Frases relacionadas
Hubungi teman
similarTo contact a friend
Angkat telepon
builds onTo answer the phone
Tutup telepon
builds onTo hang up the phone
Salah sambung
specialized formWrong number
Teleponan
similarTo be talking on the phone
