Common English mistakes Indonesian speakers make, and how to fix them

If your first language is Bahasa Indonesia, your English mistakes are not random. Most of them follow the grammar and the sounds of Indonesian, and once you know the pattern they are much easier to catch.

The big ones. 1) Tenses: Indonesian marks time with words like "kemarin" or "sudah" and leaves the verb alone. In English the verb changes: "yesterday I go" → "yesterday I went". 2) "Already" for the past: "I already eat" (sudah makan) → "I've eaten" or "I ate". 3) Articles: Indonesian has no "a" or "the", so "I have meeting" → "I have a meeting". 4) Plural -s: "two book" → "two books", but never "informations". 5) Third-person -s: "she work" → "she works". 6) Prepositions: "in Monday" → "on Monday", "the same with" (sama dengan) → "the same as". 7) Question order: "why you did that?" → "why did you do that?". 8) "Very" with verbs: "I very like it" (sangat suka) → "I really like it". 9) Pronunciation: f for v, t for th, dropped final consonants, and stress on the wrong syllable. 10) Direct translation: "I drink medicine" (minum obat) → "I take medicine", "I will follow you" (ikut) → "I'll come with you".

Reading a list will not fix these. What helps is saying the sentences out loud and seeing a correction while you are still in the conversation. Airi is a voice AI partner for that: you talk, she answers out loud, shows one small fix at a time and keeps the conversation going. The sections below cover the patterns this list leaves out, the sounds worth drilling, and a routine to practice them. Free to start.

A quick example with Airi

Yesterday I already meet my friend at the mall.

Nice! Small fix: "Yesterday I met my friend at the mall." What did you two do there?

Yesterday I met my friend at the mall. We watched a movie, and I very like it.

"We watched" was spot on. Small fix: "I really liked it." What kind of movie was it?

I really liked it. It was a horror movie, but my friend was scared.

Poor friend! Do you two often watch horror movies together?

Try a conversation like this, free600 free credits, about 8 minutes of speaking. No card.

Typical mistakes Indonesian speakers make in English, and the Indonesian behind each

Each sentence on the left is correct Indonesian said with English words. They are faithful translations, not careless ones, which is why they are hard to notice in your own speech.

Often said	Natural English	The Indonesian behind it
My sister is a nurse. He works at night.	My sister is a nurse. She works at night.	"Dia" means both he and she.
He sick today.	He's sick today.	"Dia sakit" needs no verb. English needs "am", "is" or "are" before an adjective.
You go where?	Where are you going?	In "Kamu mau ke mana?" the question word comes last and there is no helping verb.
She is my teacher English.	She is my English teacher.	In "guru bahasa Inggris" the describing word follows the noun.
She uses glasses.	She wears glasses.	"Pakai" covers both "use" and "wear". In English you wear glasses, clothes, a helmet and perfume.
Can you borrow me your charger?	Can you lend me your charger? Or: Can I borrow your charger?	"Pinjam" is the root of both verbs. You borrow from someone and lend to someone.
I will back at five.	I'll be back at five.	"Balik" and "kembali" are verbs. English "back" needs "be", "come" or "go".
Your baby is so funny!	Your baby is so cute!	"Lucu" means funny and, in everyday speech, cute. English "funny" does not mean cute.
Thanks before.	Thanks in advance.	"Terima kasih sebelumnya", word for word. English thanks people "in advance".
"You don't eat meat?" "Yes."	"You don't eat meat?" "No, I don't."	"Iya" agrees with what the other person said. In English, "yes" here means "Yes, I do."

How Indonesian time words map to English verb forms

Indonesian verbs do not change for time or person. Time is carried by small words, most of them placed before the verb, and each one usually calls for a particular English verb form.

Indonesian word	English form	Example
belum	haven't or hasn't ... yet	"Dia belum datang." → "She hasn't arrived yet.", not "She not yet come."
pernah	have + past participle	"Saya pernah ke Tokyo." → "I've been to Tokyo.", not "I ever go to Tokyo."
belum pernah	have never + past participle	"Saya belum pernah ke Bali." → "I've never been to Bali."
baru, baru saja	have just + past participle	"Saya baru sampai." → "I've just arrived." American English also says "I just arrived."
sedang, lagi	am, is or are + -ing	"Saya lagi masak." → "I'm cooking.", not "I cooking."
dulu (in the past)	used to + verb	"Dulu saya tinggal di Bandung." → "I used to live in Bandung."
akan, mau	will, or be going to	"Mau hujan." → "It's going to rain.", not "It wants to rain."

English sounds that are hard for Indonesian speakers, and how to make them

In Indonesian, v is usually pronounced like f, and z and "sy" (the English sh) occur only in loanwords, where many speakers use the nearest native sound instead. Standard Indonesian has no th sounds, no vowel like the a in "bad", and no long and short vowel pairs. These habits carry into English, and they matter when a swap turns one word into another.

