tengah

Indonesian

Etymology

Inherited from Malay tengah (“center”), from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *təŋaq.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /təˈŋah/ [t̪əˈŋah]
• Rhymes: -ah
• Syllabification: te‧ngah

Noun

têngah (plural tengah-tengah)

1. middle
2. centre, center

   Synonym: pusat

3. half

   Synonyms: paruh, perdua

Derived terms

• diketengahi
• diketengahkan
• ditengahi
• menengah
• menengahi
• mengetengahi
• mengetengahkan
• penengah
• pertengahan
• setengah
• setengah-setengah
• tengahan

• ke tengah
• tengah hari
• tengah kanan
• tengah kiri
• tengah malam
• tengah naik
• tengah pusat
• tengah tahunan

• garis tengah
• jari tengah

Conjunction

têngah

1. while: during the same time that

   Synonyms: ketika, sementara

Adverb

têngah

1. (auxiliary) progressive aspect without necessarily a final perspective.

   Synonym: sedang

Further reading

• “tengah”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Javanese

Etymology

From Old Javanese tĕngah.

Noun

tengah

1. middle
2. center
3. navel

Malay

Alternative forms

• tgah, tgh (Internet, text messaging)

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *təŋaq. Cognate with Balinese tengah, Cebuano tunga, and Ilocano tengnga; and distantly with Māori tonga (“south”), Samoan toga (“south”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /təˈŋah/ [t̪əˈŋah]

  • Audio (Malaysia):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -əŋah, -ŋah, -ah
• Hyphenation: te‧ngah

Adverb

tengah (Jawi spelling تڠه)

1. (informal) progressive aspect marker, indicating an ongoing or incomplete action

   Synonym: sedang

   Adam tengah makan.

   Adam is eating

   • 2005 [1849], Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir, edited by Amin Sweeney, Hikayat Abdullah (Karya Lengkap Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir Munsyi; 3)‎^[1], Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia, →ISBN, page 427:

     Maka pada masa itu aku tengah mengajar seorang2 saudagar di rumah Tuan John Morgan.

     Still at that time I was teaching a merchant at the house of Lord John Morgan.

Noun

tengah (Jawi spelling تڠه, uncountable)

1. middle, midst

   Ada seekor beruang di tengah padang.

   There's a bear in the middle of the field.

Affixations

• bertengah
• ke tengah
• menengah
• menengahi
• mengetengahkan
• penengah
• pertengahan
• sesetengah
• setengah
• setengah-setengah

Compounds

• tengah berat
• tengah hari
• tengah harungan
• tengah malam
• tengah naik
• tengah rumah, tengah ruang
• tengah tapak bayang
• tengah tubuh
• tengah turun

Descendants

• > Indonesian: tengah (inherited)

See also

• pusat (“centre”)

Further reading

• "tengah" in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu (PRPM) [Malay Literary Reference Centre (PRPM)] (in Malay), Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017
  (also see "tengah" at PRPM first version)

Sarawak Malay

Alternative forms

• tgh (text messaging, Internet)

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *təŋaq. Cognate with Balinese tengah, Cebuano tunga, and Ilocano tengnga; and distantly with Māori tonga (“south”), Samoan toga (“south”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /te.ŋah/

Adverb

tengah

1. (auxiliary) progressive aspect marker, indicating an ongoing or incomplete action

   Adam tengah makan.

   Adam is eating

Noun

tengah

1. middle, midst, centre

   Ada sikok beruang di tengah padang.

   There's a bear in the middle of the field.

Related terms

• angah (“second-born child”)