Sound	Listeners may hear	How to make it	Pair to drill
v in "very"	"ferry"	Top teeth on the lower lip, as for f, then switch your voice on.	fan / van
th in "three" and "they"	"tree" and "day"	Put the tongue tip lightly between the teeth and let the air flow. Add voice for "they".	tin / thin, day / they
sh in "she"	"see"	Pull the tongue back a little from s and round the lips.	sip / ship
z in "zoo"	"Sue"	Hold a long s and add voice until you feel a buzz.	Sue / zoo
a in "bad"	"bed"	Open the jaw wider than for the e in "meja".	men / man
ee in "leave"	"live"	Hold the vowel longer and spread the lips. Keep the i in "live" short and relaxed.	sit / seat

Final consonants, -ed and stress: English endings Indonesian speakers tend to drop

A native Indonesian syllable ends in one consonant at most, and Indonesian syllables get a fairly even beat. English stacks consonants at the end of a word, uses those endings for grammar, and stretches one syllable while it squeezes the others.

Final clusters. The Indonesian loanword "tes" has lost the last t of "test". In English, keep every final consonant: "test", "desk", "help". If the ending goes, "I walked" becomes "I walk".
Final b, d and g. These tend to come out as p, t and k, so "bag" sounds like "back". Keep the vowel longer before b, d and g: "bag", "bed", "job".
The -ed ending. "Worked" and "played" are one syllable each. The ending is a separate syllable only after t or d: "wanted", "needed".
P, t and k at the start. Indonesian p, t and k have no puff of air, so "pin" can be heard as "bin". Hold a hand in front of your mouth and feel the air on "pin", "time" and "key".
Stress. English makes one syllable of a word longer and louder and squeezes the rest. In everyday speech "comfortable" and "vegetable" usually have three syllables, and "chocolate" two.

A drill routine with Airi for Indonesian speakers

Airi does not grade your sounds, so drill the word pairs on your own first. What she adds is real questions that keep calling for the pattern you are working on, and one small fix when the Indonesian version slips through. The free credits cover about eight minutes of speaking, enough for one pattern.

For "pernah", say: "Ask me six 'Have you ever ...?' questions, one at a time." Answer in full sentences: "Yes, I've tried it twice."
For he and she, say "Ask me about my family." Describe your mother, then your brother, so the pronoun has to switch.
For question order, switch roles: "Let me interview you about your hobbies." Ask ten questions that start with where, what, why and how.
For -ed endings, say: "Ask me about last weekend." Put every verb in the past and finish each one: "walked", "watched", "visited".
For one sound, repeat a pair from the table on your own, then use those words in your answers. Airi will not tell you whether a sound was right, so record yourself if you want to check.
Whenever a small fix appears, say the corrected sentence out loud once before you go on.

How to get the most from it

Change the verb, not just the time word

If the Indonesian sentence has "kemarin" or "tadi", the English verb needs a past form: "Kemarin saya kerja" → "I worked yesterday."

"Sudah" is not always "already"

Often it only marks a finished action: "Saya sudah makan" → "I've eaten" or "I ate", not "I already eat".

Drill v and th inside sentences

Say "very", "think" and "they" slowly in full sentences. Airi does not judge sounds, so record yourself and listen back.

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Frequently asked questions

Why do Indonesian speakers make these mistakes?

Because the two languages are built differently. Indonesian verbs do not change for tense, nouns need no article or plural ending, and several English sounds do not exist in Indonesian. The mistakes are transfer from your first language, not carelessness.

Why do Indonesian speakers mix up "he" and "she"?

Indonesian uses one word, "dia", for both, so choosing between them is a new step that has to happen while you are busy with everything else in the sentence. It is a speaking habit rather than a gap in knowledge, and describing family members out loud is a simple way to drill it.

Is an Indonesian accent a problem in English?

No. An accent is part of how you speak, and English is spoken with many accents. What is worth fixing are the few swaps that turn one word into another, such as "tree" for "three" or "back" for "bag", and dropped endings that hide the tense.

Can Airi correct these specifically?

The grammar and word-choice ones, yes. Airi shows one small fix at a time and keeps the conversation going. Tell her you are an Indonesian speaker and which pattern you want to work on, and she can ask questions that bring it up. She does not score or analyze pronunciation, so the sound drills are yours to do.

Is Airi available in Indonesia?

Yes. Airi runs in the browser on a phone or laptop, so there is nothing to install. She speaks English only. You start with 600 free credits, about eight minutes of speaking, when you sign up with Google.

Last updated: 2026-10-03